Accomplishments

When Joe Wilson took office in 2023, Vernon County was paying over $189,000 per year in workers compensation insurance premiums, a number that signaled the county hadn't adopted modern, proactive risk management practices.

Joe implemented two key policy changes: directing county employees to use clinics rather than emergency rooms for non-emergency workplace injuries, and paying small claims out of pocket rather than running them through insurance. These weren't complicated fixes, they were the kind of common-sense decisions that come from someone who understands how to manage costs and protect taxpayers.

The results speak for themselves. The county's workers comp mod, the industry measure of risk, dropped dramatically from 1.73 (very high risk) to just 0.82 (very good). Annual premiums fell from $189,000 to just $56,000, a reduction of more than 300%. That's a savings of more than $130,000 every single year, money that stays in Vernon County rather than padding insurance company profits.

When Joe Wilson took office, Vernon County was in a precarious insurance situation. Due to multiple years of excessive losses, the county had been non-renewed by its insurance carriers in 2022. Coverage had been pieced together using small non-admitted companies with high deductibles, high premiums, and questionable coverage, leaving Vernon County taxpayers exposed and overpaying.

Joe worked with the county's broker to get coverages placed with MOPERM, the Missouri Public Entity Risk Management Fund, a state-sponsored self-insured shared-risk pool available to Missouri local governments. This move alone put the county on far stronger footing. Joe also put a comprehensive risk management plan in place to reduce claims, control premiums, and make Vernon County a good insurance risk going forward.

The results have been significant. In the post-COVID years, most counties and municipalities across Missouri saw their annual insurance premiums increase by 20 to 30 percent, a trend that hammered local government budgets statewide. Vernon County didn't just hold the line. The county actually saved $60,000 on its 2025 insurance renewal, with only a modest increase in 2026. Joe Wilson's proactive approach to risk management, loss prevention, and carrier relationships allowed Vernon County to buck a trend that hurt nearly every other local government in the state.

Access to affordable, reliable childcare is one of the most significant barriers to workforce participation in rural Missouri. Joe Wilson worked with community partners to expand childcare capacity in Vernon County. Through support for the Methodist Church daycare expansion and the YMCA childcare program, the county added 100 new childcare slots, meaningfully increasing access for working families.

Through a creative combination of ARPA funds, county budget resources, and fair board contributions, Joe Wilson helped coordinate a comprehensive renovation of the fairgrounds. Improvements included new show pavilions, new restrooms, resurfaced roads, new LED lighting at the ball fields and rodeo arena, and repaired and improved rodeo pens and chutes.