Dec. 11—JEFFERSON — The Ashtabula County Board of Commissioners are attempting to finalize a policy regarding animals in county buildings and county-owned land.
During a Tuesday work session, the commissioners heard about two potential policies that would address pets in the work place.
Jessica Brundage, human resources director for Ashtabula County, provided two proposed polices for commissioner review. She said both policies were put together following the American Disabilities Act and the Ohio Revised Code.
Brundage and Commissioner Kathryn Whittington said the policy has been in the works for a while, but a recent incident pushed the need for a review to the forefront.
The first policy would detail how service animals are to be handled. The second would ban animals from county buildings and property, but the wording would allow for one-time animal-related events similar to ones that have occurred in the past.
The commissioners received an update regarding the state of emergency declared due to the major snowstorm Thanksgiving weekend from Ashtabula County Emergency Management Agency Director Mike Fitchet.
“The declaration is still in place. We don’t want to end it before the recovery phase is over,” Fitchet said. He said expenditures in the county need to reach $460,000 in costs to be eligible for state emergency money.
He said the county will not reach the level of damage for federal funds.
Cooperation between the Ohio Department of Transportation and area municipalities continues, Fitchet said.
“There are plenty of ODOT crews still around,” Fitchet said.
The extra crews came from other counties to assist Ashtabula, Geneva, Conneaut and Geneva-on-the-Lake during the snow emergency.
The county declared a state of emergency, which Gov. Mike DeWine affirmed early in the storm. He said the funds can be used for uninsured or high-liability properties damaged in the storm.
If expenses in the county reach the $460,000 threshold, up to 75% of the costs could be reinbursed. Fitchet said the Ohio Emergency Management Agency will make the final decision.
“This is only the second time they have used this program for snow,” Fitchet said. He said he has given applications to all of the county’s sub-divisions.
The commissioners thanked Fitchet for his work during the storm.