Freeborn County Sheriff Kurt Freitag won't be getting a pay raise after all.

Freitag, sheriff since 2015, appealed his salary last year, as sheriffs have the right to do under state law. Freitag said he deserved more than the $97,020 salary set for 2019 by the county Board of Commissioners — a 5% raise over his previous salary.

Freitag said his experience and responsibilities warranted higher pay, and he offered a suggested figure based on the median salaries of other sheriffs in his area as well as sheriffs of comparable counties elsewhere in the state.

A Freeborn County District Court judge agreed, awarding Freitag a salary of $113,952 for 2019, which represented a 23% pay increase. The court ruled that the commissioners acted in an "arbitrary and capricious manner" and didn't fully understand the sheriff's duties and responsibilities. The county appealed that decision.

In a recent ruling, the Minnesota Court of Appeals overturned the decision and ordered that Freitag's salary revert to the lower figure set by the county board.

"The district court's findings and legal conclusions … are clearly erroneous," the appeals court ruled.

The appeals court said county commissioners had enough information to make a decision, as well as sufficient knowledge of the sheriff's functions.

"By awarding Freitag a 5% raise, the county board exercised its judgment while simultaneously considering the required statutory factors," the appeals court wrote.

John Reinan

WINONA COUNTY

County board to vote on 300-foot tower

The Winona County Board of Commissioners is set to vote Monday on approval of a 300-foot-tall telecommunications tower near Lewiston.

The tower, to be built by Powder River Development Services of Rochester, will enhance communications in rural areas of the county, supporters said.

Communication capacity for first responders, distance learners and home-based workers will be improved, they said, noting that there has been a long-term effort by state leaders to enhance broadband accessibility in rural Minnesota.

The county's Planning Commission approved the proposal last month, attaching a number of conditions. Included were requirements for filtering devices to reduce interference with other signals; correcting any interference issues at the tower owner's expense; and dismantling and removal of the tower at the owner's expense if it ever stands vacant for more than a year.

John Reinan