Friday, January 6, Judge Mike Winner swore in Marty Long and John Martin to replace Janet Stewart and Kevin Shapland’s as Grant County Commissioners.
Long and Martin were elected after the General Election last November.
Marty Long has been a resident of Grant County his entire life, being the fourth generation of his family to be involved with farming and ranching in the area.
Long ran for County Commissioner, “to help ensure a progressive and aggressive County government, while avoiding the hardships of elevated property taxes.”
Long believes the biggest challenge facing Grant County has become, “doing more with less.” Long explained the 66% drop in county value over the past 15 years was the result of declining oil and gas assets in Grant County, which created a “tax shift” towards businesses and homeowners.
Long previously served as County Commissioner from 2004 till 2018. “The challenge during that 14 year period was finding ways to maintain County government with less resources.” Long stated, “It is important we create a competitive edge by keeping property taxes in check to help attract new businesses of commerce to help sustain our tax base.”
“I think anyone wanting to be involved can exercise that right at any time.” Long answered when asked about community involvement in County decision making. “All meetings are open to the public, and time is set aside on each agenda for public questions or comments. All our local elected officials are accessible with a phone call or email.” Long is pleased to see people taking an interest in running for public offices.
Long believes the biggest State issue that could affect the community is Urban Kansas Legislators appraising counties by using a “Market Approach,” rather than the current, “Ag Use Approach” tied to markets and production. With this, Long said the estimated property tax on farmland could increase 500%-1000%. “This issue is being brought up in Topeka more and more from rural County Commissioners explaining the devastating effects on their economy this would have.” Long said. “If elected, I will travel to Topeka as often as needed to testify for our farmers and ranchers and keep our economy as safe as possible.”
Long stated he is happy to report a 2021 law passed which prohibits the Governor, the State of Kansas, or any local Health Departments from closing any business or church in the state, giving the County Commissioners the only authority for such closings. Another 2021 law Long mentioned specifies if a taxing entity, such as a City, County, or School District, intends to increase property taxes, they are required by law to mail a notice to each property owner indicating how much the tax increase will affect their individual property tax prior to becoming law. Tax payers will then have the opportunity to appear at a public hearing to listen and protest the reasons for the increase. “This provides a level of transparency to the tax payer that has never been seen before in Kansas.” Long said, “It also provides elected officials with a venue to explain their thought process and reasoning behind tax increases.”
Long said he looks forward to the opportunity to serve as Commissioner in Grant County. “I remain convinced Grant County has a bright and promising future.”
John Martin is a local businessman who owns Grant County Medical Equipment which has been in business for 18 years and has three locations. He has 35 years of experience in agriculture from working for Pat Staats at River Bend Feedyard. Martin has been active in several associations, including: Ulysses Bit & Spur, Kansas Pro Rodeo Association and Garden City Bass Masters and has served on a number of boards in various positions.
Martin feels confident in his experience in both the medical and agricultural fields coupled with his experience to bring people together for the greater good of different associations. He believes his background will help him to understand the difficulties and needs of our community.
Martin was asked what challenges Grant County is facing and what he can do to help? He replied, “Healthcare of small rural towns is a very difficult issue. I strongly believe that my experience in that area of the community’s need is an asset in the ability to make the right decision for the people. All in all, I think Grant County is in better shape than most counties in Southwest Kansas. I feel like we have some hard decisions to make concerning our healthcare system and what ways to best serve our community.”
As the proud father of five children, Martin spends his free time with his family and also does some bass fishing. He has one son, Brice Martin who lives in Virginia Beach, Virginia with his fiancee Nikki and their three daughters. His daughter, Amber Mitchell and husband Justin live in Derby, Kansas with their two daughters. One of Martin’s twin daughters, Kelly and her husband Cliff Leach live in Bird City, Kansas and have two daughters. The other twin is Kristy Begshaw who lives in Allen, Texas with her four children. His youngest daughter is Ashley Orosco. She lives in Ulysses with husband Vincent and their three daughters.
Martin feels that our local jail is a major concern that needs to be addressed by officials. He wants to work towards keeping the public informed on this issue and others with an open door policy to address concerns. One way to do this is through the local newspaper, which Martin feels is a valuable resource for communicating to the public. He will also be open to calls and input on any issue people may find of importance.
Martin said that he believes it is extremely important not only to discuss the issue or concern with the individual bringing forth the situation, but also to include the people of the community to voice any and all solutions or input. He added, “I think that decision-making needs to include the voices of the people of the community to be able to get as broad of a perspective as possible before any decision is made.”
He is concerned about the mandates issued by the state with no funding to accomplish them. Martin said, “This affects us locally because it is left up to the taxpayer to pay.”
The final question to Martin was If you received a one million dollar grant to use for the county anyway you wanted, what would you do with it and why? He answered, “Our local county jail is a 60 year old facility that is in dire need of renovation. I would use the grant to upgrade and update because I feel like it is one of our most pressing issues.”
The next Grant County Commissioners meeting is scheduled for January 17 at the Grant County Court House.
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