Kerr County Commissioners' Court Session Summary — Monday, June 22, 2026

Disclaimer: The following summary is an unofficial transcript compiled from the Commissioners' Court session and related materials. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, figures, quotes, and details should be verified against official county records, meeting minutes, and public remarks. This summary is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute an official county document.

Kerr County Commissioners' Court Session Summary

Session Date: Monday, June 22, 2026
Presiding Officer: Pro-Tem Chair (Presiding in the scheduled absence of County Judge Rob Kelly)

1. Public Input & Open Infrastructure Advocacy

Guadalupe River Resource Community Appeal: Juliet Weldon, representing flood survivors from the July 4th disaster, presented an emotional public appeal detailing ongoing recovery gaps.

Citizen Request / Question: Weldon asked the court to recognize that long-term recovery is still an ongoing battle for displaced residents and renters. She formally requested three actions from the county by June 29th:

• The creation of a centralized, bilingual (English/Spanish) flood recovery website and telephone hotline.
• Extended county advocacy for a 1-year continuation of local rental and utility assistance for displaced residents.
• Unified local government lobbying targeting the U.S. Congress to immediately pass HUD Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) appropriations for 2025 and 2026 regional disasters.

Court Answer: The Pro-Tem Chair thanked Weldon for her comments but noted that under Texas open-meeting laws, the court is legally prohibited from responding to or acting upon items brought up during public input that are not explicitly listed on the day's agenda.

Public Input and Citizen Comments

The public input and citizen comments throughout the session are broken down below:

1. General Public Input Section

Juliet Weldon (Guadalupe River Resource Community): Stepped forward to speak on behalf of July 4th flood survivors. She gave emotional testimony about her personal survival story and requested a centralized bilingual recovery website, extended rental/utility assistance, and federal disaster relief funding advocacy from the county.

Note: Because this was brought up during general input and wasn't a specific agenda item, the court was legally prohibited from formally debating or answering her requests at that moment. Rich Paces contacted her after the meeting and connected her with appropriate support.

2. Agenda Item 1.1 (The Election Hand Count)

When the metrics for the recent primary runoff hand count were presented, several citizens and election workers came forward to formally comment in support of the initiative:

• Becky Belaloo (Precinct 1 Chair / Judge): Commented on the high enthusiasm of the workers and the thorough checks and balances of the system.
• Christine Pier (Central Count Presiding Judge): Shared her firsthand experience, stating the hand count process was expedient, highly organized, and focused on accuracy first.
• Robbie Pedi (Precinct 202 Chair): Reported that even clerks who were originally skeptical or neutral were highly impressed by the transparency and positive feedback from everyday voters.
• Barbara Ferguson (Precinct 2 Table Lead): Commented that the "Chapter 65" system used was the most impressive and foolproof hand-counting method she had seen across multiple municipal recounts and audits.

3. Official Public Hearings

Item 1.12 (Horizon Section One Plat Revision): The court officially opened the floor for a public hearing on this precinct plat change. No citizens came forward to speak, and this specific public hearing was immediately adjourned.

2. Proclamations & Public Hearings

America 250 Commemoration: The court unanimously approved a proclamation celebrating the upcoming 250th anniversary of the United States of America. Ongoing local events and schedules are centered at kerr250.com.

Patriot Day 25th Anniversary: The court formally approved a proclamation designating September 11th as Patriot Day to honor the souls lost and those who served in the Global War on Terror. A public memorial observance is scheduled at the Schreiner University Beer Garden at 5:00 PM on September 11th.

Horizon Section One Plat Revision: The court opened a public hearing regarding the revision of a plat for Horizon Section One (Lots 8, 9R, and 10R) in Precinct 1. No citizens came forward to speak, and the public hearing was officially adjourned.

3. Voted Environmental & Utility Orders

Stringent On-Site Sewage Facilities (OSSF) Regulation: Environmental Health Director Ashley Batters announced that the TCEQ approved the county's proposed strict septic amendments. The new draft order introduces "Section 9," which strips standard permitting exemptions for tracts larger than 10 acres.

OSSF Permit Manifest: Moving forward, all new single-family structures built on tracts greater than 10 acres in Kerr County will legally require an official OSSF permit.

Court Q&A / Clarification:

Question (From Court Liaison): To clarify for the common public, what exactly does this order entail and who will it impact?

Answer (Ashley Batters): This order focuses strictly on new development on tracts over 10 acres. Due to a previous change in district groundwater rules requiring larger track sizes for wells, many developers were inadvertently bypassing the permitting safety process entirely. This modification will not affect anyone who already has an existing, functioning septic system, nor will it alter smaller lot rules.

Approved Motions: The court voted 4-0 to authorize Environmental Health to publish a notice of a public meeting regarding these rules in the Hill Country Community Journal. They additionally voted 4-0 to schedule a formal public hearing to officially adopt the OSSF order on July 13, 2026.

4. Fiscal, Operations & Emergency Contracts

Property Insurance Renewal: Human Resources/Risk Management Liaison Sylvia Zapata presented the annual Texas Association of Counties (TAC) property insurance renewal. The premium rate increased by 13% due to regional inflation and structural risk. The renewal was approved by the court.

Emergency Alert System Overhaul: The court approved a multi-year contract with Everbridge Public Safety Communications to completely replace the county's legacy OnSolve "Code Red" system.

System Benefits: Everbridge locks in fixed pricing for up to five years, yields massive immediate cost savings compared to Code Red, and features superior situational tools. These include instant text-keyword subscriptions (e.g., text keyword "screwworm" to a designated number for vector updates) and temporary QR-code subscriptions for regional RV parks.

Transition Window: The county's Code Red coverage remains active until February 2027. Everbridge is providing the county with a free trial transition phase starting immediately through October 2026 to facilitate a marketing campaign and get residents migrated over.

Operation Stone Garden Grant: The court voted to accept $42,729 via the 2025 Operation Stone Garden Grant. Captain Gage confirmed the funds are designated strictly to cover overtime hours for active sheriff's deputies.

Solid Waste Office Disposition: The court debated the fate of a highly functional 20x10 portable brown office building located at 3600 Loop 534. To ensure the physical property remains unencumbered for potential real estate transactions, the court voted 3-1 to authorize paying a $500 fee to physically relocate the building to the West Kerr Annex for temporary office utilization.

Real Estate & Fire Marshal RFQs: The court accepted individual bid packets for part-time Contract County Fire Marshal qualifications (under review by a committee of Commissioner Harris and Sylvia Zapata) alongside three competitive bids for local county real estate brokerage services (Jennifer Wang Brokerage, Brinkman Properties, and Fore Texas Hill Country Property Group).

5. Liaison Reports & Regional Infrastructure Updates

The Primary Runoff Hand Count Assessment: Coordinator Sharon Agold delivered the final metrics of the primary runoff election hand count. The total operational cost was just $1,548 for staff and $1,865 for supplies—drastically disproving widespread public rumors that a hand count would cost local taxpayers $400,000. Seventy-two volunteers successfully hand-counted 2,692 paper ballots in 5 hours and 7 minutes across four local precincts. An onsite Texas Secretary of State elections specialist praised the county's tracking systems, requesting to adapt Kerr County's custom templates for statewide training.

Public Comment / Support: Local citizens and election workers (Becky Belaloo, Christine Pier, Robbie Pedi, and Barbara Ferguson) stepped forward during this agenda item to praise the hand count. They noted that the volunteer enthusiasm was incredibly high, the newly reintroduced "Chapter 65" method felt completely foolproof compared to standard machine audits or municipal recounts, and even uninitiated voters left the booths feeling reassured and excited about election transparency.

BESS Public Utilities Hearing: Commissioner Rich Paces announced that the Hill Country Energy Subregional Planning Commission filed detailed structural objections highlighting 21 key reasons why they oppose the state's proposed Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) regulations. A delegation is traveling to the PUC headquarters in Austin for a public hearing on Thursday, June 25th at 9:30 AM to protest a rule that forces utility ratepayers to guarantee high profit-return margins to private battery developers.

Aggregate Producers Best Practices: The Aggregate Producers Advisory Council is shifting its focus toward proactive river reclamation. The county is arranging a public tour of local mining assets (including Kerrville Sand and Gravel) and is reviewing two abandoned pits along the river road corridor to explore low-cost culvert modifications that could safely divert heavy floodwaters away from downstream communities like Comfort, Texas.

New World Screwworm Emergency Alert: The court voted to extend the county's local State of Disaster Declaration regarding the spread of the New World Screwworm vector.

Court Q&A / Clarification:

Question (Rich Paces): What exactly does this disaster declaration get us today, and is it releasing immediate relief funds?

Answer (Court Pro-Tem): Currently, the governor's statewide declaration covers immediate needs, so there is no immediate financial payout to Kerr County today. However, keeping this local declaration active on the books is a vital preemptive paperwork move. If this epidemic escalates across our dense wildlife herds and forces county expenditures down the line, having this active declaration allows us to seamlessly qualify for emergency state and federal assistance.

Philanthropic Long-Term Disaster Recovery Summary: Austin Dixon of the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country presented a data-driven 1-year roadmap detailing how the foundation has deployed $82 million out of $150 million in privately raised disaster relief funds. Over 100 households have returned to permanent housing. To completely avoid the deployment of FEMA trailers, the foundation currently funds 100% of the rent and utility costs for 138 households (310 individuals) staying in temporary apartments or Airbnbs. The foundation distributed $15 million directly into small business stabilization (via zero-interest LiftFund loans), paid off the 2025 property tax obligations for 108 qualified flood victims, funded specialized swiftwater rescue equipment for the Sheriff's Office, and completely underwrote local mental health care clinics and youth camp counselors dealing with post-disaster trauma.

6. Voted Court Agenda Outcomes Table

Agenda Item	Topic / Description	Action Taken	Court Vote
1.1	Election Integrity & Runoff Hand Count Metrics	Report Accepted	Non-Voting Report
1.2	Proclamation Commemorating America 250th Anniversary	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.3	Proclamation for 25th Anniversary Patriot Day Observance	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.4	1-Year Comprehensive Flood Recovery Update (Community Foundation)	Report Accepted	Non-Voting Report
1.5	Notice Authorization for Public Meeting on OSSF Septic Order Amendments	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.6	Setting Official OSSF Septic Order Public Hearing (July 13, 2026)	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.7	Ratification of 2025 Operation Stone Garden Deputy Overtime Grant	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.8	RFQ Bids Acceptance for Part-Time Contract County Fire Marshal	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.9	TAC Annual County Property & Liability Insurance Renewal (+13%)	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.10	Official Holiday Schedule Approvals for FY 2026-2027	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.11	Official County Payroll Schedule Approvals for FY 2026-2027	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.12	Public Hearing: Horizon Section One Lots 8, 9R, & 10R Plat Revision	Adjourned	No Public Comment
1.13	Amending Plat: Stone Lee Subdivision Tracks 17 & 18 (Precinct 2)	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.14	Commissary Post Upgrade to Commissary & Detention Tech Coordinator	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.15	RFQ Bids Acceptance for County Real Estate Brokerage Services	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.16	Hill Country Energy Subregional Planning Commission Update	Report Accepted	Non-Voting Report
1.17	State of Disaster Declaration Extension (New World Screwworm)	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.18	Relocation Disposition of Solid Waste Office Building to West Kerr Annex	Approved	Majority Pass (3-1)
1.19	Cash Donations Acceptance to Kerr County Animal Control ($70)	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
1.21	Everbridge Public Safety Multi-Year Emergency Notification Contract	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
2.1	Line-Item Transfers & Revenue Budget Amendments	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)
2.2	General County Invoices & Bill Payments ($1,531,921.68)	Approved	Unanimous (4-0)

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