Declaration of emergency lifted in Lincoln County

The Lincoln County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to lift a declaration of emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic June 3.

The move came nearly two months since the county’s last known patient recovered. While other counties continue to see outbreaks of the coronavirus, which causes COVID-19, Montana fared better than many states during the pandemic.

“The paperwork matches the reality,” County Commissioner Josh Letcher (D-3) said of the resolution lifting the emergency declaration.

“It’s still serious,” he said. “It’s not an emergency.”

In Lincoln County, officials already have mothballed the emergency operations center. While health department staff members continue to monitor a COVID-19 hotline, which can be reached at 406-293-6295, it’s now answered only during business hours between Monday and Friday.

Local health officials have conducted more than 1,500 tests since the pandemic began, but those overseeing the county’s response noted that interest in getting tested has waned.

“Activity has dropped off and public concern has dropped off,” said Brent Teske, Libby mayor and the county’s emergency management chief. “We’re not testing as many people and we’re not taking the call volume we saw early on.”

County commissioners issued the declaration in mid-March. It came as Gov. Steve Bullock ordered public schools closed and just ahead of statewide regulations on everything from public gatherings to out-of-state travel aimed at curtailing the spread of the illness.

The resolution gave commissioners the ability to raise two mills in response to a crisis. Money collected must be spent with the unanimous vote of the board and only on emergency-related expenditures. Any surplus dollars must be set aside for future emergencies.

At the time, County Commissioner Jerry Bennett (D-2) stressed that the declaration was a preemptive measure.

“The emergency was about the funding aspect of that and, to my knowledge, we haven’t received a dime yet,” Bennett said June 3. “There’s a great possibility we might be establishing another emergency declaration with a fire here and there’s no sense having two declarations on board.”

During the meeting, commissioners indicated that they drew on a roughly $77,000 pot of emergency dollars for the pandemic. Teske told the board that the county had gone through about $45,000 of that previously set aside fund.

Commissioners also pointed out the possibility they might need to declare an emergency in the face of future flooding or wildfire.

“In Lincoln County, it’s hard to justify spending two mills on stuff when we could be spending it on wildland fires or other emergencies,” said County Commissioner Mark Peck (D-1). “To me, these emergency declarations are meant to allow us to operate more expeditiously than we normally would … In my mind, we can’t justify that right now.”

While questioning commissioners on whether past expenditures or future costs could be covered by the now lifted emergency declaration, Jennifer McCully, the county’s public health manager, warned that COVID-19 could return in a hurry.

“It could be an emergency just like that, though,” she said, snapping her fingers. “All it takes is one.”

Commissioners said that — were the disease to reemerge — they could declare a state of emergency again. At its height, Lincoln County saw seven confirmed cases and one fatality from the illness.

Peck said he hoped the pandemic had increased awareness around proper sanitation and general wellness. Hand washing protects against more than COVID-19, he said.

“This is not to belittle the virus or the impact that it can have,” Peck said. “People still need to be vigilant, especially those that are vulnerable. That’s just as true with other diseases. Those same people are very vulnerable to influenza.”