The Mower County Board on Tuesday approved a jail bonding plan for the new jail and justice center, which, like before, was met with some criticism.

The bonding will be for $16.66 million and will be paid back under a 13-year plan. County commissioners selected Build America Bonds, new under the federal stimulus, which they said will offer a better interest rate, ultimately saving taxpayers.

Not all in attendance, however, were sold on the bonding. A few citizens questioned why bonding was being done without a referendum and also if the plan selected Tuesday would actually save taxpayer money.

Rural Waltham resident Jim Hartson, who unsuccessfully lobbied the board on this issue in late-April, was among those asking questions.

At one point, Hartson and county attorney Kristen Nelsen got into a brief exchange when Hartson said one of his questions hadn’t been answered. Nelsen said multiple times that it had been.

After the meeting, Hartson said he thought contracts for the center were made prematurely.

“I’m not against the jail. I’m just for doing it right,” he said.

Dan Vermilyea, who presented a petition to the board in March calling for a referendum, also was in attendance Tuesday. The petition was unsuccessful, and Vermilyea said he has since asked state Attorney General Lori Swanson to weigh in on whether Mower County is abiding by statute.

Nelsen and the board, with advice from an outside legal counsel, have continually said they are abiding by the statute in question—641.23—and do not need to have a referendum.

The board had the option of exploring tax-exempt bonding not covered under the stimulus and a longer payment window, but chose the plan they feel will cost the least long-term. George Eilertson, a consultant with Northland Securities who has been working with the county on the project, said he recommended Build America Bonds.

Build America Bonds come with 35 percent federal reimbursement, meaning the effective interest rate is lowered. As compared to standard tax-exempt bonds, BABs could be between $400,000 and $600,000 cheaper in the 13-year window, Eilertson said.

The payment window also makes a difference, since a longer plan has more years to rack up interest. Compared with a 20-year option, the 13-year plan could be roughly $3 million cheaper when all is said and done, according to projections.

The cost of a shorter window is a higher initial burden on taxpayers, as evidenced by an $87 tax increase seen by an average county household in 2009.

With the bonding plan in place, bond sales still need to be approved. The board anticipates that will happen during their June 23 meeting.