The Hockley County Commissioners’ Court held a regular meeting on Monday at the Hockley County Courthouse, covering multiple election-related agenda items and presentations.
The Court approved St. Philip Neri Catholic Church Parish Hall in Pep as the new polling location for the 33rd Precinct.
The presenter said the previous location, the Old Sanders Hardware building in Pettit did not meet state guidelines, as it was not a public building. St. Philip Neri was also determined to be handicap accessible after his review.
The Court also approved a two-year term for election judges, which will begin this month.
Sundown now has a new precinct judge, but there is still a search for a steady 35th Precinct Judge in Levelland.
According to Texas Constitution and Statutes, Judges serve for one year, but the Commissioners’ Court can provide, by order, a term of two years.
Two presentations were included in the meeting’s agenda.
Kathy Davenport of Texas Association of Counties presented a surplus employee benefits check to Hockley County for an amount of $130,000.
Davenport said surplus distribution comes from capital gains that their financial pool has collected from investments over the year.
There was no surplus distribution last year because of a market drop during COVID-19, but quite a bit of money was made in 2024, she told the Court.
A TAC board voted to keep a portion of the proceeds for work on things like their reserve account and operating expenses. However, the amount of money TAC can receive is limited due to being not-for-profit, Davenport said. The amount that is turned back to members is based on how long they’ve been with the pool and claim history.
Stacey Bruington, a wellness consultant for TAC, was present at the meeting and said surplus distribution can depend on medical claims.
Bruington said they have wellness programs for the county to improve their health and wellbeing.
August’s Public Assistance report presentation followed. There were two applicants for rent and four applicants for utilities.
The new guidelines for Hockley County’s Public Assistance were approved at the Court’s Feb. 26 meeting.
According to the meeting minutes, changes included frequency of applications in a year being reduced to two, as well as increasing the amount of time between applications to 90 days.
The full set of guidelines are available in the Feb. 26 Commissioners’ Court meeting minutes on Hockley County’s website.
The Court approved an Irrevocable Letter of Credit and bank depository during the meeting, as well as Sheriff and Constable fees for 2025. There were no changes made to the fees.
The last agenda item to be approved was road crossings for Beryl Oil and Gas, LP on Boston, Spain, Atlanta and USA Roads. The roads are all located in the 4th Precinct.
The minutes for the Court’s Aug. 26 meeting were approved, as well as all monthly bills and claims submitted to the court through Monday.