GRANITE FALLS — After a public hearing that only lasted 5 minutes, the Yellow Medicine County Board unanimously passed a far-reaching ordinance regulating the sale and used of tobacco products in the county on Tuesday.

The hearing ended up short because nobody came and nobody logged on to the conference call that was set up,

The ordinance sets the requirements for licensing, renewal, ingredients, and penalties for violations of the provisions in the ordinance. The act replaces the Yellow Medicine County Tobacco Ordinance dated September, 1998.

The commissioners also approved two measures for Targeted Case Management services through interactive video contact on the recommendation of Rae Ann Keeler-Aus, Human Services director.

The policy approval for TCM allows case managers to use two-way, real-time, interaction with clients per Minnesota statute when face-to-face contact is inconvenient due to inclement weather or isolation for health reasons, and the person receiving TCM or their legal guardian consents.

The board also approved a contract with Western Mental Health for a mental health practitioner/clinical trainee to provide intensive family skills/therapy from May to December of 2023 via remote interaction with liability insurance and strict online security protocols to protect client information.

The board voted to deny a request by the Association of Minnesota Counties to contribute $1,000 over two years to a program developed by the Boards of Directors of the National Association of Counties and the Western Interstate Region to “create an enhanced opportunity to demonstrate how prosperous public lands counties create a prosperous America.”

A letter signed by Mary Jo McGuire, Ramsey County commissioner and president of the Association of Minnesota Counties, urged Yellow Medicine County to invest in a new National Center for Public Lands Counties but was vague on details about how this was to the county’s advantage.