Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors Kyle Rutledge, Josh Todd, Joe Norwood and County Administrator David Engel will head to Washington D.C. next week in a bid to get the KC-135 simulator back at Key Field.

    The group will meet with Mississippi’s congressional delegation, which includes House Representatives Gregg Harper (District 3 – R) Bennie Thompson (District 2 – D) and Steven Palazzo (District 4 – R), along with Senators Thad Cochran ® and Roger Wicker ®, about the simulator. Congressman Alan Nunnelee (District 1-R) is in hospice care battling cancer.

    “This is important matter for us and Key Field,” Rutledge said of the trip that will start Feb. 9 and conclude on Feb. 11. “It was great to get the KC-135s back but we need the simulator back. It will provide training and that will mean more economic development for the county and more dollars coming into the county as those folks stay and train.”

    Also at the meeting, in an update on the Mississippi Ethics Commission’s finding that the Board of Supervisors had violated portions of the state’s open meeting law, Board Attorney Lee Thaggard said the county’s appeal of the Ethics Commission rulings will paid for out of the retainer from the board to his firm.

    “No additional tax funds will be needed to be spent on this,” Thaggard said to the supervisors.

    On Jan. 9, the Ethics Commission ruled three supervisors violated the state’s open meetings law in late March 2013 by holding individual meetings to discuss passing a bond issue. That was about a year after Marion resident Tommy Williams filed a complaint with the commission alleging the violation.

    The Ethics Commission did not levy any fines.

      At issue was whether the supervisors, who make up a five-member board, violated the Mississippi Open Meetings Act when they met with attorneys and a bond consultant in groups of two just days prior to approving in a 3-2 vote a $14 million bond issue for recreation projects and improvements to the Lauderdale County Courthouse. The matter of the bond issue was not discussed in the Thursday work session held prior to the April 1 board meeting, however it was on the agenda that day.

    In other matters, the board delivered recognition proclamations for two retiring county employees, Joseph Lemoine as the Lauderdale County Veterans Services Officer and Steve McCartney as the director of Meridian/Lauderdale County Library.

    District 4 Supervisor Hank Florey said he has 33 applicants to fill the vacancy due to Lemoine’s retirement.

    The board  approved a proclamation saluting the Sheriff Department’s Crisis Intervention Team. Sheriff Billy Sollie said February is “Crisis Interventional Team Awareness Month.”

    The board also approved a proclamation saluting the East Mississippi College Lions for winning the 2014 National Junior College Athletic Association’s football championship. The Lions went 12-0 and beat Iowa Western 34-17 on Dec. 7 at the Mississippi Bowl in Biloxi. This was the Lions second straight championship under coach Buddy Stephens and the third in four years.

    Supervisors also:

    * Approved deputy Clifford Holloway to attend K-9 training in Kaplan, La. The cost of the training is $4,800.

    * Approved investigator Gypsi Ward to attend International Conference on Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence in New Orleans on April 7-9.

    * Tax Assessor James Rainey got approval for employees to attend the IAAO 311 Fundamentals of Residential Modeling Concepts in Baton Rouge in April, the Certified Appraisers School at Mississippi State University in Starkville in May and the Income Valuation II course in Hoover, Ala., in May.

    * Approved the re-appointment of Jimmie Moore for another five-year term on the Community College Board of Directors for East Mississippi Community College. Moore said the EMCC board will have its first meeting to start the process to replace retiring President Dr. Rick Young.

    * Approved the board president to sign the Delta Computer Systems User Profile Authorization form.

    * Approved payment to Butler Snow for $4,350 for preparation and submission for SEC self-reporting documentation.

    * Approved Rob Seal to attend the Dixie National Quarter Horse show and Equine Expo on Feb. 16-22 in Jackson.

    * Approved Rutledge, Todd, Norwood, and Engel’s travel to Washington, D.C.