During this morning’s “State of the County” address at the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce’s Rooster Booster breakfast, Daviess County Judge Executive Al Mattingly gave us all something to consider.
Even those who live in the city limits of Owensboro or Whitesville are covered by services provided by Daviess County Fiscal Court and its constitutional officers. So in case you’ve ever wondered what benefit we get from the County taxes we pay, here are some services the County provides all of us that you may have never realized.
“In my time in public service, many people have asked me what benefit they get from paying county taxes. I think of county government as being a service provider. We impact each and every citizen.” – County Judge Executive, Al Mattingly
Animal Control – KY Statute 258 says each county must have a dog warden and pound, which in our case is housed at the Daviess County Fiscal Court facility at 2620 Highway 81.
Emergency Management – KRS Chapter 39 says counties must maintain an emergency management plan. This includes search and rescue procedures, handling hazardous material, and storm response.
County Fire Departments – Daviess County has two full-time stations with 30 firefighters, supported by 10 volunteer stations, which average over 270 runs per month.
County Parks and Recreation – From Romp in the summer at Yellow Creek, to Christmas lights at Panther Creek Park, to the urban-suburban Horse Fork Creek Park, the County Parks are some of the best-kept in the state.
Operations Center – Includes engineering and roads, which maintains 560 miles of county roads.
Solid Waste – Designed to be self-sustaining through fees, not taxes. Our solid waste site has transformed from a “dump” to a state-of-the-art landfill that recycles, land farms, captures methane gas, produces compost, and is in the process of integrating solar panels to generate electricity. The transfer station on Grimes Avenue saves city residents a 44-mile round trip to the landfill.
In addition, the County also has constitutional officers, which each county is mandated to have.
Those include:
- Coroner – Jeff Jones and his staff are responsible for investigating all deaths in Daviess County.
- Property Valuation Administrator – Rachel Foster and her staff are responsible for maintaining property records.
- County Clerk – David “Oz” Osborne and his staff maintain records including auto, deeds, property, wills, and other records. The County Clerk also oversees city and county elections.
- Sheriff – Sheriff Keith Cain’s department consists of criminal investigation, court security, tax collection, and other aspects of law enforcement.
- Circuit Clerk – Susan Tierney is responsible for managing district, circuit, and family court records, as well as other duties.
- County Attorney – Claud Porter and his four divisions advise Fiscal Court and serves as legal counsel.
- Jailer – David Osborne and his staff see to the needs of city and county inmates at the Detention Center, as well as state inmates housed here.
Mattingly says the Daviess County Fiscal Court and its constitutional officers strive to provide a myriad of services in a “seamless, efficient, cost-effective manner” to all citizens of Daviess County, Owensboro, and Whitesville.
