By Delisa Weeks, Kiowa County Clerk and Recorder

NEW RECORDING  FEES:

As a result of the passing of SBlG-115, Colorado recording fees will be increasing and will be calculated  as follows:

An inmate at the U.S. Administrative Maximum Prison (ADX) in Florence, Colorado, pleaded guilty to first degree murder and murder by a life prisoner of a fellow ADX inmate.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer of the District of Colorado and Special Agent in Charge Calvin A. Shivers of the FBI's Denver Division made the announcement.

The U.S. Senate approved the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), legislation that included language authored by Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO) to expedite payments to entities that assumed response costs associated with the Gold King Mine spill and direct the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to work with affected states, Indian tribes, and local governments on a long-term water quality monitoring program of the rivers contaminated by the spill.   

Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams has officially certified the results of the 2016 general election, although the final results were 

Free public tours of the Governor's Residence, decorated for the holidays by the American Society of Interior Designers Colorado Chapter (ASID,) will be offered Thursday through Sunday, December 8 through December 11 and December 15 through December 18 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. so that all may enjoy the history and beauty of Colorado's Home.

The Prowers County Courthouse was built in 1928-1929 and the dedication on August 1, 1929, states "Probably the crowning achievement of the building is the court room on the third floor."  After years of fading and water damage, the courtroom has now been restored to its original beauty.  The Prowers County Courts will be hosting an Open House on Friday, December 16, from 3:00 p.m.

HOLIDAY SEASON'S SHIPPING DEADLINES ARE APPROACHING

Clock is Ticking for Military and International Mailings

To ensure that friends and family serving in the military overseas receive their care packages from home on time, mailers are reminded to ship their holiday gifts no later than December 9^th for the best rates. 

For other international destinations, it's best to have your mail on its way by December 10^th.  

There are expedited services offered with later deadlines.

A federal judge has issued a $5.5 million civil penalty against Zen Magnets LLC, a Colorado company, which illegally sold powerful small magnets that already had been recalled by another company, the Justice Department announced.  Because of the company's inability to pay the penalty, most of it was suspended.

Kiowa County has released its budget for fiscal year 2015, which begins January 1, 2017. A copy of the 60 page document is attached below this article (requires the free Adobe Acrobat PDF reader available from adobe.com if you do not currently have the software - most computers do).

The budget was sent to all county offices Wednesday morning.

Due to decreases in tax valuations, the county has made what it terms "severe" cuts to the budget.

Despite the cuts, full-time county employees will receive a $0.25 per hour raise, equivalent to about $500 per year.