Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCorrespondence - BOCCGRANT COUNTY COMMISSIONERS AGENDA MEETING REQUEST FORM (Must be submitted to the Clerk of the Board by 12:00pm on Thursday) REQUESTING DEPARTMENT: BOCC DATE: 2/26/2026 REQUEST SUBMITTED BY: TGAI N ES PHONE: 2931 CONTACT PERSON ATTENDING ROUNDTABLE. TGAI N ES CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION: ❑YES ® NO MR jo, WIN I -- ------------ - -- ---- ---- -.iMIPM-11M�% F EAR-��Vj "I.0mmlasii�%J 0 -1 WINES ❑Agreement / Contract ❑AP Vouchers ❑Appointment / Reappointment ❑ARPA Related ❑ Bids / RFPs / Quotes Award ❑ Bid Opening Scheduled ❑ Boards / Committees ❑ Budget ❑Computer Related ❑County Code El Emergency Purchase ❑Employee Rel. ❑ Facilities Related ❑ Financial ❑ Funds ❑ Hearing ❑ Invoices / Purchase Orders [-]Grants — Fed/State/County ❑ Leases ❑ MOA / MOU ❑ Minutes ❑ Ordinances ❑ Out of State Travel ❑ Petty Cash ❑ Policies ❑ Proclamations CC; Request for Purchase ❑ Resolution ❑ Recommendation ❑ Professional Serv/Consultant ©Support Letter ❑ Surplus Req. ❑Tax Levies ❑Thank You's ❑Tax Title Property ❑WSLCB WIS �� f " "INN WE blv FIVE M-01-1 SIFT, �, 'WWI -W= '.� N Jj- AN Letter of Support for FY27 Community Project Funding / Congressionally Directed Spending - Grant County - Grant County Coroner's Office Advanced Equipment Project. If necessary, was this document reviewed by accounting? ❑ YES ❑ NO 7 N/A If necessary, was this document reviewed by legal? El YES ❑ NO W N/A DATE OF ACTION: 3 3 Z 7,ze DEFERRED OR CONTINUED TO: APPROVE: DENIED ABSTAIN D1: D2: D3: WITHDRAWN: 4/23/24 . Outlook Re: Letter of Support From Craig Morrison <cmorrison@grantcountywa.gov> Date Thu 2/26/2026 1:41 PM To Tom Gaines <tgaines@grantcountywa.gov> Cc Caitlin E. Manell <cemanell@grantcountywa.gov>; Cindy Carter <ccarter@grantcountywa.gov>; Rob Jones <rjones@grantcountywa.gov>; Kevin R. Burgess <krburgess@grantcountywa.gov> Thank you Tom, I have contacted Adams County, Whitman County and Adams County coroners and they have agreed to get this letter sent off ASAP. I was unable to make contact with the other counties at this point but will continue to try. Today we are currently transporting bodies to Spokane County Medical Examiner's office and working on temporary solutions for the rest of the week. I'll get the rest of the request as soon as I can. Craig Morrison On Feb 26, 2026, at 11:24 AM, Tom Gaines <tgaines@grantcountywa.gov> wrote: Thank you! Tom Gaines Administrator Grant County, VGA tgaines@grantcountywa.gov 509-754-2011 Ext 3276 509-237-2920 (mobile) Serve the Public, Bc Exgtional, Enjoy Life From: Caitlin E. Manell <cemanell@grantcountywa.gov> Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2026 11:23 AM To: Tom Gaines <tgaines@grantcountywa.gov>; Cindy Carter <ccarter@grantcountywa.gov>; Rob Jones <rjones@grantcountywa.gov>; Kevin R. Burgess <krburgess@grantcountywa.gov>; Craig Morrison <cmorrison@grantcountywa.gov> Subject: Re: Letter of Support Hello, I will get this on BOCC Letterhead and added to Consent as soon as I receive the updated version from Craig. Thanks! Caitlin E. Manell Clerk of the Board <Outlook -Party popp.png> Grant County Commissioners Office PO Box 37 35 C Street NW Ephrata, WA 98823 509-754-2011 ext. 2931. 509-754-6098 (fax) *Please be advised that entails to the Board of County Commissioners and staff mad be subject to public records requests pursuant to RCW 42.56. From: Tom Gaines <tgaines@grantcountywa.gov> Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2026 11:21 AM To: Cindy Carter <ccarter@grantcountywa.gov>; Rob Jones <rjones@grantcountywa.gov>; Kevin R. Burgess <krburgess@grantcountywa.gov>; Caitlin E. Manell <cemanell@grantcountywa.gov>; Craig Morrison <cmorrison@grantcountywa.gov> Subject: Fw: Letter of Support We need this signed by our commissioners as well on their letterhead . Craig will you please fill out the blurb for the coroner, and also do one yourself on your letterhead? Thankyou Tor.. Gaines Administrator Grant County, WA tgaines Ez cyran.tcountywa.uov 509-7.54--21011 Ext 3276 509-237-2920 (mobile) Senc the Public, Be Exceptional, Ei�jgy Life From: Tom Gaines <tgaines@grantcountywa.gov> Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2026 11:19 AM To: jgiulio@co.douglas.wa.us <jgiulio@co.douglas.wa.us>; mandy.buchholz@co.kitbtas.wa.us <mandy.buchholz@co.kittitas.wa.us>; Rob Coffman <rcoffman@co.lincoln.wa.us>; skeitzman@co.okanogan.wa.us <skeitzman@co.okanogan.wa.us>; Jessica.jensema@whitmancounty.gov <Jessica.jensema@whitmancounty.gov>; heidih@co.adams.wa.us <heidih@co.adams.wa.us> Subject: Letter of Support I hope you're all doing well. Each of you is listed as an affiliate on the WSAC Administrators group (with the exception of Commissioner Coffman), and I'm reaching out to ask for a favor. According to our County Coroner, each of your counties receives some level of support from the Grant County Coroner's Office, whether through autopsies performed, assistance with death investigations, or other services. While we don't have exact figures, the support is significant enough that our coroner specifically identified your counties as ones we regularly assist, which we see as a very positive partnership. We are in the process of building a new coroner's office, and it has become clear that we function more as a regional resource than a purely local one. Because of this, we are requesting federal assistance to purchase needed equipment. The total project cost is expected to be between nine and twelve million dollars, and we are seeking a little over two million dollars in federal funding. A letter of support from you would be extremely helpful in strengthening our request. If you are willing, would you please place the attached draft letter of support on your letterhead (or your commissioners' letterhead, if they are agreeable) and return it to me by March 8th, which is the deadline for Senator Cantwell's office? Thank you very much for considering this request. Please don't hesitate to call me if you have any questions: 509-237-2920 Respectfully, Tom Gaines Administrator Grant County, WA tgaines@grantcountywa.gov 509-754-2011 Ext 3276 509-237-2920 (mobile) Serve the Public, Be Exceptional, Enjoy Life March 3, 2026 The Honorable Patty Murray U.S. Senate 154 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 The Honorable Dan Newhouse U.S. House of Representatives 460 Cannon House Office Building Washington, DC 20515 GRANT COUNTY OFF -ICE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS P 0 Box 37 EPHRATA WA 9BB23 (509) 754-201 1 The Honorable Maria Cantwell U.S. Senate 511 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 RE: FY27 Community Project Funding/Congressionally Directed Spendina, — Grant County — Grant County Coroner's Office Advanced Equipment Project Dear Congressman Newhouse and Senators Cantwell and Murray, The Grant County Commissioners write in strong support of Grant County's FY27 Community Project Funding / Congressionally Directed Spending request for advanced Coroner's Office equipment. This investment is critical to ensuring continuity of coroner services for more than seven counties across Central and Southeast Washington. The Grant County Coroner's Office conducts death investigations and autopsies throughout Grant County and provides essential support to Kittitas, Adams, Lincoln, Whitman, and at times Douglas and Okanogan Counties. As a result, the office functions as a regional forensic hub, serving a geographically vast area with significant travel distances between communities. Counties with populations under 200,000 lack the tax base and infrastructure necessary to employ a full-time forensic pathologist. Currently, a single pathologist serves multiple counties without medical examiner offices, creating significant strain and regional vulnerability. Meanwhile, rural counties continue to experience increasing caseloads without access to the resources available in larger metropolitan jurisdictions. This situation has become urgent. The hospital facility that has long housed the Grant County Coroner's Office is closing, directly threatening the continuity of autopsy and forensic examination services for the region. Without a dedicated facility and updated equipment, death investigations across Central and Southeast Washington could face delays, increased transportation burdens, and service disruptions affecting law enforcement, prosecutors, and families. Kevin R. Burgess Rob Jones Cindy Carter District 1 District 2 District 3 "PTO MEET CURRENT AND FUTURE NEEDS, SERVING TOGETHER WITH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ENTITIES, WHILE FOSTERING A RESPECTFUL AND SUCCESSFUL WORK ENVIRONMENT." GRANT COUNTY OFFICE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS P 0 Box 37 EPHRATA WA 9BB23 (509) 754-201 1 For the first time in county history, Grant County must construct a stand-alone Coroner's Office and morgue to preserve essential public safety and public health functions. Federal investment in advanced equipment is a critical component of this effort. These upgrades will enable efficient, non-invasive autopsy capabilities, improve turnaround times, and strengthen interoperability with neighboring rural counties that depend on Grant County's services. The office currently operates with four investigators, in addition to the elected Coroner, and conducts approximately 150 autopsies annually and more than 520 death investigations that do not require autopsy. Without investment in updated facilities and equipment, the region risks delays in investigations, increased costs, and added emotional and financial burdens on families during their most difficult moments. This project is not simply a local facility improvement, it is a regional public safety investment that ensures rural communities receive timely, professional death investigation services comparable to those available in more populous areas. Federal partnership at this moment is essential to maintaining continuity of service and ensuring equitable access to critical forensic infrastructure. For these reasons, the Grant County Commissioners strongly support this funding request and respectfully ask for your favorable consideration. We greatly appreciate your leadership and your staffs continued work in supporting rural communities across Washington State. Thank you for your consideration of this important request. Sincerely, BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Kevin R. Bur ss, Chair Roby es, ice -Chair Cindy Ca er, Member Kevin R. Burgess Rob Jones Cindy Carter District 1 District 2 District 3 "TO MEET CURRENT AND FUTURE NEEDS? SERVING TOGETHER WITH PUBLIC AND PRIVATE ENTITIES? WHILE FOSTERING A RESPECTFUL AND SUCCESSFUL WORK. ENVIRONMENT.??