WARREN — Trumbull County commissioners are expected to vote today on a natural gas aggregation program with the County Commissioner Association of Ohio that will cost households participating in the program an estimated $4.93 per mcf over the three-year contract term.

The final cost will not be determined until after the contract is signed with the gas supplier.

A previous four-year aggregation contract with the county by a different supplier was set at $3.99 per mcf. However, gas prices and supplier rates have increased since the time of that contract.

The aggregation program primarily affects residents living in unincorporated villages and townships. However, some communities have or are seeking to establish aggregation programs outside of the county’s program.

During the discussion, the commissioners questioned whether Lordstown and Newton Township are seeking to establish their own programs.

Kirkland Mizerek, representing the CCAO, told the commissioners Newton Township sent a document to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio that it was trying to do something on its own.

Mizerek said the CCAO has to obtain more information about that effort and, if true, whether residents in that community could sign up with another aggregation program without seeking a vote from residents.

Newton Township was one of the communities that was a part of the aggregation plan established through a countywide vote in 2008.

“The village of Lordstown is supposed to be doing their own thing as well,” he said.

Commissioner Denny Malloy said the aggregation program will not include the cities of Cortland, Warren, Girard or Hubbard, or Liberty Township.

Mizerek said individual households do not have to participate in the county’s aggregation program. They can opt out of the program and enter into contracts with an individual gas supplier.

“Once your constituents are in the program and then they want to get out, there is no fee to get out,” Mizerek said.

The county is looking at committing to a three-year contract instead of a one-year contract because Mizerek suggested the costs are expected to continue to rise.

“By the final year of the contract, this may seem like a bargain,” he said.

Bill Danso, an attorney working with the commissioners from the Trumbull County prosecutor’s office, said that Trumbull residents have, over time, questioned why the county could not get lower gas rates.

“This aggregation is an effort to try to get a price that is set across the board for a long period of time for the people of Trumbull County,” Danso said. “It does not mean it will always be lower. But it gives people a baseline. People can opt out if they can find a better rate.”

NEW K-9 CRUISER

Also today, Trumbull County commissioners are expected to approve the purchase of a 2016 Ford Explorer K-9 Cruiser from the Warren Police Department for $2,000.

The vehicle is a fully fitted, operational K-9 cruiser, including having emergency lighting, siren and an approved rear K-9 compartment. It has approximately 150,000 miles on it.

The county will be required to remove the vehicle’s Warren Police Department markings and replace them with county markings for $1,785, and add a mobile radio and a repeater for an additional $385, making the total cost $4,170.

BERNARD ELECTED PRESIDENT

Commissioner Tony Bernard on Monday was elected to be the 2026 president of the Trumbull County Commissioners. Commissioner Denny Malloy was elected to serve as the board’s vice president.

Bernard was elected to serve on the board in November 2024 and began a four-year term last January.

Malloy is beginning the fourth year of a four-year term. He served as president of the commissioners for two consecutive years.

Commissioner Rick Hernandez, who served as the board’s president in 2025, also was elected to serve on the board in 2024 and is entering his second year of a four-year term. Bernard nominated Malloy to be vice president. He was unanimously elected.

Bernard described Hernandez setting the tone for meetings last year.

“The main thing I ran on was uniting this department and uniting the county,” Hernandez said. “There had been a lot of division. I hope the division has ceased now. It has been an honor to serve as president.”