Judicial candidate visits Rosston council

By John Miller, 10/11/22 9:57 AM

ROSSTON – There was a surprise visitor at the Rosston City Council for its October meeting Monday evening.

Bob Cummings, candidate for Nevada County Judge showed up to talk with the council members about his plans and the community’s needs.

He said he won’t forget Rosston if he’s elected and will work with the mayor and council to do what he can. Cummings pointed out the county is getting smaller, population-wise, and there’s less money available but the services are still there. The judge’s job, he continued, is to manage the county’s money.

Cummings said the internet is also a big issue, behind roads, as more and more is being pushed on to the internet. He reminded the council the Walnut Hill  Company is moving toward Rosston from the Falcon area and other internet providers could soon be available as well.

However, the main job for the judge, he said, is the county roads. “We need to do something about them.”

Rosston Mayor Dale Quarles said communication is a big issue for him and he’s not satisfied with how things currently are. He told Cummings the response needs to be better to serve the people of the south part of the county.

Cummings said he’ll be in and out of the office early on, working to get a handle on what’s going on in the county. The judge’s office will have a full-time secretary, and people will be able to reach him with his cell phone. “It will be a struggle at the start, but I’ll be making drastic changes,” he said. “If you have a problem, call your local justice of the peace.”

The county primarily gets its funding through tax money, he said, which means it comes from the people’s taxes. “Money is hard to come by,” he said, “and we’ve gotta be wise keepers for the people. This is a big county and I plan some good changes. People may not like them, but there will be changes.”

Cummings said he plans to attend council meetings across the county if elected, and has been attending them for the last few months.

In other business, the council was told the city’s budget is in better shape than it was last month. The city received $2,843.10 in taxes and has been averaging $2,800 and $2,900 a month in sales tax collections.

Discussing the budget, Quarles did a comparison between the 2022 budget and the proposed 2023 budget, saying the council needs to make note of the changes. He said the city has no control over inflation, which continues to rise. The proposed budget, he added, addresses the change in prices and has been adjusted accordingly. “We’ve talked about how the economy was and how it’s changed and we’re doing the best we can,” he said. “We need to give some leeway just in case our bills are higher.” Quarles said he’s increased the utility budget 18 percent for next year because of expected increases. The panel will discuss the budget during its November meeting.

Four members of the council will be heading to Hot Springs for board training Friday, Oct. 21. This is a new requirement for councilmen who haven’t served at least 10 years.

The council passed the annual millage ordinance. This isn’t a new tax, but the continuation of the existing 5 mill tax on real and personal property.