BROWNSTOWN — Jackson County Commissioners met Tuesday morning for a regularly scheduled meeting at the Jackson County Courthouse.

Jim Williams, district manager for Toshiba, spoke about the possibility of the county agreeing to a Toshiba contract option offered by the state of Indiana.

“So, you’re already, in this county, doing business with Toshiba,” Williams said. “We have a machine downstairs [and] at the Purdue Extension Office; we’ve got machines at the DMV, Seymour Community Schools, AISIN; the list goes on and on … The reason we’re here today is important because now you can piggyback on the contract offered by the state of Indiana.”

Per the Indiana Department of Administration’s website, the purpose of the Toshiba contract is to satisfy needs for the purchase of fax machines and the lease of digital black and white copiers, multi-functional devices, scanners, software solutions and related document equipment, supplies and services.

“The biggest thing we run into when we do an analysis inside of a school corporation or a county or other entities is that printing is a necessary evil,” Williams said. “Printing is an unmanaged expense usually inside of county offices … That black hole leads to unnecessary spending. So, Toshiba helps you manage those prices.”

Williams said Toshiba, with the assistance of county officials, will analyze current contracts, expenses and vendors and give cost-reduction strategies.

“What we’re looking for today is your permission to work with your offices; to work with the auditing team to analyze the county and come back and present your current vs. future state,” Williams said.

Commissioner Drew Markel suggested Williams revisit the board in August.

Commissioners then approved road closures typical for the Grassy Fork Fire Department’s tractor pulls.

The board also approved the cancellation of their upcoming meeting on July 2 because of it falling on the week of the July 4 holiday.

Afterwards, J.L. Brewer with the local Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council spoke before the board on opioid settlement funds. Brewer is also director of the Jackson Jennings Community Corrections program.

According to Whitney Downward, a reporter for the Indiana Capital Chronicle, over the next two decades, local units of government will receive tens of billions of dollars from the National Opioid Settlement, a court agreement between companies deemed responsible for the deadly, life-disrupting impact of the addictive drug and the localities bearing the brunt of the devastation.

Payments started going out in December of 2022, with more than $107 million in the first wave to the state and 648 local units of government. As of November 2023, only $7.1 million had been put into use so far in Indiana.

“I feel like we’re the experts in the field of services being offered to combat the opioid problems that have been created,” Brewer said. “Our committee is pretty well-suited to provide guidance to the county council and county commissioners.”

Markel said he thought it would be a good idea to utilize JRAC as the advisory committee for opioid settlement funding, and commissioners voted to approve the motion.

The last item of new business on the agenda was a Boys & Girls Club fundraiser, spoken about before the board by Ryon Wheeler, executive director of the Boys & Girls Club of Seymour.

In recent years, the Boys & Girls Club of Seymour expanded into Jennings County and Brownstown. At Tuesday’s commissioner meeting, Wheeler asked for permission from the board to put signs up to fundraise for the club, noting that he has permission from Brownstown schools and would like permission from the board to put signs on the courthouse lawn.

“Our growth has been tremendous,” Wheeler said. “We serve nearly 120 kids in Brownstown, 200 kids in Jennings County and in Jackson County we’re serving about 300 kids a day. A lot of what we do is educational recovery, prevention, life-skills, those types of things … We’ve been able to continue to follow what we’re doing and grow. We actually have the honor of being the largest Boys & Girls Club in the state of Indiana.”

Wheeler said the club’s goal is to raise $50,000 in Brownstown.

Commissioner Matt Reedy made a motion to approve Wheeler’s request and it was approved by the board unanimously.

Commissioners meet on the first and third Tuesdays of each month.

Meetings are open to the public and the press.