janderson@ironmountaindailynews.com
THE DICKINSON COUNTY BOARD will have a public hearing tonight at the county courthouse in Iron Mountain on the proposed $9.9 million general fund budget for 2021. (Betsy Bloom/Daily News photo)
IRON MOUNTAIN Dickinson County will remain under a state of emergency for COVID-19, the county board decided Monday.
Although the rate of new cases is down from when the declaration was reinstated in late October, it should be kept in place, said Pete Schlitt, the county’s emergency services coordinator.
A key reason, he said, is to designate public works employees as “essential,” which gives officials flexibility in responding to storms and other disruptions. The declaration also allows the county to share pandemic resources with other agencies and governmental units, he said.