By Brice Burge The Alger County Commission made three decisions that positively impact veterans in the area at its Committee of the Whole on Monday, Aug. 14.
The commission approved the veteran’s millage rate at 0.1 mills. A mill is worth $1 for each $1,000 of taxable property values, so 0.1 mills is worth 10 cents for each $1,000 of taxable property values.
According to Alger County Veterans Service Officer Becky Burns, this is the lowest amount of a millage to still qualify for other funding sources that are used to help fund veterans programs locally.
“What we’re trying to do is make sure that we qualify for county veterans’ service grants,” she said. “This is something we have to do to get those extra funds.”
The commission also approved three members of the community to join the Alger County Veterans Affairs Council. Three people – Tina Herron, Eric Dahlgren and Mike Dugas – put their names in and were approved by existing council members as being qualified for the role. Herron was seeking reappointment, while Dugas was reported as being active with veterans issues in the area. Dahlgren was recommended highly by the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) leadership, according to Burns.
Brief discussion was held over whether or not it was necessary to include all three names and move the Veterans Affairs Council to a fiveperson board. According to County Commissioner and Veterans Affairs Council liaison Mick Rondeau, the board was expanded to seven people to increase the likelihood of having a quorum, so the county commission approved all three people willing to serve on the council.
The county commission also approved involvement in Operation Green Light, a veterans appreciation program from November 6-12 organized by the National Association of Counties and the National Association of County Veteran Service Officers. County governments will place a green light as a sign of support to veterans in offices and common areas in government buildings.
Five Michigan counties participated in the event last year, all downstate.
Per capita, Alger County has ten times the amount of veterans than the average U.S. county, with roughly 10.5 percent of Alger residents serving. Resources and networking to help veterans are available through the Alger County Veterans Affairs Office and can be reached at 906-3871635 or algervets@algercounty. gov.
The commission also heard about state funding changes from Juvenile Officer Jamie Nebel, approved a letter of support for the Michigan Institute of Forensic Science & Medicine and reappointed Rita Hale to the Alger County Jury Board for a six-year term.
