August 7th 2026 |
Photo – File Photo
County officials expressed uncertainty over new requirements for Mineral Royalty Grants.
During Tuesday’s Board of Carbon County Commissioners meeting, Vice Chairwoman Gwynn Bartlett presented a certification statement for the county’s Mineral Royalty Grant application. Vice Chair Bartlett explained that the grant is to replace an elevator at Memorial Hospital of Carbon County. However, she noted that the agreement’s wording requires the county to have already done something it is not yet able to do.
Specifically, Vice Chair Bartlett said the agreement requires the county to meet the grant requirements before the elevator replacement project even starts. She said she brought the discrepancy to the State Loan and Investment Board’s attention. Despite her concerns, she said the agency still expects the county to accept the certification.
Vice Chair Bartlett said that in the past, the county would only sign the agreement when a contractor was selected or after submitting a reimbursement request. Only then, she said, could county officials be certain they were complying with the requirements of the Mineral Royalty Grant.
Bartlett said she was not comfortable signing the agreement as written. Deputy County Attorney Ashley Davis agreed that the certification statement was unusual.
Attorney Davis offered to contact Attorney General Keith Kautz’s office and inform the state that the county will not sign the agreement until after work has begun. Instead, Vice Chair Bartlett said she would notify her State Loan and Investment Board contact of the Board of Commissioner’s decision.
