[Call to Order]
[00:00:02]
GO AHEAD AND OPEN THE UH, PARKER COUNTY COMMISSIONER'S COURT ON THE 2026 BUDGET WORKSHOP AGENDA, UH, FOR TUESDAY, JULY 15TH, 2025.
WE HAVE A QUORUM WITH THE COUNTY CLERK'S OFFICE PRESENT, UH, IT IS 9 0 3.
[I.A. Discussion/Presentation on Department 450 District Clerk budget requests. (Sharena Gilliland / Judge Deen)]
AND THEN WE WILL MOVE TO THE CONSIDERED DISCUSS AND ACT UPON THE POLLING AGENDA ITEMS. ITEM ONE, ITEM A, DISCUSS PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT FOUR 50.DISTRICT CLERK BUDGET REQUEST.
SO, UM, I WILL BE REALLY QUICK THIS MORNING.
I DON'T HAVE ANY CAP, NON CAP, NEW EMPLOYEE RECLASSIFICATION REQUEST THIS YEAR AND KIM JUST TOLD ME THAT OUR IT REQUESTS ARE GONNA BE FULFILLED OUT OF THIS YEAR'S BUDGET.
SO REALLY WHAT I WANTED TO DO THIS MORNING IS JUST GIVE YOU A QUICK UPDATE ON SOME STATISTICS AND THINGS HAPPENING IN OUR OFFICE.
SO, UM, THIS CHART SHOWS YOU THE YEAR OVER YEAR INCREASES THAT WE HAVE IN ALL NEW CASES.
SO FOR A FIVE YEAR PERIOD, WE'RE AT A, I PUT A DOLLAR SIGN THAT'S EMBARRASSING.
UM, A 30% INCREASE IN NEW CASES FILED OVER THE LAST FIVE YEARS.
UM, JUST FROM 23 TO 24 WE HAD AN 11% INCREASE.
UM, SO JUST LETTING YOU KNOW WE'RE BUSY AND CONTINUE TO BE BUSY AND CONTINUE TO GROW, WHICH Y'ALL ARE SEEING IN YOUR POPULATION INCREASES AND HOW IT AFFECTS YOUR PRECINCTS IN THE COUNTY IS ALSO AN INCREASE IN THE COURTS.
UM, IF YOU BREAK IT DOWN BY CATEGORY, BY CIVIL FAMILY, CRIMINAL, JUVENILE, YOU CAN SEE THOSE INCREASES OVER A FIVE YEAR PERIOD.
UM, BUT THEY AVERAGE OUT TO ABOUT 30% OVER ALL CATEGORIES, UM, AND PASSPORTS, UH, THIS YEAR IS SIGNIFICANTLY BUSIER THAN LAST YEAR.
UM, THAT GRAY LINE THAT SPIKES, THAT WAS 2023.
2025 IS THAT LIGHTER BLUE LINE THAT'S ABOVE THE GOLD.
SO WE'RE TRACKING AHEAD OF WHERE WE WERE LAST YEAR.
UM, IT'S BEEN REALLY BUSY SUMMER, WE KIND OF SLOWED DOWN, SO WE'RE CATCHING OUR BREATH.
BUT, UM, WE ARE AHEAD OF 20, 24 NUMBERS.
UM, ALREADY THIS YEAR WE'VE PROCESSED ALMOST 3000 APPLICATIONS.
SO THAT IS STILL, UM, A VERY MUCH NEEDED SERVICE THAT WE'RE PROVIDING.
YEAR TO WHAT YEAR TO DATE? YES.
WHY, WHY DID YOU HAVE SUCH A BIG SPIKE? AND, UH, THAT WAS AN AMAZING DAY.
UH, IN MARCH OF 2023, WE DID A PASSPORT FAIR AND WE INTENDED FOR IT TO BE A HALF A DAY.
AND WE HAD SO MANY PEOPLE SHOW UP, THAT'S WHEN THEY LINED THE BUILDING.
THEY WERE OUTSIDE AND WE WERE THERE ALL DAY LONG.
AND SO THAT WAS WHEN, SO YOU'D DONE THAT TO YOURSELVES? WE DID THAT TO OURSELVES, YES.
UM, BUT THAT WAS KIND OF COMING OUT OF COVID WHEN RESORTS AND OTHER DESTINATIONS WERE FINALLY STARTING TO OPEN AND PEOPLE COULD NOT GET APPOINTMENTS ANYWHERE.
SO THEY CAME FROM FAR AND WIDE AND WE DIDN'T TURN ANYBODY AWAY.
WE HAVE NOT DONE A PASSPORT FAIR SINCE, BUT THAT'S WHAT THAT SPIKE WAS IN 2023.
CAN I JUST BRAG ON YOUR TEAM REAL QUICK? YES, SIR.
WE, UH, WE USED SHEENA'S TEAM FOR A PASSPORT.
'CAUSE WE REALIZED PROBABLY A LITTLE TOO LATE IN THE PROCESS WHEN WE WERE GOING TO JAMAICA THAT WE WEREN'T GONNA GO TO JAMAICA THIS PAST DECEMBER IF WE DIDN'T GET OUR BUTTS IN THERE AND GET A PASSPORT.
AND THEIR TEAM WAS VERY FAST, VERY EFFICIENT, DID AN EXCELLENT JOB.
I HOPE YOU ENJOYED YOUR TRIP AND HAD A GOOD TIME.
DOES THE POST OFFICE STILL OFFER THAT SERVICE? YES, THEY DO.
THERE'S, THEY HAVEN'T WIPE THEM OUT YET? NO.
THEY DO THEIRS BY APPOINTMENT.
AND SO THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE THAT NEED TO HAVE AN APPOINTMENT THAT THEY KNOW THEY CAN PICK OFF OF WORK AND THAT APPOINTMENT IS RESERVED FOR THEM.
SO WE STILL HAVE A REALLY GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIP.
UM, THEY HAVE PEOPLE THAT WALK IN AND WANT TO GET THEIR APPLICATIONS DONE RIGHT THEN THEY SEND THEM TO US.
WE HAVE PEOPLE THAT NEED TO KNOW I CAN HAVE THIS TIME OR THEY NEED A SATURDAY APPOINTMENT AND WE REFER THEM TO THE POST OFFICE.
SO WE'RE STILL WORKING REALLY WELL WITH THEM ON THAT.
UM, AND THEN LASTLY, JUST KIND OF WANTED TO SHOW YOU OUR JURY NUMBERS.
UM, IN 2023, WE MAILED OUT OVER 12,000 SUMMONS.
THIS YEAR WE'RE ON TRACK AT THE END OF THE YEAR TO SEND OUT ABOUT 13,500 SUMMONS.
THAT'S JUST KIND OF WHAT WE'VE GOT QUEUED UP ANTICIPATING.
SO THAT TELLS YOU OUR COURTS ARE BUSY.
UM, THEY CONTINUE TO STAY BUSY AND REQUEST FOR JURY TRIALS.
UM, WE DO NOT HAVE THAT MANY PEOPLE SHOWING UP FOR JURY.
[00:05:01]
SOFTWARE TO SEND OUT AN ALERT TO SAY, HEY, YOU GOT A SUMMONS, BUT THAT CASE HAS BEEN RESOLVED AND YOU DON'T NEED TO APPEAR.SO THAT SAVES MONEY AND SAVES PEOPLE COMING INTO THE, UM, COURTS AND SAVES THOSE FOLKS TIME AND MONEY THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO TAKE OFF OF WORK.
BUT THAT'S HOW MANY CONTACTS WE'RE MAKING INITIALLY IN SENDING OUT SUMMONS.
SO THAT, UM, THIS JUST SHOWS YOU HOW MANY FOLKS WE HAVE IN OUR OFFICE.
AND, UM, WE HAVE PEOPLE CROSSTRAINED, SO WE MOVE THEM AROUND AS NEEDED, AS WE HAVE KIND OF SPIKES IN VOLUME.
SO IF IT'S A JURY DAY, WE HAVE TWO FULL-TIME PEOPLE ON JURY AND WE MAY SHIFT TO OTHER FOLKS TO HELP GET 'EM PROCESSED AND THEN THEY GO BACK TO, UM, THEIR REGULAR FULL-TIME DUTIES.
SO THAT IS A QUICK, VERY QUICK OVERVIEW OF WHAT'S HAPPENING IN OUR OFFICE AND HAPPY TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS.
UM, BUT WE DON'T REALLY GET A CHANCE TO VISIT THAT OFTEN.
SO I THOUGHT THIS WOULD BE A GOOD TIME TO JUST LET YOU KNOW THAT WE'RE BUSY, WE'RE STAYING BUSY AND GETTING THE COURT'S BUSINESS DONE AND TAKEN CARE OF.
IS THERE NO QUESTIONS AGAINST AGAIN, SERENA? THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
[I.B. Discussion/Presentation on Department 462 Justice of the Peace Precinct #2 budget requests. (Judge Green / Judge Deen)]
ITEM B, DISCUSSED PRESENTATION WITH DEPARTMENT 4 62 JUSTICEYEAH, THIS SLIDE WILL TAKE A WHILE.
DO YOU BUY
UM, I, I DO WANT TO COMMENT TO EVERYBODY HERE REAL QUICK.
UH, WE DID HAVE A BUDGET COMMITTEE.
BUDGET COMMITTEE HAS REVIEWED A BUNCH OF THE STUFF THAT EVERYBODY HAS SUBMITTED.
BUDGET COMMITTEE HAS GOTTEN TOGETHER AND KIND OF SCORED EVERYTHING.
AND INSTEAD OF SENDING OUT NOTICES AHEAD OF TIME WHERE WE COULDN'T DO IT FACE TO FACE, I THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE HELPFUL IF INSTEAD WE GAVE YOU SOME FEEDBACK FROM A HIGH LEVEL RIGHT NOW DURING THE WORKSHOP SO THAT YOU CAN TAKE THAT, ASK ANY QUESTIONS YOU NEED TO, AND THEN GO BACK AND ANSWER WHATEVER QUESTIONS WE MIGHT HAVE FOR LATER ON WHEN DECISIONS ARE ACTUALLY MADE.
'CAUSE AS COMMISSIONER WALDEN SAYS, WE'RE NOT MAKING ANY UH, DECISIONS TODAY.
THIS IS, THIS IS JUST FOR US TO HEAR.
SO JUST AN FYI FOR WHY I MAY HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU LATER.
OKAY, WELL IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, FEEL FREE.
UH, WE DON'T HAVE ANY CAPITAL EXPENDITURES EITHER.
THE ONLY MAJOR EXPENSE WE WERE GONNA ASK FOR WAS TO ADD ONE CIVIL CLERK.
OUR CIVIL FILINGS ARE CLIMBING EXPONENTIALLY ALONG WITH THE POPULATION OF THE COUNTY IN PRECINCT TWO.
IT'S GOT TO THE POINT WHERE THAT'S ALMOST OUR LARGEST FUNCTION RIGHT NOW IS CIVIL FILINGS.
AND UH, HAVING SOMEBODY UP FRONT TO DEAL WITH THAT, THAT SPECIFICALLY DEALS WITH THAT, UH, FROM A PUBLIC SERVICE STANDPOINT WOULD BE PHENOMENAL ASSISTANCE AT THIS TIME.
I MEAN, WE'RE LITTLE BIT LOWER THAN SOME COURTS AS FAR AS PERSONNEL.
WE'VE BEEN DRAGGING OUR FEET TRYING TO ADD SOMEBODY TO WAIT TILL WE ABSOLUTELY NEEDED IT.
BUT I THINK WE'VE GOT THAT IT ABSOLUTELY NEEDED AT POINT.
UH, THE ONLY OTHER REAL THING THAT I'M TRYING TO FIND THAT TAB, WE WERE, WE DID SOME CHANGES LAST YEAR.
WE HAD PULLED SOME MONEY FOR ONE OF OUR SPECIAL FUNDS, THE FUNDS A LITTLE BIT OF A PAY RAISE FOR SOME PEOPLE, UH, WHERE WE'RE GONNA TRY TO GET THAT MOVED INTO FUND 10 THIS YEAR.
WE WERE ABLE TO ABSORB A BULK OF THAT COST WHEN WE HAD SOME PERSONNEL CHANGES EARLIER IN THE YEAR.
UH, WE INTENTIONALLY DIDN'T HIRE FOR THAT POSITION FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS.
SO WE WOULD HAVE THAT MONEY AVAILABLE TO HELP FUND THOSE, UH, SALARY RAISES.
AND UM, SO WE TRIED TO TAKE CARE OF IT THAT WAY THIS YEAR WITHOUT HAVING TO PULL MONEY FROM ANYTHING ELSE.
SO THERE'S GONNA BE A MINIMAL DRAW FROM THOSE SPECIAL ACCOUNTS.
UH, I'D LIKE TO GET THAT MOVED OVER TO FUND 10 THIS YEAR, JUST FOR THE SAKE OF HAVING IT EASIER TO BUDGET ON FROM THIS YEAR FORWARD AND NOT HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY RIGHT NOW.
WHO KNOWS WHAT IT'S GONNA BE IN FIVE YEARS.
IT WOULD JUST BE SIMPLER AND I THINK THE UH, AUDITOR'S OFFICE WOULD AGREE IT WOULD BE A LITTLE BIT MORE, UM, IT WOULD BE EASIER TO BUDGET FOR THAT FROM HERE TO THE FUTURE.
BUT THAT'S REALLY THE MAIN THINGS WE WERE ASKING FOR.
WE DON'T NEED ANY VEHICLES, YOU KNOW, WE'RE NOT ASKING FOR THE BUILDING TO BE COMPLETELY REDONE.
[00:10:01]
GOSH KNOWS IT NEEDS IT, BUT UH, OUR OTHER CAPITAL EXPENSES THAT WE HAD PLANNED ON AGAINST SOME OF THE IT STUFF WE WERE ABLE TO GET TAKEN CARE OF THIS YEAR OUT OF THIS YEAR'S BUDGET.SO THAT GOT PULLED AND UM, THAT'S REALLY THE BIG CHANGES WE'RE ASKING FOR OTHER THAN JUST BASIC INFLATIONARY CHANGES IN SOME OF THE SMALL LINES LIKE POSTAGE AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
UH, I'D BE FEEL FREE TO FIELD ANY QUESTIONS AT THIS POINT.
HOW MANY EMPLOYEES DO YOU HAVE NOW? WELL, FIVE.
I'M GONNA KEEP UP WITH WHAT EACH JP HAS.
I'VE GOT A CHIEF CLERK AND ASSISTANT CHIEF.
I'VE GOT ONE DEDICATED CIVIL RIGHT NOW AND TWO CRIMINAL CLERKS THAT WORKED THE FRONT WINDOW TAKING TICKETS AND THAT KIND OF STUFF.
THERE'S AN ORGANIZATIONAL CHART THAT WE'VE GOT PREPARED AND WE'VE GOT THAT SITTING, THAT NEW CLERK POSITION WORKED INTO THERE.
SO THAT WOULD GIVE US SIX AND THAT WOULD PRETTY MUCH MAXIMIZE THE ABILITY OF OUR BUILDING TO HOLD PEOPLE.
Y'ALL, ANYTHING ELSE? ANY QUESTIONS FOR KELLY? SO MR. HOLT, LET'S GO.
YEAH, SO I'LL BE SENDING YOU AN EMAIL THAT KIND OF GETS INTO SOME OF THE NITTY GRITTY THAT I DON'T THINK THIS RIGHT HERE IS INTENDED FOR QUITE AS MUCH, BUT OUR QUESTIONS ARE GONNA BE KINDA DESIGNED AROUND TWO FEATURES.
ONE FOR THE NEW FULL-TIME EMPLOYEE, JUST ADDITIONAL SOME, SOME ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AROUND JUSTIFICATION FOR THE WORKLOAD.
AND THEN THE SECOND WOULD BE THE ABILITY ON YOUR PART TO MAINTAIN THE PERSON WHO'S FUNDED FROM THE TECH FUND, THE ABILITY TO MAINTAIN THAT FROM THE TECH FUND FOR AT LEAST ONE MORE YEAR AND THEN EVALUATE THAT ON A YEAR BY YEAR BASIS.
AND AGAIN, THE MAIN REASON I WAS WANTING TO SHIFT THAT OVER TO FUND 10 AGAIN, I THINK THAT THE AUDITOR'S OFFICE HAD MADE SOME COMMENTS EARLIER THAT IT WOULD BE EASIER TO TRACK IT FROM THERE INSTEAD OF HAVING TO MOVE IT AT THE END OF THE YEAR AND IT WOULD JUST BE A LITTLE BIT SMOOTHER.
AM I CORRECT? SO BRIANNA'S PRETTY SCARY.
WELL, INITIALLY WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT IT LAST BUDGET, WE'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW IT WAS GONNA WORK BECAUSE THE WAY OUR SYSTEM WORKS IS IF ANY PORTION OF A SALARY IS PAID IN A SEPARATE FUND, IT PAYS A PORTION OF THEIR INSURANCE, WHICH REALLY SHOULD STAY WITH FUND 10.
AND THEN OF COURSE ANY INCREMENTAL BENEFITS LIKE FICA RETIREMENT, THAT SORT OF THING.
UM, AND SO WHAT WE DECIDED, WHICH WOULD BE A WHOLE LOT EASIER AND WHAT WE'RE DOING IS WE JUST BUDGET A TRANSFER FROM FUND 57 TO FUND 10.
SO AT THE END OF THE YEAR WE KNOW THIS IS THE TOTAL, WE DO ONE JOURNAL ENTRY INSTEAD OF HAVING TO DO A JOURNAL ENTRY EVERY PAY PERIOD.
SO WE FIGURED OUT A WAY TO MAKE IT A LOT MORE FEASIBLE WITHOUT, YOU KNOW, KIND OF ADMINISTRATIVELY CAUSING ANY ISSUES.
AND THEN GOING FORWARD, UM, IN OUR NEW SYSTEM, WE'RE WORKING THROUGH ALL THE PAYROLL RIGHT NOW, BUT WE BELIEVE IT'LL FIX THOSE ISSUES WHERE IF WE JUST WANT TO PAY A PORTION OF THE SALARY, JUST THAT PORTION WILL GO TO THAT FUND AND WE DON'T HAVE TO DO ALL THE MANUAL JOURNAL ENTRIES WE DO NOW.
SO, AND I WAS CORRECT TO THE FACT THAT THE FACT WE DIDN'T HIRE FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS SHOULD HELP TAKE THE LOAN OFF OF THAT.
I MEAN, YEAH, I GUESS EITHER WAY IT'S, IT'S NOT GONNA BE NEAR AS WHAT WE THOUGHT IT WAS GONNA BE.
AND SO THAT'S WHAT, WE'LL, I MEAN WE'LL LOOK AT WHAT ACTUALLY, UM, WAS PAID AND THEN WE'LL DO THE JOURNAL ENTRY FOR ACTUALS.
AND THAT'S USUALLY WHAT WE ALWAYS DO IS WE BUDGET A TRANSFER, BUT IF IT'S NOT THAT TOTAL, THEN WE DON'T MOVE THAT AMOUNT.
WE MOVE THE ACTUAL AMOUNT THAT SHOULD BE.
WELL, I GUESS THAT QUESTION WILL BE EASIER FOR ME TO ANSWER ONCE THEY DO THE JOURNAL ENTRY, WE SEE HOW MUCH IT'S GONNA BE.
KELLY, YOU SHOULD GET THAT, UH, EMAIL FROM ME NO LATER THAN HOPEFULLY TOMORROW.
AND UM, IF YOU COULD RESPOND WITHIN NO, AS FAR AS JUSTIFICATION FOR A NEW CIVIL CLERK, I DON'T THINK WE'LL HAVE ANY PROBLEM WITH THAT GIVEN OUR NUMBERS.
I'M SORRY I DIDN'T BRING MY COMPUTER WITH THE PRETTY GRAPHICS ON THERE.
I THINK EVERYTHING'S IN THE PACKET.
UH, MAN, WE'RE JUST ON, WE'RE ON TRACK TO HAVE ONE OF THE LARGEST CIVIL YEARS THIS YEAR AND IT'S JUST NOT GONNA GO DOWN BECAUSE OF THE POPULATION.
YOU KNOW, IF YOU HAVE A 10% INCREASE IN THE POPULATION, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE AN EIGHT TO 10% INCREASE IN CIVIL FILINGS.
I ANTICIPATE THERE'S GONNA BE A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE WITHIN THE NEXT TWO YEARS BECAUSE A LOT OF OUR CIVIL CASES ARE DEBT CLAIM CASES WHERE PEOPLE GO OFF CREDIT CARDS, THEN CREDIT CARDS COME BACK AND TRY TO RECOUP THEIR DEBT.
AND GIVEN THE CURRENT FINANCIAL SITUATION, YOU KNOW, STATEWIDE, NATIONWIDE, I DON'T THINK THAT'S GONNA GET ANY,
[00:15:01]
UH, SMALLER.THAT'S PROBABLY GONNA ACTUALLY INCREASE QUITE A BIT LIKE IT DID THE LAST TIME.
UH, FINANCIAL SITUATION WAS IN THIS MODE.
IT'S JUST, UH, DIPS AND PEAKS AND VALLEYS AND, YOU KNOW, OUR CASELOAD FOLLOWS THE NATIONAL TRENDS AS FAR AS DEBT AND UH, THE ECONOMY.
THERE'S THE WORD I WAS TRYING TO GET OUT.
THANK YOU COMMISSIONER WALDEN, IS THERE ANYTHING I DIDN'T COVER FOR YOU, SIR? THANK YOU JUDGE.
COMMISSIONER CONLEY, ANYTHING FURTHER? NOTHING MORE.
DID I CLARIFY EVERYTHING I NEEDED TO CLARIFY TODAY? 'CAUSE I WASN'T REAL SURE WHAT WE WERE DOING TODAY.
SO TODAY IS JUST THE INITIAL PRESENTATION WHERE WE HEAR FROM EVERYONE.
UM, THIS IS A TWO STAGE PROCESS, SO WE'RE GONNA HEAR FROM EVERYBODY FIRST AND THEN WE GET TO DO IT ALL.
WE'LL HAVE THE SECOND ONE MAKE DECISION, MAKE DECISIONS LATER.
AND THE MAIN THING TO LOOK AT IS THE MOVING THINGS OVER TO FUND 10 AND JUSTIFICATION FOR NEW EMPLOYEE.
THAT WILL BE THE, THAT WILL BE THE, OKAY.
WELL THANK YOU ENTIRETY OF THE REQUEST THAT I, WELL, THANK YOU FOR THE INSIGHT.
OKAY, WE MOVED ITEM, SEE AND DISCUSS PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT 4 7 5 COUNTY ATTORNEY BUDGET REQUEST.
YOU KNOW, ACTUALLY I WAS LOOKING AT JEFF.
SORRY, I MISREAD WHO'S MR. WE'RE GONNA SKIP OVER THAT PERSON.
[I.D. Discussion/Presentation on Department 476 District Attorney budget requests. (Jeff Swain / Judge Deen)]
ON ITEM B.GOOD MORNING, JOE DID A GOOD JOB.
YOU GOT AN WITH THAT? I, I DON'T, I NEED THAT YOU HOOK ME UP.
SO, UH, OUR DA'S OFFICE BUDGET IS, IS UH, NOT REALLY REQUESTING ANYTHING CONSEQUENCE REALLY.
WE HAVE IN THE NON-EMPLOYEE LINES, WE HAVE A COUPLE SMALL EXPECTED INCREASES IN CONTRACT SERVICES AND DUES AND SUBSCRIPTIONS.
AND WE FOUND A WAY TO MORE THAN OFFSET THOSE BY REDUCING A FEW OTHER LINES.
UM, SO A TOTAL ON THAT WAS ACTUALLY $600 LESS THAN LAST YEAR.
UH, WE DO HAVE $575 IN NON-CAPITAL EQUIPMENT.
THE TWO CHAIRS THAT COMMISSIONER HALE KEEPS GIVING ME A HARD TIME ABOUT.
UM, ONE OF THOSE DOES DO YOUR REAL GOOD SERVICE.
IT WILL AUTOMATICALLY LOWER YOU AT RANDOM TIMES DURING THE DAY.
SO THAT'S HANDY IF YOU, YOU WANTED TO FIND A FLOOR THE SAME MODEL
ONE WE PUT THE PAPER WE DON'T LOCK IN
SO WE ALSO HAVE A FOLDABLE HAND CARD IN THERE SO THAT THE TOTAL THOUGH FOR NON-EMPLOYEES IS ACTUALLY WHEN YOU COUNT THOSE IN, IT'S STILL $25 LESS THAN WE HAD IN OUR BUDGET FOR, UH, FISCAL YEAR 2025.
WE DO HAVE, UM, A REQUEST FOR, UM, CLOTHING ALLOWANCE FOR MY DA INVESTIGATORS.
UM, EVERY OTHER PEACE OFFICER IN THE COUNTY OTHER THAN DA AND COUNTY ATTORNEY INVESTIGATORS RECEIVES A $600 CLOTHING ALLOWANCE IF THEY'RE NON-UNIFORM.
UM, AND SO I WOULD JUST REQUEST THAT TO BE MATCHED TO THE OTHER PEACE OFFICERS FOR THE COUNTY.
UM, JUST REAL QUICK, A A FEW THINGS I HAD, I KNOW WE HAVE AS PART OF OUR BUDGET PROCESS, THE BUILDING MAINTENANCE BUDGET AND OUR REQUEST FOR THE BUILDING MAINTENANCE BUDGET, UM, WE DO NEED NEW CARPET IN THE GRAND JURY ROOM.
UM, THE CARPET THAT'S THERE IS THE ORIGINAL CARPET TO THE BUILDING.
SO IT'S 25 AND A HALF YEARS OLD AT THIS POINT.
I THINK IF YOU CAN GET CARPET TO GO 25 YEARS, WE JUST GOTTA MARK THAT UP AS A WIND AND KIND OF GO ON FROM THERE.
UM, WE WOULD LIKE TO GET CARPET AND PAINT IN OUR CONFERENCE ROOM, UM, WHICH I THINK, I THINK THAT'S ALSO ORIGINAL TO THE BUILDING.
LIKE I'M WITH THE GRAND JURY ROOM THOUGH.
AND THEN WE WANT TO ADD, UH, CARPET AND KAREN'S OFFICE, OUR OFFICE MANAGER'S OFFICE, UM, WHICH IS NOT ORIGINAL TO THE BUILDING BECAUSE THAT ACTUALLY WAS A, AN ADD-ON THAT WE CONSTRUCTED OUT OF THE HALL.
UM, WHICH IS JUST CONSISTENT WITH HOW JAM PACKED WE ARE IN THAT PARTICULAR BUILDING AT THIS POINT.
SO THERE'S NOT CARPET THAT HAS NEVER BEEN REPAINTED SINCE WE MOVED IN NINE.
HAVE YOU TALKED, TALKED TO MR. LONG ABOUT THOSE REQUESTS? Y WE HAD, I THINK KAREN TALKED TO HIM ABOUT THAT.
UH, AND HE'S GOT THOSE, I THINK INCLUDED IN HIS BUDGET.
I KNOW HE HAS A TON OF THOSE CARPET SQUARES ALRIGHT.
SO THAT SHOULDN'T BE A PROBLEM BUT I JUST WANNA BRING THAT TO Y'ALL'S ATTENTION.
EASIEST BUDGET OF THE DAY? MAYBE? PRETTY MUCH.
I WANNA GO AHEAD AND TELL YOU THAT BUILDINGS IS OLDER THAN 25 YEARS THOUGH.
[00:20:01]
WELL RIGHT, EXACTLY.WE MOVED IN DECEMBER OF, IN THAT CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW
I DID KNOW WE MOVED IN DECEMBER OF NINE.
NINE, SO I DIDN'T KNOW SO LAST MILLENNIA.
SO WE DID NOT CARRY OVER ANY OF THE POST OFFICE'S CARPET THOUGH, THANKFULLY.
MOVE DOWN TO ITEM COUNTY ATTORNEY ITEM.
[I.C. Discussion/Presentation on Department 475 County Attorney budget requests. (John Forrest / Judge Deen)]
GONNA GO BACK TO ITEM C ON THE, UH, DEPARTMENT 4, 7, 5 COUNTY ATTORNEY BUDGET.I'M JUST GONNA BORROW MY COMPUTER AS LONG AS MY BATTERY DOESN'T DIE.
WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT ME FOR? I SEEING IF YOU GUYS WERE READY.
SO JUST KIND OF GO THROUGH OUR BUDGET.
YOU KNOW, ORIGINALLY THAT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST DEPARTMENTS THAT DID A ZERO BALANCE BUDGET.
STARTED FROM ZERO ON ALL MY, MY PARTICULAR ITEMS. AND SO, UH, NEVER ROLLED THINGS OVER AND TRY TO UTILIZE THAT MONEY FROM OTHER LINES INTO OTHER TO BALANCE MY BUDGET.
SO THAT, THAT'S ONE THING I DID A LONG TIME AGO IS MADE SURE I ZEROED EVERYTHING OUT AND MADE SURE THE REQUESTS WERE CURRENT FOR THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR.
UM, AS WE ALL KNOW, SOME OF THE COSTS HAVE GONE UP ON TRAININGS AS FAR AS UH, THE DUES SUBSCRIPTIONS.
AND SO WE DO HAVE THOSE REQUESTS IN.
I BELIEVE WE HAVE ANOTHER REQUEST, WHICH I'M GONNA ALLOW STEVEN JONES MY INVESTIGATOR.
'CAUSE UM, WE'RE RAMPING THAT DEPARTMENT TRYING TO, UH, BRING IN BETTER INDIVIDUALS.
WE UTILIZE FIVE RESERVES, SO THAT CUTS THE COST ON THE INVESTIGATORS.
WE UTILIZE THOSE INDIVIDUALS IN DIFFERENT CAPACITIES.
SO WE DON'T RUN ANY COMP TIME, DON'T RUN ANY TIME UP FOR THE COUNTY.
UH, SO WE DO HAVE SOME REQUESTS IN IN THAT.
UM, OUR PLANNING OFFICE IS ONE THAT WE'D LOVE TO GET ADDRESSED.
'CAUSE OBVIOUSLY, UM, WE'RE GROWING COUNTY.
I THOUGHT THAT MIGHT BE A SEPARATE ITEM THAT THE COURT WOULD ADDRESS AS FAR AS PLA DEPARTMENT, UH, BACK WHEN LESLIE SOFA WAS THE PLATTING OFFICER, UH, THE COURT AND, AND GEORGE, YOU MAY HAVE BEEN ON THE COURT THAT TIME.
I WAS, WE, WE DID AWAY WITH THAT DEPARTMENT.
YOU USED TO BE OFFICED OVER IN THE ANNEX AND AT THAT TIME I HAD A VACANT POSITION FOR OFFICE MANAGER AND INSTEAD OF HIRING OFFICE MANAGER, I KIND OF SAW THAT AT SOME POINT WE MAY BEGIN GROWING AGAIN.
SO TO NOT COMPLETELY DO AWAY AT THE PLANNING OFFICE, I HAD LESLIE COME OVER, CONTINUE THAT DEPARTMENT.
AND SO THAT'S HOW THE DEPARTMENT ORIGINALLY ENDED UP IN MY OFFICE.
AND SINCE THEN IT'S, IT'S STAYED THERE AND HASN'T GROWN, BUT MAYBE ONE, ONE EMPLOYEE.
SO, UH, WE'VE DOUBLED PROBABLY IN SIZE SINCE THAT TIME.
SO THAT, WELL, I'D LIKE TO, I'D LIKE TO GET THAT PUT BACK IN STATE, YOU KNOW, THE PLATTING OFFICE, RIGHT? SO IF YOU CAN WORK ALL THAT OUT OR, SO BEFORE THAT WASN'T AT EACH, EACH PRECINCT HAD THEIR OWN PLATTING PERSON.
YES, THAT'S WHAT IT WAS GOING BACK TO.
YEAH, WE DON'T WANT THAT BACK.
SO AT THAT PRIOR, PRIOR TO LESLIE, IT WAS IN EACH DEPARTMENT, EACH DEPARTMENT DID THEIR OWN PLATING.
BUT THAT, THAT MIGHT BE SOMETHING, IT MAY NOT BE THIS CURRENT FISCAL YEAR THAT WE LOOK AT THAT AND, AND BRANCHING IT OUT INTO HIS OWN DEPARTMENT.
BUT OBVIOUSLY SOMETHING WE NEED TO LOOK AT MOVING FORWARD WITH THE GROWTH THAT WE'RE GOING TO INCUR JUST BASED ON WHAT THE GEL STANDARD SAID BY 2040, WE'RE GONNA BE 300,000 POPULATION.
IF YOU DRIVE DOWN THE INTERSTATE, YOU LOOK AT THE WAL RANCH, YOU LOOK AT ANYTHING DIRT'S MOVING STILL HERE IN PARKER COUNTY.
AND SO THAT, THAT'S ONE THING.
UH, I WAS ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL MONEY FOR THE PLATTING MANAGER IN THAT PARTICULAR DEPARTMENT.
AND YOU KNOW, I, I THINK THAT WOULD BE NECESSARY TO KIND OF EQUALIZE WHAT WE SEE IN OTHER COUNTIES.
UH, THE OTHER, UH, SPECIFIC REQUEST WAS AN INCREASE IN THE VICTIM'S ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR AND LOOKING AT THAT ACROSS THE STATE, UM, WE'RE ABLE TO JUSTIFY THAT THAT POSITION NEEDS A LITTLE BIT OF AN INCREASE AS WELL.
SO ANY QUESTIONS ON THOSE ITEMS CURRENTLY? UM, JOHN, I, I DUNNO IF YOU WERE IN HERE WHEN I GAVE THIS SHORT SPIEL, BUT AS YOU KNOW, WE FORMED A BUDGET COMMITTEE THIS YEAR THAT LOOKS AT ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.
IT LOOKS AT, UH, NEW CAPITAL REQUESTS, THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
SO WE HAVE DISCUSSED THE PLATTING SITUATION TO SOME DEGREE AND THEN WE ALSO DISCUSSED THE, UM, THE VEHICLES.
AND SO WE WE'RE TRYING TO LOOK AT THAT ALL HOLISTICALLY.
AND SO YOU'LL GET AN EMAIL FROM ME COPYING THE BUDGET COMMITTEE THIS WEEK THAT ASKS FOR A BIT MORE INFORMATION, PARTICULARLY ON THE VEHICLE SIDE FOR FLEET INFORMATION, WHO'S DRIVING WHAT VEHICLES, ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF
[00:25:01]
TO HELP US REALLY TRACK WHAT WE'RE DOING AND HOW WE'RE ALLOCATING TAXPAYER MONEY.UM, THERE'S NOTHING MORE IMPORTANT DURING THIS SEASON THAN BEING GOOD STEWARDS OF WHAT WE, UH, WHAT WE HAVE.
SO JUST KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR THAT.
AND, AND WATCHING, UH, MY DAD, WHEN HE WAS A DPS, THE WAY THEY HAD ROTATE THEIR CARS IN WAS BASED ON MILEAGE ON THOSE VEHICLES BECAUSE THAT AFTER A CERTAIN MILEAGE, YOU'RE PROBABLY GONNA SPEND QUITE A BIT MORE ON MAINTENANCE THAN YOU ARE ON WHAT A PAYMENT WOULD BE, WHICH OBVIOUSLY YOU BUY THESE CARS OUTRIGHT, BUT WHEN YOU START INCURRING A COST THAT'S HIGHER THAN THE VALUE, THAT'S WHEN YOU START LOOKING AT GETTING NEW VEHICLES.
AND SO, UM, THE JUSTIFICATION, WE'RE NOT GONNA ASK FOR ANY, A NEW VEHICLE FOR ANYTHING UNDER A HUNDRED THOUSAND OBVIOUSLY.
AND PROBABLY VEHICLES CAN RUN TO 120, 130,000 PRETTY, PRETTY EASILY NOWADAYS.
SO WHAT WE'RE MAKING AN ATTEMPT TO DO IS LOOK AT THE, THE COUNTY HOLISTICALLY, THE WHOLE COUNTY RATHER THAN LOOKING AT, OKAY, THIS DEPARTMENT SAYS THEY NEED THIS.
AND, AND TRYING TO BACK UP AND TRYING TO STANDARDIZE THINGS.
IN THE PAST WE'VE HAD, UH, FOLKS COME IN HERE, NOT THIS ROUND, BUT THE NEXT ROUND AND SAY, OKAY, WELL WE, WE MOVE TO APPROVE WHATEVER YOUR REQUEST IS AND NOT LOOKING AT THE BIG PICTURE.
AND SO WHAT OUR COMMITTEE'S TRYING TO DO IS LOOK AT THE BIG PICTURE BEFORE WE MAKE ANY DECISIONS.
MAKE SURE THAT ALL THE COMMISSIONERS AND THE JUDGE HAVE, HAVE INFORMATION RELATED TO WHAT ALL THE REQUESTS ARE GOING TO BE.
SO THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO, UH, MALICIOUS INTENT ON OUR PART.
UH, BY ASKING FOR MORE INFORMATION, WE JUST NEED INFORMATION IN OUR COMMITTEE SO THAT WE CAN RANK THOSE AND, AND LOOK AT WHAT ALL THE REQUESTS ARE BEFORE WE MAKE ANY DECISIONS.
AND IN THE PAST WE'VE BEEN CAUGHT BY SAYING, OKAY, WE APPROVE THIS NOW, NOW, GOSH, WE, WE, THIS MAY MAY HAVE BEEN HIGHER ON THE SCALE, BUT WE HEARD THAT LATER.
SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE TRYING TO CONSOLIDATE ALL THE REQUESTS AND GET THEM TO ALL OF THE, THE DECISION MAKERS HERE ALL AT ONCE SO THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO, TO LOOK AT 'EM IN, IN, IN RELATION TO EVERYTHING ELSE, WHICH IS GREAT.
WHICH I THINK MAYBE A FLEET PROGRAM FOR THE COUNTY WOULD BE A GREAT THING WHERE WE LOOK AT ALL VEHICLES AND AT A CERTAIN MILEAGE START LOOKING AT RETIRING THOSE VEHICLES AND, AND REPLACE 'EM WITH NEW ONES.
I KNOW A LOT OF PROGRAMS HAVE THOSE FLEET PROGRAMS WHERE THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT THEY DO.
THEY DON'T DO IT FROM DEPARTMENT DEPARTMENT, THEY DO IT COUNTYWIDE.
AND BACK ON ON THE PLANNING OFFICE.
IF IF WE WERE TO CREATE A DEPARTMENT, THEN, YOU KNOW, I'D LIKE TO BE INVOLVED WITH THAT AS WELL.
SO, CAN I, CAN I JUMP BACK ON THE FLEET OR ON THE VEHICLES? ONE THING I WANTED TO ASK, OR I WANT TO VOICE IS, UH, I'M REAL BIG ON MAINTENANCE PROGRAMS AND MAINTENANCE AND UPKEEP, TIRE PRESSURES, OIL CHANGES.
I MEAN, LITTLE THINGS ROTATING LIKE THAT.
ROTATING TIRES, ROTATING TIRES MAKE A BIG DIFFERENCE ON THE LONGEVITY OF THESE VEHICLES.
SO I DON'T KNOW, I THINK THAT THAT WOULD BE A GOOD COMPONENT FOR US TO EVALUATE AND SEE ABOUT HOW WE CAN INCORPORATE THESE MANAGEMENT PROGRAMS ON THESE VEHICLES, MAINTENANCE PROGRAMS, YOU KNOW, AS WE'RE LOOKING AT IT MORE AS FROM A FLEET OR A HIGHER, PER A HIGHER FROM A HIGHER ELEVATION.
BECAUSE I THINK, WE'LL, YOU KNOW, WE TAKE BETTER CARE OF OUR VEHICLES, THEY'RE GONNA BE BETTER FOR US.
SO I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW HOW WE HOW WE GET THAT YEAH.
OTHER THAN SETTING UP A FLEET PROGRAM BECAUSE IN MY PLACE, BECAUSE I, I DIDN'T DO IT.
IT WAS ALREADY THERE WHEN I GOT THERE.
BUT WE'VE GOT THE PROGRAM WHERE WE, WE HAVE, UH, SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE.
WHEN, WHEN THE MILEAGE POPS UP, WE KEEP MILEAGE EVERY DAY.
UH, WHEN IT POPS UP FOR OIL CHANGE, WE, WE, WE CHANGE THE OIL IN THAT VEHICLE.
AND WE HAVE A, A FLEET MAINTENANCE PROGRAM IN PLACE THAT IS COMPUTER GENERATED FOR US.
THAT'S WHAT WE'VE IMPLEMENTED IN PRECINCT FOR THE SAME THING WE'VE SEEN GET PAY DIVIDENDS.
AND, UH, ESPECIALLY ON OUR TIRE BUDGET LINE ITEMS AND, UH, MAJOR MOTOR ENGINE REPAIRS, THINGS LIKE THAT, THAT CAN BE BIG TICKET ITEMS. SO I WOULD JUST ENCOURAGE US TO TRY TO LOOK AND SEE IF THERE'S A WAY THAT WE CAN LOOK AT DOING THAT.
UM, I KNOW IT'S FRAGMENTED AND DIFFICULT IN DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS, BUT IT, IF WE ADDED ALL OF THE MAINTENANCE ON VEHICLES UP ON AN ANNUALIZED BASIS, IT'S A LOT.
AND, AND NOT, NOT SAYING I'M CHEAP, BUT I HAVE A VEHICLE THAT I'VE HAVE 230,000 MILES ON IT.
I CAN GET 80,000 OUT OF A TIRE BY ROTATING TIRES.
IF YOU, AND I KNOW JAKE WOULD DRIVE, YOU'RE USED TO DRIVE AN OLDER TRUCK.
I DON'T KNOW IF HE STILL DOES OR NOT.
I, I STILL DRIVE ONE, MY MONTHLY PAYMENT'S GONE, BUT, BUT MY MONTHLY MAINTENANCE BILL IS KICKING ME IN THE TAIL.
AND, AND THAT, AND THAT'S WHERE IT STARTS GETTING, WHERE YOU START ROTATING THOSE VEHICLES OUT.
BUT IF WE COULD DO THAT ON A COUNTYWIDE BASIS, WE'D BE WILLING TO PARTICIPATE.
'CAUSE WE SHOULD TREAT, TREAT THESE VEHICLES LIKE THEIR OWN, LIKE WE WOULD TREAT OUR OWN VEHICLE THAT WE DRIVE AT HOME.
UH, WE DO HAVE SOME EQUIPMENT COPIER, UH,
[00:30:01]
THAT'S IN THE AGENDA OR IN THE, THE BUDGET REQUEST AS WELL.UM, THOSE BE UTILIZED FOR PLATTING AND, AND OTHER PURPOSES WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT.
AND I HAVE BROUGHT STEVE IN, UH, WE WE'RE LOOKING AT, UM, BRING UP SOME OF THE INVESTIGATORS, THE COST, SOME OF THE SERVICES THEY PROVIDE AND THE DANGERS THAT THEY ENCOUNTER ARE EQUAL TO WHAT WE SEE IN OTHER DEPARTMENTS, IF NOT GREATER BECAUSE WE SERVE A LOT OF, UH, PROTECTIVE ORDERS ON INDIVIDUALS, MEANING WE GO KNOCK ON A DOOR.
AND THOSE SITUATIONS ARE USUALLY SOME OF THE MOST VIOLENT SITUATIONS WHERE AN INDIVIDUAL, A SPOUSE IS UPSET, HE'S NOT GONNA WANT TO GET A PROTECTIVE ORDER.
AND YOU LOOK IN OTHER COUNTIES, SOMETIMES YOU SEE FATALITIES AS A RESULT OF NOT HAVING ADEQUATE STAFFING OR, AND WE'RE NOT ASKING FOR ADDITIONAL STAFFING.
JUST, YOU KNOW, AN INCREASE IN THAT PAGE JUST BASED ON THE DANGERS OF WHAT THEY ENCOUNTER ON A DAILY BASIS.
AND WHAT, WHAT DO YOU NEED THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO FACILITATE THAT.
WELL, THANK Y'ALL VERY MUCH FOR LAST YEAR.
Y'ALL PROVIDED BULLETPROOF VESTS FOR OUR OFFICERS.
SO THAT THAT WAS A HUGE BOOST FOR THOSE GUYS.
I KNOW, UH, WE HAD AN INDIVIDUAL THAT WE ALSO GO OUT AND THE JUDGES LIKE US, IF SOMEBODY'S ABSCONDED, TRY TO ROUND THOSE GUYS UP, ESPECIALLY IF THEY'RE IN THE AREA AND THEY HAVE A WARRANT OUT FOR THEIR ARREST.
WE HAD ONE THAT RAN ON OUR GUYS LAST YEAR AND ALMOST RAN OVER, UH, TWO OF OUR INVESTIGATORS.
THANK GOODNESS THEY DIDN'T, THEY DIDN'T PURSUE THE CHASE.
'CAUSE WE KNEW WE COULD PICK HIM UP LATER.
ANOTHER AGENCY THEN FOUND HIM ONCE AGAIN, HE RAN ON THEM AND THEY WERE ABLE TO APPREHEND HIM.
BUT THAT'S JUST SOME OF THE CONCERNS WHEN YOUR INVESTIGATOR GOING OUT TO GET THESE INDIVIDUALS THAT DON'T WANT TO BE FOUND.
AND WITH THAT BEING SAID, I WAS GONNA HAVE STEVEN COME UP KIND OF DESCRIBE WHAT OUR, UH, INVESTIGATORS DO, UH, WHERE WE WANT TO PUT THEM AS FAR AS SALARY RANGE.
UM, WE'RE, WE'RE NOT WANTING TO EQUALIZE WITH THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE, BUT I THINK THERE'S A LARGE GAP OR DISCREPANCY BETWEEN OUR INVESTIGATORS AND WHAT THEY'RE PAID AND WHAT THE DA'S OFFICE INVESTIGATORS ARE PAID.
SO WE'RE NOT, LIKE I SAID, WE'RE NOT TRYING TO MAKE THE GAP UP 100%, BUT WE ARE TRYING TO CLOSE IT A LITTLE BIT.
SO STEVEN, IF YOU COULD COME UP AND MAKE A PRESENTATION ON THAT PART.
I'M AN INVESTIGATOR WITH MR. FOREST'S OFFICE.
UH, AGAIN, LIKE HE, I'LL TOUCH ON WHAT HE SAID AS FAR AS WHAT YOU GUYS DID FOR US LAST YEAR.
YOU'VE GOT US TASERS, UM, YOU'VE GOT US BODY CAMS, UH, EVERYTHING WE ASKED FOR AS FAR AS THAT WE COULD USE IN THE FIELD, WE GOT IT GREATLY APPRECIATE THAT.
UM, PART OF WHAT WE DO AS FAR AS THE PROTECTIVE ORDERS, UH, WE ALL KNOW, AND I DON'T HAVE THE EXACT NUMBERS, BUT OUR PROTECTIVE ORDERS HAVE INCREASED AS FAR AS WHAT WE'RE HAVING TO GO OUT AND SERVE.
UH, AND WITH THOSE PROTECTIVE ORDERS IS ALSO THE BOND CONDITIONS, UM, THAT WE'RE GOING OUT AND SERVING AS WELL.
UM, THE OTHER THING THAT MR. FORRES, UH, TOOK ON BEFORE I CAME, UH, A YEAR AND A HALF AGO, WAS WORKING THE ABSCONDER DOCKET AND TRYING TO CLEAR UP SOME OF THE MISDEMEANOR WARRANTS, UH, THAT ARE OUT THERE AND THAT ARE ACTIVE FOR ALL THE AGENCIES.
UM, ALL OUR AGENCIES IN OUR COUNTY WILL FILE ARREST WARRANTS WITH US, UH, OR EXCUSE ME, THEY WILL FILE CASES WITH US WITHOUT AN ARREST.
THEN THAT WAY THE STATUTE, THE THE CLOCK STOPS.
THE INDIVIDUAL IS STILL WANTED AND WE ARE GOING OUT AND TRACKING THEM AND LOOKING FOR THEM.
UM, THAT LEADS US TO ALL OTHER COUNTIES.
YOU KNOW, NOT EVERYBODY LIVES HERE.
SO WE, WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME, YOU KNOW, OF COURSE AFTER HOURS OUT HUNTING THESE INDIVIDUALS.
AND WE WITH A NEW HIRE THAT WE JUST GOT, UM, WE'RE VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE, HAVE GOTTEN A GENTLEMAN FROM DPS THAT HE'S GONNA ASSUME A MAJOR PART OF THAT ROLE.
AND WE'RE GONNA TAKE A MORE ACTIVE, ACTIVE ROLE IN GETTING THESE GUYS PICKED UP.
UM, AND WITH THAT, UH, WE ALSO TALKED ABOUT VEHICLES.
HE ADDRESSED, WE DID ASK FOR ANOTHER VEHICLE.
UH, WE JUST, UM, A FEW MONTHS AGO WE SURPLUSED ONE THAT HAD WELL OVER A HUNDRED THOUSAND MILES ON IT.
THE VEHICLE HAD PROBLEMS, UH, THAT EXCEEDED WHAT IT WAS WORTH.
SO WE WENT AHEAD AND, AND PUT IT ON THE LOT TO GET, UH, SURPLUS.
WE'VE GOT ANOTHER VEHICLE THAT WILL, WE WILL SURPLUS IF WE'RE FORTUNATE TO GET ANOTHER ONE.
AND IT'S GOT 170 PLUS THOUSAND MILES ON IT.
OUR INVESTIGATOR THAT JUST RETIRED, THAT WAS, THAT WAS HER VEHICLE.
SO THAT'S WHY WE'RE ASKING FOR ANOTHER ONE.
UM, THE REST OF 'EM WERE IN, WERE IN GOOD SHAPE.
UM, AS FAR AS TOUCHING ON SALARIES, UM, IT REALLY CAME TO LIGHT ONCE WE HAD THIS.
WE HAD, WE HAD AN INVESTIGATOR RETIRE.
UH, WE WENT LOOKING FOR A NEW CANDIDATE.
AND, AND WE ALL KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES IT COMES DOWN TO MONEY.
I HAD A LOT OF PEOPLE REACH OUT PRIOR TO SAYING, HEY, IF YOU, I'M INTERESTED IN COMING WHEN YOU HAVE AN OPENING.
UM, AND IT, AND IT BOILS DOWN TO A LOT OF, UH, WITH MONEY, UH, WHEN WE LOOK AT IT AND WE CAN SAY, WE KNOW WHAT TARRANT COUNTY MAKES AND, AND WE CAN'T COMPARE OURSELVES
[00:35:01]
TO THEM BECAUSE OF THE POPULATION AND AND VOLUME THAT THEY GET.BUT JUST IN COUNTY, UH, OUR CLOSEST COMPARISON WOULD BE THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY INVESTIGATORS.
UM, THERE'S ABOUT A 10% DIFFERENT IN BASE SALARY BETWEEN US AND THEM THAT DOESN'T COUNT THEIR LONGEVITY PAYS AND THEIR STIPENDS, BUT IT'S RIGHT AT 10%.
THEIR BASE, UH, IS 93, 0, 35 HOURS IS 84 FOR OUR INVESTIGATORS.
MINE IS THE CHIEF IS 93, 0 35.
UM, I'M ASKING, I I RAN THE NUMBERS.
I'M ASKING FOR 9% ON OUR INVESTIGATORS.
THAT GETS THEM UP TO THEIR BASE, NOT COUNTING STIPENDS.
UH, SO THAT WOULD BE FROM 84 TO 93, 0 35 MYSELF AS THE CHIEF.
UM, ABOUT A 9% GAP IN THAT WOULD BE 1 0 2 3 38.
UM, ON AN INCREASE IN THAT, I'VE SUPPLIED OUR JOB DESCRIPTIONS.
UM, I SUBMITTED THAT EARLIER WHEN, WHEN ASKED BY JAMIE AND MR. FOREST AS TO OUR INVESTIGATORS RESPONSIBILITIES, AND THEN MY RESPONSIBILITY AS THE CHIEF INVESTIGATOR.
UM, YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR ME? I'VE TOUCHED ON EVERYTHING STEVEN.
UH, HERE THIS QUESTION, I I GOTTA PLAY DEVIL'S ADVOCATE HERE.
WE'RE STEWARDS AND I UNDERSTAND WE'RE, WE'RE ALL STEWARDS OF THE TAXPAYERS' MONEY.
AND SO SOMETIMES THAT MEANS I GOTTA ASK QUESTIONS THAT FRANKLY COME ACROSS AS PRETTY RUDE.
AND I DON'T INTEND IT TO BE RUDE.
I WISH, I WISH I DIDN'T HAVE TO DO THIS, BUT I DON'T FEEL LIKE WE'RE TURNING OVER EVERY STONE IF WE DON'T, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO SOMEBODY WHO SAID, WELL, YEAH, THEY, THOSE INVESTIGATORS MAKE LESS BECAUSE THEY'RE INVESTIGATING LESS SERIOUS ISSUES.
YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'RE INVESTIGATING MORE MISDEMEANORS RATHER THAN, YOU KNOW, KICKING DOWN DOORS WITH GUYS WITH GUNS BEHIND THE DOOR AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF.
AND, AND I'LL, I'LL ANSWER THAT QUESTION AS THIS.
UM, AND I DON'T HAVE THE STATISTICS INTO SOMETHING I CAN GET, BUT IF WE WANT TO LOOK AT THE INCIDENTS OF, UH, OFFICERS GETTING INJURED OFFICERS, UH, GETTING SHOT AT, THAT'S PROBABLY YOUR WORST FEAR OUT THERE.
IT ALWAYS COMES DOWN TO, UH, THE MAJORITY OF THE TIME IT'S A FAMILY VIOLENCE RELATED CRIME THAT'S A CLASS A MISDEMEANOR.
SO WE'RE, WE'RE LOOKING AT MISDEMEANORS JUST BECAUSE IT'S A MISDEMEANOR, IT DOESN'T TAKE AWAY THE, THE THREAT LEVEL AND THE LEVEL OF VIOLENCE.
SO WHEN OUR GUYS GO OUT AND WE MAY HAVE AN ABSCONDER FOR DWLI, ALRIGHT, THAT DWLI OFFENDER, WE CAN LOOK AT HIS CRIMINAL HISTORY.
ALL RIGHT? HE MAY HAVE A LENGTH OF CRIMINAL HISTORY THAT'S ALL MISDEMEANORS, BUT MAYBE THIS IS THE ONE, THIS IS THE TIPPING POINT.
YOU KNOW, SO THAT, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE DON'T KNOW.
UM, YES, THEY DO DEAL WITH THE FELONIES UP THERE IN THAT OFFICE.
UM, OUR OFFICE DOES DO THE PROTECTIVE ORDERS.
I THINK THAT'S A TOTAL DIFFERENT BALL GAME WHEN WE'RE GOING OUT THERE AND SERVING.
UM, AND I'LL JUST SAY A, A HUSBAND WITH AN ORDER SAYING THAT HE IS NO LONGER TO BE AROUND HIS CHILDREN FOR 2, 5, 10, OR A LIFETIME.
SO THERE'S A WHOLE OTHER THING, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER THREAT POSSIBILITY THERE WITH THAT AS WELL.
AND WE, WHEN WE GO OUT THERE ON THAT, WE TAKE THE PRECAUTIONS, BUT WE STILL HAVE TO GET IT DONE.
AND IT'S, AND I'LL SAY THIS TOO, ON THE PROTECTIVE ORDERS AND THE BOND CONDITIONS, IT'S NOT A MAY SERVE, IT'S NOT A MAY FIND, IT'S A SHALL IT WILL HAPPEN.
UM, WE TRY TO DO THOSE WITHIN 24 HOURS TO THE BEST OF OUR ABILITY.
SO, UH, AND A LOT OF THOSE TAKE A LOT OF HOURS.
I DON'T KEEP TRACK OF THE HOURS, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE WE, WE DON'T PUT IN FOR THE OVERTIME.
WE DON'T PUT IN THE COMP TIME.
SO, AND I'VE GOT TWO POINTS TO THAT.
SO THE INDIVIDUALS WERE GOING OUT AND, AND PICKING UP A LOT OF 'EM ARE FELONS.
SO USUALLY WHEN YOU HAVE SOMEBODY WHO HAS A MISDEMEANOR THAT'S NOT WANTING TO GET PICKED UP, THEY PROBABLY HAVE HAD A FELONY IN THE PAST.
AND SO THAT'S WHERE THE FEAR COMES IN.
WHEN HE IS SAYING THEY DO A LOT OF OF RESEARCH PROBABLY GOING OUT, THEY LOOK TO SEE WHAT TYPE OF HISTORY THAT INDIVIDUAL HAS PLUS ALASKA AN ADDITIONAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TO ASSIST.
AND SO THAT'S ONE OF THE IMPORTANT THINGS.
AND WHEN HE IS TALKING ABOUT A PROTECTIVE ORDER IN SHELL SERVE, THE PROBLEM IS, IS YOU HAVE AN INDIVIDUAL THAT'S THAT'S BEEN ASSAULTED AND DESERVES THE PROTECTION OF A PROTECTIVE ORDER UNTIL THAT INDIVIDUAL IS SERVED.
HE, HE CAN SAY, WELL, I WASN'T TOLD NOT TO GO WITHIN SO MANY FEET OR NOT TO GO TO HER WORK OR NOT CALL HER.
AND SO THAT FORCES THEM TO GO IN WHILE THE SITUATION'S STILL VERY VOLATILE BECAUSE THE SITUATION'S JUST RECENTLY OCCURRED.
AND THAT'S HOW WE'RE ABLE TO GET THE PROTECTIVE ORDER.
UH, SECONDLY, TALKING ABOUT THEM GOING OUT, I'M NOT SURE, AND I THINK JEFF MAY CORRECT ME, I DON'T KNOW THAT HIS INVESTIGATORS GO OUT AND PICK UP BALANCES.
I DON'T THINK, JEFF, I DON'T, DO Y'ALL PICK UP BALANCES? CORRECT.
[00:40:01]
WE'VE BEEN WORKING A LOT OF WARRANT WORK, SO OKAY.AND SO OUR OFFICE, THE MISDEMEANORS KIND OF FALL IN A BLACK HOLE AS FAR AS WARRANTS BECAUSE ON THE FELONIES, THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT, THEY'RE GONNA GO ACTIVELY WORK THOSE CASES.
THERE'S ONLY SO MANY HOURS IN A DAY, WHICH THEN LEAVES A LOT OF MISDEMEANOR CASES WHERE WARRANTS ARE JUST OUT THERE.
THESE INDIVIDUALS ARE ABSCONDED, NO ONE'S ACTIVELY PURSUING THOSE INDIVIDUALS.
AND SO THE LAST THING THAT WE WANT TO DO IS HAVE A CASE SET FOR TWO OR THREE YEARS BECAUSE THIS INDIVIDUAL'S NOT PICKED UP AND THAT THAT'S WHAT'S HAPPENING IN TIMES.
AND SO, UH, WHERE THEY'RE GETTING PICKED UP WHEN SOMEONE'S NOT ACTIVELY PURSUING 'EM IS THEY GET PULLED OVER ON A TRAFFIC VIOLATION.
THEY GO INTO A NEW LICENSE, YOU KNOW, SOMETHING THAT PUTS 'EM BACK IN CONTACT WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
OTHERWISE THEY'RE JUST FLYING UNDER THE RADAR OR UNTIL THEY COMMIT A NEW CRIME.
AND UM, I'LL, UH, I'LL FOLLOW UP WITH AN EMAIL TO Y'ALL ABSOLUTELY.
COPYING THE BUDGET COMMITTEE AND THE, THE PERCENTAGES THAT YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT DEALING WITH VIOLENCE AND ALL THAT SORT OF STUFF.
THAT WOULD BE WHATEVER YOU CAN GRAB ON THAT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL FOR JUSTIFICATION.
AND, AND THERE'S SOME OTHER NUMBERS THAT I JUST DIDN'T HAVE DONE TO, TO GET, BUT THANK YOU THIS TIMEFRAME.
BUT YEAH, I'LL, I'LL GET ALL THAT FOR YOU AND I'LL GET OUR NUMBERS.
WE RAN IT HERE A WHILE BACK ON THE, UH, THE MISDEMEANOR WARRANTS THAT ARE CURRENTLY OPEN.
AND ONE OTHER THING, WHEN WE DO WORK CLOSELY WITH JEFF'S OFFICE ON PROTECTIVE ORDERS, AND SO SEVERAL OF THE PROTECTIVE ORDERS WE'RE GETTING ARE FROM FELONY CASES.
SO WE ARE DEALING WITH FELONS IN THOSE SITUATIONS.
AND THAT'S SOMETHING ELSE THAT I TRIED TO GIVE BEFORE THIS MEETING THIS MORNING WAS THE NUMBER OF PROTECTIVE ORDERS THAT WE'VE DONE.
OUR VAC IS WORKING ON THAT AS WE SPEAK ALONG WITH THE BOND CONDITIONS THAT WE'RE SERVING, UM, AS WELL.
I DO THINK ON THE, ON THE PROTECTIVE ORDERS, ONE THING KIND OF COMMON, KIND OF A COMMON MISPERCEPTION IS THAT IT'S LIKE A MISDEMEANOR FAMILY VIOLENCE.
UH, PROTECTIVE ORDERS CAN BE FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT, FOR STALKING, FOR AGGRAVATED ASSAULT IF IT INVOLVES FAMILY VIOLENCE.
AND, UH, OUR OFFICE WORKS REALLY WELL WITH THEIR OFFICE AND, AND THEY DO THE, THE WORK ON THE PROTECTIVE ORDERS AND A LOT OF THOSE ARE HOURS AND OUR, OUR VICTIMS AND A LOT OF TIMES WE SHARE VICTIMS. RIGHT.
UH, SOME HAVE A MISDEMEANOR HERE AND A FELONY THERE.
SO THEY DO SOME GOOD WORK ON THOSE.
I NOTICED ALSO ON THE, UM, THE FORMS FOR THE, THE, THEY GOT MUCH BETTER AT THE FORMS THAT WE FILLED OUT WITH MAGISTRATE MM-HMM
FOR SEXUAL VIOLENCE OR SEXUAL ASSAULT AND THEN VERY SPECIFIC TO EACH OF THOSE.
UM, DONE A GOOD JOB WITH THAT, I THINK IN COORDINATION WITH CITY OF WEATHERFORD ALSO THAT'S BEEN HELPING WITH THAT.
WE, WE DO CHECK THOSE FORMS, MAKE SURE THEY'RE FILLED OUT PROPERLY SO WE CAN GET PROPER EXECUTION ON THOSE.
UH, ADDITIONALLY, UH, OUR INVESTIGATORS GO OUT AND SERVE PAPERWORK ON CPS CASES AND ONCE AGAIN ANOTHER VOLATILE SITUATION WHERE, UH, CHILDREN HAVE BEEN REMOVED FROM A FAMILY AND IT'S THE MOST DANGEROUS OF ALL.
SO, AND THAT'S, I KNOW WE DON'T, DON'T HEAR IT ENOUGH 'CAUSE WE JUST ASSUME EVERYBODY'S GOING THROUGH THE DAY AND, BUT THERE ARE BAD DAYS FOR, FOR EVERYBODY.
YOU HOPE YOU DON'T CATCH SOMEBODY ON THAT BAD DAY.
ANY QUESTIONS? ANY OTHER COMMENTS, JOHN, YOU HAVE OR ANY COMMENTS FOR JOHN? YEAH, JUST, JUST A COMMENT, UH, ONCE AGAIN, UH, OUR COMMITTEE IS WORKING TO TRY TO, TO BALANCE AND, AND BE AS FAIR AS WE POSSIBLY CAN TO EVERYBODY.
AND SO WHEN, WHEN COMMISSIONER HOLT IS ASKING FOR MORE INFORMATION, WE'RE NOT QUESTIONING THE NEED, WE'RE QUESTIONING HOW WE'RE GOING TO MAKE A DECISION OF THIS REQUEST AND IN RELATION TO ANOTHER REQUEST KIND TO PRIORITIZE.
WE'VE ONLY, WE'VE ONLY GOT A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF MONEY THAT WE WILL FIND OUT HOW MUCH WE'VE GOT HERE IN A WEEK OR SO.
BUT, BUT, UH, WE'RE JUST TRYING TO KEEP EVERYTHING IN PERSPECTIVE SO THAT WE ARE AS FAIR AS WE POSSIBLY CAN BE TO EVERY DEPARTMENT.
AND THERE'S, THERE'S NO, WE'RE NOT QUESTIONING THE SAFETY OR THE, THE RIGHT OF, OF THE WORK.
'CAUSE WE KNOW THAT ANSWER ALREADY.
IN FACT, UH, WHEN Y'ALL WEAR THOSE BULLET BULLETPROOF VESTS OUT, WE'RE GONNA ASK IF WE CAN HAVE THEM UP HERE.
THE, THE, THE USED USED VEST
WELL, I, I REMEMBER ONE COMMISSIONER USED TO WEAR ONE IN COURT, BUT NOT ANY OF THAT.
THANK YOU FOR THOUGH, FOR THE INFORMATION BOTH OF YOU.
BUT, AND, AND LIKE I SAID, ANY INFORMATION WE CAN FURTHER EXPAND WHAT, WHAT Y'ALL'S KNOWLEDGE IS, YOU KNOW, WE'RE MORE THAN WELCOME TO ANSWER ANY QUESTION AND WE DON'T TAKE OFFENSE TO ANYTHING.
BECAUSE IF IT'S NOT JUSTIFIED, IT'S NOT JUSTIFIED BECAUSE ONCE AGAIN, WE'RE STEWARDS OF THE TAXPAYER MONEY AND HOWEVER IT'S BEST USED, THAT'S HOW WE, WE WANNA SUPPORT THAT AS WELL AND SUPPORT THE COURT AND THEIR DECISIONS.
SO, UM, THE COMPLIMENT, UM, ON THE ZERO BASED BUDGET IN, IN ANOTHER CYCLE, UH, THE, THE COMMITTEE OVER HERE THAT THIS MEETING IS PLANNING TO MAKE EVERYBODY JUSTIFY EVERYTHING EVERY YEAR BASED ON THAT ZERO BALANCE EVERY YEAR AND START FRESH AS YOU HAVE ALWAYS DONE.
[00:45:01]
I APPRECIATE THAT AND I APPRECIATE YOUR, UH, RESPECT FOR THE TAXPAYERS OF PARKER COUNTY.WITH THAT THANK YOU COMMISSIONER.
IT'D BE GREAT IF WE TOOK A BREAK RIGHT NOW.
HOW ABOUT THAT? WE'LL TAKE A, THANK YOU JOHN.
DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE? UH, NOTHING FURTHER.
THANK Y'ALL FOR Y'ALL'S CONSIDERATION.
WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA TAKE A LITTLE RECESS AT 9 48 AND RETURN AT UH, TRY TO GET BACK AROUND 10 O'CLOCK.
WE'RE GONNA RETURN TO UM, RECESS RECORD SHOW AT 10 0 6 AND
[I.E. Discussion/Presentation on Department 490 Elections budget requests. (Crickett Miller / Judge Deen)]
WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM E ON DISCUSS PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT FOUR 90 ELECTIONS TO BUDGET REQUESTS.WILL YOU DELIVER? I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN.
SHE'S, SO I DID DECREASE SOME ITEMS. I WENT, WENT THROUGH THE BUDGET, UM, SUPPLIES.
WE DECREASED PROGRAMMING, ADVERTISING, UM, OUR OFFSITE STORAGE 'CAUSE WE ARE NOT GONNA HAVE TO NEED THAT ANYMORE.
UM, WE'VE ALREADY MOVED EVERYTHING OUT AND MOVED IT TO OUR NEW BUILDING.
UM, WE ARE GONNA HAVE TO INCREASE POSTAGE.
SO EVERYBODY WILL GET THEIR NEW VOTER REGISTRATION CARD.
UM, IT'S ALSO WE'RE GETTING READY FOR THE PRIMARY YEAR MASS MAILOUTS OF, UH, BALLOT BY MAIL SOMETIMES HAPPENS.
UM, IT DEPENDS ON WHO'S RUNNING AND WHAT HAPPENS.
THE LAST TIME A GOVERNOR'S ELECTION, WE HAD A LOT OF CARDS THAT PEOPLE SIGNED AND FILLED OUT AND SENT IN THAT WANTED THEIR BALLOTS BY MAIL.
UM, ALSO, UH, INCREASE IN CONTRACT SERVICES.
THIS IS DUE TO A VENDOR'S INCREASE.
UM, WE ARE ASKING TO SWAP ONE OF OUR MIFI DEVICES FOR A CELL PHONE THAT WE ARE GONNA KEEP IN THE OFFICE.
I'VE TALKED TO KIM ABOUT THIS.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'D PROBABLY BE LIKE A $70 INCREASE.
AND THAT'S ACTUALLY FOR THE PHONE ITSELF.
UM, THIS IS FOR IN CASE OUR PHONE LINES GO OUT OR SOMETHING.
WE CAN STILL COMMUNICATE WITH EACH ELECTION JUDGE.
UM, TRAINING IS AN INCREASE OF 670 AND THEN I'M ASKING TO RAISE THE JUDGES TO $14 AN HOUR AND THE CLERKS TO $13 AN HOUR.
UM, WHAT DID WE DO FOR THEM LAST YEAR? WE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING.
UM, WE, WE HAVE THEM AT $11 FOR A JUDGE AND $10 FOR A CLERK.
WHEN IT'S A PRIMARY WE PAY 'EM $12 AN HOUR 'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT THE STATE WILL PAY.
SO EVERYBODY, DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU'RE A JUDGE OR A CLERK, THE JUDGES DO HAVE MORE RESPONSIBILITY.
SO THEY SHOULD GET SOME MORE MONEY.
UM, I THINK THAT SINCE THE STATE PAYS $12 AN HOUR, WE SHOULD FOR SURE BE $12 AN HOUR.
BUT WITH THE CURRENT BUDGET THAT WE HAVE WITHOUT ANY INCREASE, WE CAN RAISE 'EM TO $14 FOR JUDGES AND 13 FOR CLERKS WITHOUT ANY INCREASE.
ALSO, IF IT IS APPROVED TO DO THAT, I WOULD HOPE THAT WHEN WE DO HAVE A PRIMARY, WE STILL PAY THEM THE 14 AND THE 13 AND LET THE STATE REIMBURSES THE 12.
SO YOU WOULD ONLY BE PAYING TWO AND ONE FOR THAT TIME.
UM, ALSO ON THE SALARIES IS THAT ALL THE MAY ELECTIONS ARE PAID BY ENTITIES.
SO WHOEVER CONTRACTS WITH US IN THE MAY ELECTION, THAT ENTITY PAYS FOR THE SALARIES.
SO YOU'RE MAINLY PAYING FOR ONLY THE NOVEMBER ELECTIONS.
UH, ALSO THE PRIMARIES, THEY DON'T REIMBURSE US TILL NEARLY THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
SO YES, THEY'RE GONNA REIMBURSE US, BUT WE ACTUALLY DON'T RECEIVE THE FUNDS TILL NEARLY THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR FOR THAT, WHICH IS NOT GOOD I DON'T THINK.
BUT UM, CURRENTLY WE UTILIZE VISTA SOLUTIONS FOR ALL OF OUR SCANNING OF OUR VOTER REGISTRATION CARDS.
I MEAN OUR VOTER REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS AND OUR BALLOT BY MAILS I'M WANTING TO CHANGE TO ANOTHER COMPANY.
WE THINK THIS COMPANY WILL BE A LOT BETTER FOR OUR OFFICE.
UM, SO WE'RE GONNA ASK ANOTHER THING FOR THE PURCHASING AGENT IS TO DO A TERMINATION OF OUR CONTRACT WITH THEM.
AND THE END OF NOVEMBER 1ST, NO, END OF OCTOBER, 1ST OF NOVEMBER.
SO FOR THE PRIMARY WE'LL BE READY TO GO WITH A NEW COMPANY, UH, EQUIPMENT NEEDS.
SO MR. HOLT ASKED LAST YEAR TO COME UP WITH WHAT ARE WE GONNA NEED FOR IF WE NEED MORE MACHINES? AND WE DID SOMETHING IN THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION THAT WE'VE NEVER DONE BEFORE AND WE TOOK ALL OF OUR EARLY VOTING MACHINES AND FLOPPED THEM, FLIPPED THEM FOR ELECTION DAY.
IT WAS A HUGE TASK, BUT THANK GOODNESS FOR THE STAFF THAT I HAVE, WE WERE ABLE TO DO IT.
WE FLIPPED 80 MACHINES FRIDAY NIGHT BEFORE SATURDAY MORNING FOR THE ELECTION DAY.
DUE TO THAT WE HAD ENOUGH MACHINES.
AND SO I DON'T SEE FOR THIS GOVERNOR'S YEAR THAT WE'RE GONNA NEED TO PURCHASE ANYTHING.
UM, I STILL BELIEVE THAT MY STAFF WILL STAND UP TO THE TASK AND DO IT AGAIN.
[00:50:01]
JUST REAL QUICK ON THAT.CAN I ASK WHAT THE LIFE IS AND LONGEVITY OF THOSE MACHINES ARE? WHAT THE LIFE OF THOSE ARE?
UM, BUT DUE TO THE EXECUTIVE ORDER FROM THE PRESIDENT, IT COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING.
SO WE'RE JUST PLAYING IT BY EAR RIGHT NOW.
WE'RE GONNA TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT AS WE GO ON THROUGH.
UM, SENATE BILL 8 27 NOW HAS CHANGED IT WHERE OUR PARTIAL MANUAL COUNT HAS TO BE DONE BY THE EARLY VOTING BALLOT BOARD MEMBERS.
UM, RIGHT NOW WE HOLD IT IN HOUSE.
SO THIS IS GONNA INCREASE OUR PAY, BUT WE STILL ARE GONNA HAVE ENOUGH IN OUR BA OUR BUDGET.
IT'LL TAKE ANYWHERE FROM THREE TO SEVEN DAYS DEPENDING ON HOW MANY PEOPLE VOTE.
UM, AND HOW WELL THE BOARD MEMBERS ARE ABLE TO READ PRECINCT NUMBERS AND TO QUICKLY PROCESS THE BALLOTS.
WHAT IT IS, IS LIKE AN ORIGINAL HAND COUNT IS WHAT HAPPENS.
AND IT'S CERTAIN PRECINCTS OUT OF THE WHOLE ELECTION AND UH, IT IS TIME CONSUMING, BUT IT'S GONNA BE PUT TO THEM.
NOW SINCE THE SENATE BILL'S PASSED, UM, WE TALKED ABOUT THIS IN JUNE 30TH ABOUT THE EXECUTIVE ORDER FROM THE PRESIDENT SAYING THAT WE CANNOT USE A SYSTEM IN WHICH A VOTE IS CONTAINED IN THE BARCODE OR THE QUICK RESPONSE CODE.
IT ALSO SAYS WITHIN 180 DAYS OF THIS EXECUTIVE ORDER, IF APPROPRIATE, THEY MAY RECERTIFY THE VOTING SYSTEMS. UH, I WANNA TALK TO YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT OUR BALLOTS.
SO PARKER COUNTY HAS THE QR CODE, BUT THERE IS NO VOTE INFORMATION.
SO WHAT THAT MEANS IS INSIDE THAT QR CODE, IT DOESN'T SAY THAT YOU VOTED FOR X MEMBER FOR PRESIDENT.
IT DOES NOT TELL YOU ANY OF THAT.
IT TELLS YOU WHAT PRECINCT NUMBER THAT THAT BALLOT IS FOR THAT ELECTION.
IF IT'S A REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT BALLOT AND IT TELLS WHAT BALLOT STYLE, THAT'S THE ONLY INFORMATION THAT IS IN THE QR CODE.
YOU CANNOT SCAN THE QR CODE BECAUSE IT IS A SECURE QR CODE.
SO IF YOU WERE ABLE TO GET YOUR PHONES IN THE POLLING LOCATION, WHICH YOU KNOW IS ILLEGAL AND YOU TOOK A PICTURE OF IT, IT WILL NOT LET YOU SCAN THAT.
ALL RIGHT? THE BALLOTS THAT HAVE BEEN DE-CERTIFIED ARE, THEY'RE SAYING ARE DE-CERTIFIED BY THIS EXECUTIVE ORDER, HAVE A BARCODE.
AND IT TELLS YOU ON THAT BALLOT WHO VOTED FOR WHAT.
SO RIGHT NOW, EVERYTHING WITH HEART, EVERYTHING WITH OUR PROCESSES IS GOOD.
WE DO HAVE A BARCODE ON OUR ABSENTEE BALLOTS, THE BALLOTS THAT GO OUT TO MAIL.
IT SHOWS THAT THAT'S GOING TO THAT ELECTION, BUT THERE'S NO VOTE INFORMATION IN THERE.
WHO HAS THE AUTHORITY TO SCAN THOSE IF YOU CAN'T SCAN 'EM WITH OUR PHONES? WHO, WHO, WHO HAS THE AUTHORITY TO? WELL, NOBODY REALLY SHOULD BE SCANNING THEM.
WELL, SOME IT'S MADE FOR SOMEBODY TO SCAN WHO SCANS IT? NOBODY IN OUR OFFICE SCANS 'EM 'CAUSE WE DON'T HAVE OUR PHONES IN THERE.
I'M NOT TALKING ABOUT THE COMPANY'S BUILT THIS IN THERE.
I THINK THEY NEED TO TAKE IT OFF.
UM, BUT EVERYTHING HAS TO BE CERTIFIED.
SO THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO GO BACK THROUGH THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND THEN THROUGH THE STATE TO BE RE-CERTIFIED TO TAKE THAT OFF.
SO YOU DON'T KNOW WHY THAT THAT BARCODE IS ON THERE? CAN WE FIND, I CAN ASK HAR AND SAY WHY DID THEY PUT IT ON THERE IN THEIR PROCESSES AND LET Y'ALL KNOW.
BUT I REALLY, I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW WHY IT'S ON.
WE'RE GONNA, WE'RE GONNA BE ASKED, RIGHT, SO LEMME TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT IT.
SO WITHIN THE 180 DAYS, THEY CAN DECIDE TO CERTIFY OR DECERTIFY THE EQUIPMENT WE'RE USING.
NOW SO FAR THE EAC IS NOT DOING ANYTHING.
THEY'RE HAVING MEETINGS, UM, THEY'RE TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THIS VVSG 2.0.
UM, SO FAR WE'VE GOT NO INFORMATION.
Y'ALL ASKED ON JUNE THE 30TH ABOUT MAYBE DOING A BALLOT ON DEMAND, WHICH IS WHAT THEY'RE CALLING THESE BALLOTS.
WE HAVE TWO OF THESE DEVICES IN OUR OFFICE.
WE USE THEM FOR OUR MAIL-IN BALLOTS, AND IT'S AN ACTUAL PRINTER WITH A DUO.
WHAT Y'ALL VOTE ON NOW, AND IT PRINTS A BALLOT AND THEN WE MAIL THAT BALLOT TO THE VOTERS.
BUT IF YOU PUT A BALLOT ON DEMAND SYSTEM IN A VOTING LOCATION, YOU HAVE TO HAVE A PRINTER WITH THIS SYSTEM AT EVERY LOCATION.
AND IN SOME OF THE LARGER LOCATIONS, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TWO TO HAVE THREE BECAUSE IT DEPENDS ON HOW MANY PEOPLE VOTE.
UM, BECAUSE THEY ONLY, THEY'RE NOT THE FASTEST PRINTERS IN THE WORLD.
SO ACTUALLY YOU GET A PRINTED, PRINTED BALLOT, THE VOTER GOES AND VOTES THAT BALLOT, AND THEN YOU GO PUT IT IN A SCANNER THAT, WHICH IS GONNA SCAN IT AND TABULATE IT.
WE HAVE AN OCR, WHICH IS AN OPTICAL CHARACTER RECOGNITION IS WAY THAT OUR BALLOTS ARE SCANNED.
WHEN THEY SCAN IT, IT'S LIKE READING IT JUST LIKE YOU AND I.
SO IF IT, THAT BALLOT HAD GEORGE CONLEY'S NAME ON IT, THAT SCANNER READS
[00:55:01]
GEORGE CONLEY AND THAT'S WHO GETS A VOTE.THEN READING THAT BARCODE, IF WE USE WHAT WE HAVE NOW AND CONVERT IT TO THE BALLOT ON DEMAND, IT'S AROUND $275,000 IS WHAT IT'S GONNA COST.
AND THAT'S FOR 85 ACTUAL DEVICES.
YOU'RE ALSO GONNA HAVE TO HAVE PRINTER CARTRIDGES THAT'LL HAVE TO GO, THEY'RE $126 A PIECE.
YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO HAVE AT LEAST ONE AT EVERY LOCATION PLUS ONE ALREADY IN THE MACHINES.
UH, THEY'RE THE COURSE, THEY'VE GOT A NEW SYSTEM COME OUT HARD, HAS A NEW BALLOT ON DEMAND SYSTEM.
AND I FIGURED COMMISSIONER'S COURT, I MEAN COMMISSIONER CONFERENCES, YOU'LL START SEEING IT.
UM, IT HAS BEEN APPROVED BY THE EAC, WHICH IS YOUR ELECTION ASSISTANCE COMMISSION, AND IT HAS BEEN APPROVED.
SO THAT'S 1 MILLION, $100,000 ABOUT TO COST.
AND CAN YOU READ 1,100,000 FOR WHAT?
IF YOU WENT WITH A WHOLE BRAND NEW SYSTEM AND IT'S BALLOT ON DEMAND, WHICH MEANS THE BALLOT IS ACTUALLY PRINTED IN FRONT OF THE VOTER AFTER THEY'VE CHECKED IN.
WHAT WAS THAT, WHAT WAS THE NAME OF THAT? IT'S VANGUARD.
AND IT'S THE ONLY SYSTEM THAT HAS BEEN APPROVED, AND IT WAS JUST APPROVED IN MARCH, I THINK.
AND AND WHAT DOES THAT DO AGAIN WHEN YOU SAY IT'S 1 MILLION? 100,000.
WHAT DOES THAT DO AGAIN? THAT, THAT'S A BALLOT ON DEMAND SYSTEM.
SO IT'S GOING TO PRINT OUT A BALLOT FOR YOU AS A VOTER.
WHEN YOU CHECK IN, IT'S GONNA PRINT YOUR OWN BALLOT, YOU'RE GONNA GO FILL IT OUT AND THEN YOU'LL PUT IT IN A SCANNER.
YOU WON'T HAVE AN ELECTRONIC MACHINE TO BRING UP YOUR BALLOT ANYMORE, DO YOU? WE DON'T SEE A NEED.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT IT'S ON THE HORIZON THAT WE DON'T SEE A NEED FOR THAT FOR PARKER COUNTY, THOUGH? I DON'T, BECAUSE WE DON'T HAVE THE BALLOT THAT HAS THE INFORMATION IN THE BARCODE.
THESE ARE JUST THINGS FOR YOU TO PONDER ON.
UM, YOU THINK WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TO PONDER ON
UM, I, SOME OF THIS COMES BACK TO US ASKING CRICKET TO KIND OF KEEP THINGS ON THE HORIZON FOR US SO WE DON'T GET 1.1 MILLION, FOR EXAMPLE, DUMPED ON US.
SURPRISE OUT OF NOWHERE ONE YEAR.
THE ONLY OTHER ISSUE, BIG ISSUE WITH THIS BALLOT ON DEMAND IS, IS THE PRINTER.
IT PLUGS INTO ELECTRICAL OUTLET.
ALL OF OUR MACHINES RIGHT NOW HAVE BATTERY BACKUP.
I MEAN, THERE'S, THEIR BATTERIES ARE IN THERE, THEY'RE BEING RECHARGED AS IT GOES ON.
IF THE POWER GOES OUT, THAT PRINTER IS DEAD.
IT'S NOT GONNA BE ABLE TO PRINT ANYTHING.
YOU CAN GET A BATTERY PRINTER, I MEAN A BATTERY BACKUP SYSTEM, WHICH IS FAIRLY EXPENSIVE.
THEY JUST KEEP TELLING ME IT'S EXPENSIVE.
BUT IT WILL PRINT ABOUT EIGHT BALLOTS AND THEN IT HAS TO BE RECHARGED.
SO IF YOU'RE AT A LOCATION THAT YOU'VE GOT 900 PEOPLE GONNA VOTE, YOU'RE, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE GRAY HAIR BECAUSE IT'S GONNA BE A STRESSFUL SITUATION.
THEY DO HAVE IT AT COLLIN COUNTY AND THAT, I MEAN, AT, UH, DENTON COUNTY.
AND WHAT THEY DO IS EMERGENCY BALLOTS.
SO THEY HAVE EMERGENCY BALLOTS AT EVERY LOCATION IN CASE SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPENS.
UM, BUT THAT'S JUST ANOTHER THOUGHT OF GOING TO THIS SYSTEM.
YOU MAY HAVE ISSUES WITH THIS.
WHAT ABOUT GENERATORS? I JUST STARTED TO SAY, YEAH, YOU CAN DO GENERATORS, UM, BUT YOU JUST GOT 'EM LIKE WE ALREADY HAVE DONE.
IF YOU HAVE 36 SITES GO OUT, WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO? YEAH.
BUT THEY'RE NOT ALL GONNA GO OUT.
AND THE ONLY GOOD THING IS WITH OUR MACHINES RIGHT NOW, YOU REALLY HAVE A FOUR HOUR LEEWAY BEFORE YOU HAVE TO GET THAT GENERATOR THERE.
UM, WHEREAS THIS ONE HERE WOULD BE INSTANTANEOUS.
UH, SENATE BILL 27 53, THIS IS REALLY GONNA CHANGE THINGS, UM, THIS PAST, UM, THAT GOES INTO EFFECT NOW.
UM, BUT YOU HAVE TO HAVE CERTAIN CHANGES THAT HAVE TO BE DONE BEFORE WE CAN ACTUALLY GO TO IT.
UM, THIS IS WHERE IT'S GOING TO CHANGE WHAT WE CURRENTLY DO.
RIGHT NOW, WE START EARLY VOTING ON A MONDAY, AND IT GOES FOR TWO WEEKS.
YOU HAVE SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, MONDAY, AND THEN TUESDAY'S ELECTION DAY, RIGHT? YOU HAVE SATURDAY AND SUNDAY VOTING, WHICH IS SIX HOURS AND 12 HOURS ON THOSE DAYS.
AND THEN THE LAST WEEK IS 12 HOURS.
WELL, WITH THIS NEW BILL, YOU START ON A WEDNESDAY OF EARLY VOTING.
IT NEVER ENDS UNTIL 7:00 PM ON ELECTION DAY.
THERE'S LOTS OF GOOD THINGS AND BAD THINGS WITH THIS.
SO WE DON'T HAVE THE TIME BETWEEN.
SO YOU'VE GOTTA KEEP YOUR EARLY VOTING AND ELECTION DAY LOCATIONS.
IF YOU HAVE AN EARLY VOTING LOCATION, IT HAS TO BE THE SAME THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE PROCESS.
THE ONLY PLACE WE'D HAVE TO CHANGE IS AT BROCK, BECAUSE WE HAVE IT AT MASONIC LODGE ON EARLY VOTING, AND THEN WE CHANGE TO BAPTIST CHURCH ON ELECTION DAY.
SO WE'D HAVE TO GET THAT TO BE ONE LOCATION.
UM, AND THEN YOU OPEN UP ON ELECTION DAY, YOUR OTHER
[01:00:01]
SITES, THE SUNDAY VOTING WOULD BE NINE HOURS.ON THE SECOND SUNDAY, YOU HAVE TWO SAT TWO WEEKENDS.
TWO FULL WEEKENDS, AND THEN YOU HAVE THE LAST FOUR DAYS, I BELIEVE IT IS, OR 12 HOUR DAYS.
SO THE REASON THEY'RE DOING THAT IS BECAUSE PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE THERE'S NO EARLY VOTING ON THE WEEKEND PRIOR TO THE ELECTION.
AND SO THEY WOULD COME TO VOTE EARLY ON THE DAY BEFORE THE ELECTION, FOR EXAMPLE.
AND, UH, THEY DON'T RECOGNIZE THAT EARLY VOTING STOPS AND THEN YES, FOR THREE DAYS OR WHATEVER IT IS PRIOR TO ELECTION DAY.
THAT'S WHY THAT CHANGE HAS COME ABOUT.
I'M QUITE SURE THAT, AND THEY DON'T LIKE THE FACT THAT EARLY VOTING IS ENDED AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT GOES ON.
RIGHT? THE PUBLIC DOES NOT KNOW WHAT GOES ON IN BETWEEN THERE AND ELECTION DAY.
AND THE OTHER DEAL IS HAVING A TWO DIFFERENT LOCATIONS, WHICH WE'VE HAD IS NOT GOOD, RIGHT? 'CAUSE PEOPLE COME TO VOTE.
EARLY VOTING WAS AT OUR, OUR OFFICE, AND THEN, UH, THE ELECTION WAS AT ANOTHER LOCATION.
CORRECT? UM, SOME PLACES THIS IS GONNA BE A LITTLE BIT HARDER.
UM, I DON'T REALLY SEE A PROBLEM.
I KIND OF THINK IT'S GONNA BE GOOD IF WE JUST HAVE A VOTING PERIOD.
UM, CERTAIN PARTS OF IT ARE, WE DON'T, WE DON'T SET UP OUR EQUIPMENT.
ALL OF OUR ELECTION JUDGES SET UP.
SO WE ARE NOT GONNA HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT.
PRECINCT GUYS HELP US DELIVER THE EQUIPMENT.
SO I REALLY, THE ONLY ISSUE WITH THIS BILL IS THAT SOME OF OUR WORKERS MAY BE EXHAUSTED.
THE ELECTION WORKERS, UM, IF THEY'RE WORKING ALL THESE HOURS AND YOU DON'T GET THE SATURDAY AND SUNDAY AND MONDAY TO REST BEFORE ELECTION DAY, UM, ONCE THIS IT, IT GOES INTO EFFECT.
THEY'VE GOTTA ADOPT THE RULES.
THE SECRETARY OF STATE HAS TO COME UP WITH A PLAN, AND ALL OF THIS ACTION HAS TO HAPPEN BEFORE WE ACTUALLY GOES INTO EFFECT.
WELL, SEPTEMBER 1ST, 2027 IS WHEN IT HAS TO GO INTO EFFECT.
BUT WHAT HAPPENS IN FEBRUARY OF 2027? IT'S A LEGISLATIVE YEAR.
WILL THIS COME TO LIGHT? WILL THEY CHANGE IT? SO WE HAVE A LOT OF QUESTIONS THAT ARE OUT THERE.
UM, AND DEPENDING ON HOW THEY END UP SAYING EVERYTHING GOES, WE MAY NEED MORE ELECTION EQUIPMENT IF THINGS STAY THE SAME.
UH, WE, THERE'S A LOT OF QUESTIONS IN ON THIS ONE.
UM, THE NEXT THING IS CONTRACTING WITH POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS.
UM, THIS IS SOMETHING JACOB AND I HAVE TALKED ABOUT A LITTLE BIT.
I WANNA BRING IT TO COURT, I JUST HAVEN'T DONE IT YET, IS I WANT Y'ALL TO TELL ME EXACTLY HOW MUCH WE WANT TO CHARGE FOR OUR EQUIPMENT.
AND WHENEVER WE CONTRACT WITH THE ENTITIES RIGHT NOW, WE CHARGE A BASE FEE OF A THOUSAND DOLLARS.
UM, WE, Y'ALL KNOW, I WANT Y'ALL TO LOOK AT WHAT I THINK WE SHOULD CHARGE AND SEE IF YOU'RE OKAY WITH THAT.
AND THEN WE WILL LET THE ENTITIES KNOW AND GIVE THEM A HEADS UP THAT WE'RE GONNA START CHARGING THIS AMOUNT FROM THEN ON.
UM, THE PARKING LOT AT THE COUNTY, AT THE, OUR NEW BUILDING HASN'T BEEN DONE YET, BUT I WAS TALKING TO AUDITING AND PURCHASING ABOUT IT, AND WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE MONEY WHERE IT COULD BE ROLLED OVER INTO THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR.
I THINK THEY TALKED TO MR. WALDEN ABOUT, I THOUGHT THAT WAS DONE LAST WEEK.
ANYWAY,
SO PEOPLE SEEM, DON'T SEEM TO REALIZE THAT.
WE JUST NEED TO REMEMBER TO, TO ROLL THAT OVER SO THAT WE CAN GET THE PARKING LOT WHEN WE GET IT.
UM, I TOOK THIS JOB AS AN ELECTIONS PERSON BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN OUR ELECTIONS AND I WANT THEM TO BE SECURE AND TRANSPARENT AND EVERYTHING THAT EVERYBODY WANTS 'EM TO BE AND EVERYBODY TO GET TO VOTE.
SO WHEN, WHEN YOU HAVE CONSTITUENTS THAT HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT, OR WHAT WE'RE DOING AND EVERYTHING, I WISH, I HOPE THAT YOU SEND THEM TO US.
UM, WE ARE VERY EXCITED WITH OUR NEW BUILDING, SO WE LIKE TO TELL, TAKE EVERYBODY AROUND AND SHOW 'EM EVERYTHING.
BUT IF THERE'S EVER AN ISSUE WITH OUR MACHINES, AND I, I DON'T THINK ANYTHING IS BEING DONE CORRECTLY.
I WANT Y'ALL TO KNOW THAT I'M GONNA BE THE FIRST ONE THAT'S GONNA BE HERE SAYING, WE GOT A PROBLEM AND WE NEED TO FIX IT.
I THINK THAT THE WORLD SOMETIMES JUST GETS SO WRAPPED UP IN THINGS AND JUST BELIEVES WHATEVER HAS BEEN POSTED SOMEWHERE.
WHEN COME TO US, WE LIKE TO TALK ABOUT ELECTIONS AND WE LIKE TO SHOW YOU WHAT WE DO AND HOW WE DO IT.
UM, TALK TO YOUR PARTIES AND BECOME AN ELECTION WORKER.
I TOLD 'EM THIS MORNING, UH, WE HAD A GENTLEMAN THAT HAD BECOME SUCH A GOOD ELECTION JUDGE, UH, FOR US.
AND I SAID, YOU'VE REALLY GOT IT DOWN.
I'M SO EXCITED AND CAN'T WAIT TILL YOU WORK THE NEXT ONE.
AND I WAS LIKE, WELL, THAT'S A
[01:05:01]
SHAME BECAUSE I MEAN, YOU FINALLY GET THE GOOD ONES AND THEN THEY GO DO SOMETHING ELSE.ANYWAY, THAT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BUDGET
UM, WE DON'T HAVE A LOT OF CHANGES IN THE BILLS, UM, THAT HAVE BEEN PASSED.
A FEW CHANGES ARE GONNA BE WITH THE FORMS. SO WE ARE WAITING ON THE SECRETARY OF STATE TO APPROVE THE FORMS AND WE'LL GET THOSE PRINTED.
UM, WE HAVE CHANGED A LITTLE BIT IN THE BUDGET.
WE'VE DECREASED MORE THAN WE'VE INCREASED.
UM, BUT I DO HOPE YOU REALLY TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION THE RAISES FOR THE ELECTION WORKERS.
I DID DO THE ORGANIZATIONAL CHART.
I DID THE JOB DESCRIPTIONS AND EVERYTHING FOR Y'ALL.
SO JUST, JUST REAL QUICK, I MEAN, YOU MENTIONED 14 FOR THE JUDGES AND 13 FOR THE CLERK.
WHAT DO THEY MAKE NOW? 11 AND 10.
I THINK IT'S BEEN THAT WAY ABOUT THREE YEARS.
WHEN I BELIEVE SINCE I'VE STARTED, THAT'S WHAT IT'S BEEN.
AND WE BUMPED THAT JUST A LITTLE BIT BACK THEN.
YOU BUMPED THE ALTERNATE JUDGE MADE 11 AND THEY USED TO MAKE ONLY 10.
AND SO YOU MADE IT WHERE ALL JUDGES MAKE 11 AND THEN THERE'D BEEN 10.
THEY, Y'ALL MAY HAVE PASSED THAT PRIOR TO I COMING TO EIGHT OR NINE MONTHS AGO.
THERE WAS A BIG PUSH TO DO AWAY WITH THE COUNTYWIDE VOTING, AND I HAVEN'T HEARD NOTHING IN MONTHS.
SO DID THAT GO AWAY? WELL, THIS BILL 27 53 WAS IT.
AND, UH, YES, THEY'VE, THEY'VE GOTTEN AWAY FROM THE COUNTYWIDE AND THEY'RE JUST NOW WANTING TO DO A VOTING PERIOD.
SO THAT'S WHAT THEY'VE CHANGED IT TO.
SO MAYBE THAT'S GONNA MAKE EVERYBODY HAPPY.
WHEN YOU SAY THEY GOT AWAY FROM THE CO COUNTYWIDE, YOU MEAN THE FOCUS OF THE PEOPLE GOT AWAY FROM COUNTYWIDE, CORRECT? YES, SIR.
I THINK THEY WANTED THIS PART, SOMETHING IN THIS BILL TO PASS.
AND SO THEY WERE GETTING SO MUCH OPPOSITION WITH CANCELING THE COUNTYWIDE THAT THEY HAVE MADE A DEAL SOMEWHERE.
AND THIS IS WHAT WE ENDED UP WITH.
SO WE STILL HAVE A COUNTYWIDE VOTING.
AND AND HOPEFULLY IT STAYS 'CAUSE IT'S LIKE A I IT.
IT'S A WONDERFUL SYSTEM FOR EVERYBODY.
AND PROVISIONAL VOTING WOULD SKYROCKET AND THOSE PEOPLE'S BALLOTS WON'T COUNT.
SO YEAH, WE'RE HERE TO HELP PEOPLE VOTE, NOT TAKE IT AWAY FROM 'EM.
NO, WE, UM, WE APPRECIATE EVERYTHING THAT THE COURT HAS DONE FOR US.
UH, THE NEW BUILDING HAS BEEN REALLY NICE.
UM, ANYTIME Y'ALL HAVE TIME COME BY AND SEE US.
UM, WHEN YOU FILE YOUR CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS THAT ARE DUE TODAY, COME BY AND SEE US
BUT THANK Y'ALL VERY MUCH FOR YOUR TIME.
AND AS ALWAYS, YOU HAD ANY QUESTIONS, LET ME KNOW.
[I.F. Discussion/Presentation on Department 543 Fire Marshal budget requests. (Judge Deen)]
WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM.I WANNA DISCUSSION PRESENTATION OF DEPARTMENT 5, 4, 3 OF THE FIRE MARSHAL BUDGET REQUESTS.
UM, I'M NOT THE FIRE MARSHAL, UM, BUT, UH, THERE'S BEEN SOME CHANGES OBVIOUSLY.
UM, THE PREVIOUS FIRE MARSHAL HAD PUT IN FOR, UM, I THINK A SALARY CHANGE FOR HIMSELF ADDING, UH, A DEPUTY OR ASSISTANT FIRE MARSHAL A NEW VEHICLE FOR THAT NEW DEPUTY FIRE MARSHAL AND, UM, SOME EQUIPMENT AND TOOLS THAT WERE NEEDED TO DO THE JOB BASED ON STATE LAW, UM, WHICH WAS REASONABLE.
BUT IN LIGHT OF, UM, THIS COURT, UH, CONTRACTING WITH THE ESD, UM, I'M JUST TRYING TO HELP TRANSITION AS BEST I CAN.
UM, I THINK, UH, IN THE BUDGET FOR THE FIRE MARSHAL, UM, THE FIRE MARSHAL AND I SHARE AN ADMINISTRATIVE POSITION THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO SORT THROUGH ON THAT, UM, DEPENDING ON HOW THIS CONTRACT THING GOES.
AND THE ONLY OTHER THING IN THE FIRE MARSHAL'S BUDGET THAT I SAW OF, OF NOTE WAS WE DID HAVE SOME, SOME MONEY IN THERE TO DO SOME FACILITY REPAIRS, THE ROOF LEAKS.
UM, IT ACTUALLY LEAKS THROUGH THE WALLS SOMETIMES.
UM, SO THERE'S SOME, I THINK THERE WAS 12, 12 OR $15,000 IN THERE TO DO SOME, UM, FACILITY UPGRADES.
UM, BUT, UH, THAT'LL SORT ITSELF OUT IN THE WASH TO MY WAY OF THINKING.
SO, UM, UH, CHIEF WATSON AND, UH, FRANK WATSON, THE ACTING FIRE MARSHAL HERE, IF Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR THEM.
BUT, UH, THAT'S REALLY ALL I HAVE TO REPORT.
STEVEN, YOU WANT TO, YEAH, YOU WANT, YOU WANT TO, UM, COME ON UP AND SURE.
UM, YOU HAD SENT A REPORT, UM, RICH, DID WE MAKE A COPY WITH THE COMMISSIONERS ON THAT REPORT FROM, UH, CHIEF WATSON ALSO AND THE ACTIVITIES, AND SO THEY GOT THAT RIGHT? YES.
[01:10:01]
THANK YOU.I DON'T HAVE A PRESENTATION PREPARED FOR YOU.
WE WEREN'T ASKED TO BE HERE, SO I JUST FOUND OUT IT WAS ON THE AGENDA.
SO WE WANTED TO BE HERE IF YOU HAD ANY QUESTIONS.
WE'RE KIND OF IN THAT INITIAL STARTING PHASE AND GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER AND KIND OF GOING THROUGH THE KIND OF A NEW TERRITORY.
AND SO WE HAVE A, UM, A BUDGET HERE THAT WE HAVE.
IT'S, WE'RE KIND OF REWRITING THAT, I GUESS AS WE SPEAK SURE.
AND SO WE'LL BE GETTING TOGETHER MORE AND, AND, UH, INTERACTING MORE ON THIS AS WE PROGRESS THROUGH THIS BUDGET WITH THAT.
SO Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR TWO PLUS? YEAH.
DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY, DO Y'ALL, UH, REAL QUICK, ALL THIS IS, IS WE HEAR FROM EVERY DEPARTMENT AN INITIAL ROUND OF HERE'S WHAT WE NEED THIS YEAR, HERE'S WHY.
WE DON'T MAKE ANY DECISIONS AT THIS TIME AT ALL.
THIS IS A TIME FOR US TO HEAR FROM EVERYBODY.
UM, AND USUALLY WE DO THIS BEFORE WE EVEN KNOW WHAT THE TAX SITUATION IS.
WE'LL FIND OUT THOSE PROPERTY TAX NUMBERS NEXT WEEK ON WHAT WE ANTICIPATE WE CAN BUILD THE BUDGET OFF OF.
UM, SO THEREFORE THERE'LL BE ANOTHER ROUND WHERE WE'LL THEN ACTUALLY START TO MAKE DECISIONS AND APPROVE VARIOUS ITEMS. UM, SO IT'S, IT'S NOT, IT'S NOT AS THOUGH WE EXPECT A PRESENTATION OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT RIGHT NOW.
UM, I DO KNOW THAT WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERIM SITUATION WITH Y'ALL AND LOOKING FORWARD TO TEN ONE AND DETERMINING HOW TO MOVE FORWARD FROM THERE.
AND SO AT THIS POINT, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW THAT I HAVE ANYTHING FROM Y'ALL.
I JUST WANT TO EXPLAIN WHAT EVERYONE IS HERE FOR.
I, I WANT TO ADD TO THAT TOO, IS I APPRECIATE THAT REPORT YOU SENT.
IT WAS VERY COMPREHENSIVE OF THE COURT SEES IT THAT WAY AS WELL.
'CAUSE THAT SHOWS THE ACTIVITY.
WE HAVEN'T GOTTEN THAT BEFORE.
SO IT'S GOOD TO SEE THE ACTIVITY THAT YOU'RE DOING.
OBVIOUSLY WE'RE WORKING THROUGH THIS SITUATION NOW THAT WE'VE DISCUSSED EARLIER TODAY.
LOOK AT IT, SCHEDULE THAT MEETING TOMORROW AND RICH IS WORKING ON THAT.
UM, THAT SAID, CONTINUE TO PLEASE, UH, UPDATE US AND IF YOU WOULD COPY THE COURT ON THAT, UH, JUST SO THEY GET WHAT I GET QUICKLY.
AND SO THERE COULD BE, IF THERE'S ANY QUESTIONS WE CAN LIAISE BACK THROUGH MY OFFICE TO YOU AND KIND OF THAT ONE POINT WE CONTACT.
AND AGAIN, COMMISSIONER HOLT OR COMMISSIONER WALTER OR ANYBODY HAS A QUESTION, THEY CAN CERTAINLY CALL YOU AS WELL.
UH, BUT WE APPRECIATE THE COMMUNICATION ON THAT VERY MUCH SO.
WELL, AND I, I GUESS THE ONLY THING I, I WOULD CLOSE WITH IS, YOU KNOW, WE'VE HAD PRIOR DISCUSSIONS, YOU KNOW, THAT WE WOULD SEEK THE FUNDING TO BE SIMILAR TO WHAT THE INTERIM ARRANGEMENT IS.
UM, BUT THAT ES WE AT SD ONE WOULD, UM, AND WE'RE IN OUR BUDGET PROCESS AS WELL, BUT WOULD BE LOOKING AT ADDING, AUGMENTING THAT WITH SOME FUNDING OF OUR OWN TO FULFILL THE STAFFING OF, OF THE FIRE MARSHAL DUTIES AND, AND THE OVERALL OFFICE TO, TO BE ABLE TO DO EVERYTHING THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE TO, AND TO KEEP UP WITH GROWTH IN THE COUNTY.
SO I THINK THERE'S A VALUE ADD THERE.
WE, WE CARE ENOUGH ABOUT IT TO PUT SOME OF OUR OWN RESOURCES.
UM, WE ALL UNDERSTAND THERE'S UNCHARTED, WE'RE IN UNCHARTED TERRITORY.
ANY QUESTIONS? ANYTHING? OKAY, STEVEN, THANK YOU FOR COMING.
[I.G. Discussion/Presentation on Departments 601 and 630 911 Addressing and Permitting budget requests. (Rusty Brawner / Judge Deen)]
MOVE TO ITEM G ON THE DISCUSSION PRESENTATION OF DEPARTMENT 6 0 1 AND 6 39 11.ADDRESSING AND PERMITTING BUDGET REQUEST.
UH, PRETTY SIMPLE AS FAR AS PERMITTING.
UH, OTHER THAN THE SOFTWARE, NO NEW CHANGES.
WE'RE ASKED FOR THE 25 BUDGET TO JUST ROLL OVER TO THE 26 BUDGET.
UH, THE SOFTWARE PACKAGE IS FOR PERMITTING, BUT IT'S MORE OF A COUNTYWIDE SOFTWARE.
IT WOULD DO, IT WOULD ENCOMPASS PERMITTING, PLATING THE COUNTY BARNES IF Y'ALL WANTED TO, YOU KNOW, BE A USER OF IT.
UM, JOHN AND I, WE REALLY DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO PUT IT.
SO IT, I, I, I GOT, YOU KNOW, WITH THE PRESENTATION, BUT IT WOULD BASICALLY ALLOW PLATING AND PERMITTING TO HAVE A COMMON SOFTWARE AND TO BE, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M SAYING, TO SEE WHAT HE EVERYBODY'S DOING.
AND IT ALSO COULD ALLOW THE COUNTY BARNES TO LOOK AT THAT SOFTWARE SO YOU CAN SEE WHAT CLADDING AND PERMITTING CULVERTS AND, YOU KNOW, SO, SO IS IT SAFE TO SAY THAT PLATTING AND PERMITTING COULD BE IN THE SAME BUILDING? UH, WE, IF WE, IF WE DO THIS PLATTING OFFICE, Y'ALL, Y'ALL COULD BE TOGETHER.
AND WHAT THE SOFTWARE WILL DO WILL INTEGRATE ALL THE INFORMATION SO DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS CAN LOG INTO IT AND AT ALL TIMES HAVE THE MOST CURRENT INFORMATION THAT'S AVAILABLE ON THAT
[01:15:01]
PARTICULAR PLAT.UH, LILA'S ABOUT TO DO SOMETHING THAT'S AMAZING.
SHE'S GONNA DIGITIZE ALL THE PLA SHE WAS SAYING.
UM, THAT'S GONNA GIVE Y'ALL ACCESS TO THAT 24 7, WHICH IS ANOTHER GREAT ASSET FOR THE COUNTY.
AND THE COMM, DEFINITELY THE COMMISSIONERS TO HAVE, 'CAUSE I KNOW Y'ALL, Y'ALL NEED TO LOOK AT THOSE PLATS OUT AT THE BARNS.
AND, UH, THIS WILL MAKE IT VERY EASY FOR Y'ALL TO DO.
PLUS WITH THIS INFORMATION, IT'LL INTEGRATE THE PERMITTING INFORMATION IN AS WELL.
THEY'LL RUN 12 HOUR SHIFTS FOR SIX DAYS AND THEN THEY'LL, THEY'RE GONNA GIVE US A PROGRAM THAT I CAN YOU GUYS ACCESS TO, UH, TO GET IN THERE.
SO, UM, IN NEXT MONTH THEY'LL ALL ONLINE.
SO HOW FAR BACK ARE WE GOING ON THAT START? SINCE DAY ONE.
THAT WILL BE GOOD NEWS FOR MY FOLKS.
O OTHER THAN THAT, NO, NO NEW MONEY FOR PERMITTING.
JUST, UH, AS FAR AS 9 1 1, UH, WE'VE GOT A FEW JUST MINOR CHANGES.
UH, WE'VE GOT A LICENSE OF $700.
WHEN YOU DO, UH, WE'RE GOING TO UP THE TRAINING BY A HUNDRED AND UP THE POSTAGE FROM 50 TO 500.
CAN CAN I ASK ONE, ONE MORE QUESTION ON THAT? YEAH, GO AHEAD.
WHILE WE'RE STILL ON THE TOPIC.
UM, SO WHEN YOU SAY DIGITIZE ALL THE PLATS AND PERMITTING AND ALL THAT, THE BOOKS THAT WE HAVE IN OUR OFFICE WHERE WE FLIP IT OUT AND IT HAS ALL THE PAPERS FOR EACH SUBDIVISION PLAT, IS ALL OF THAT GETTING DIGITIZED OR IS IT JUST THE ACTUAL PLAT? 'CAUSE WE'VE GOT A LOT OF ANCILLARY DOCUMENTATION IN ALL THOSE BOOKS.
SO THAT'S WHAT I'M DIGITIZING.
GOING FORWARD, HOW WOULD WE TIE IN RUSTY, YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT? MM-HMM
UM, JOHN, I THINK THIS PROGRAM MIGHT BE ABLE TO DIGITIZE THAT AND PUT THAT IN AS WELL.
THAT WAY YOU HAVE THE SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION THAT FOR THE SCHOOLS, FOR THE POST SERVICE AND STUFF THAT JUST TAKES UP ROOM THAT COULD BE SCANNED INTO THIS TYPE OF PROGRAM.
AND THAT WAY IT'S ALL ONE LOCATION.
AND, AND THE OTHER GREAT THING IS IT MAKES IT AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AS WELL.
AND SO IF WE HAVE OUR STUFF IN OUR OFFICE, COULD I HAVE ONE OF MY FOLKS TAKE IT TO EITHER ONE OF Y'ALL AND EITHER SCAN IT IN THERE, LIKE HOW WOULD WE GET THAT INFORMATION TO Y'ALL? IT, IT WOULDN'T BE LILA 'CAUSE I THINK SHE PROBABLY HAS IT UP ON HER PLATE WITH THAT, THAT DOCUMENTATION.
BUT PERMITTING OR THE PLATTING OFFICE, OUR OFFICE, IF WE SEND Y'ALL A PDF OF WHAT WE HAVE, COULD THAT BE ADDED EACH FILE? OR HOW, HOW DOES THAT WORK? IF, IF WE GET A PLATTING OFFICE AND IMPLEMENTED SOFTWARE, YOUR OFFICE MANAGERS WILL BE USERS.
SO YOU COULD ACCESS THE SOFTWARE AND LOOK AT IT, AND THEN WE'D HAVE TO GET WITH THE GOV BILL TO GET, BUT Y'ALL, Y'ALL COULD SCAN IN AND STUFF.
EVEN IF WE JUST STARTED FROM NOW AND MOVING FORWARD TO PUT THOSE DOC OTHER DOCUMENTS IN THERE.
THAT'S WHAT WE NEED BECAUSE WE'VE GOT A NOTEBOOK FOR EVERY, EVERY RIGHT.
EVERY, AND, AND DON'T GET ME WRONG, THE PLAT ITSELF BEING DIGITALLY AVAILABLE IS FANTASTIC.
BUT WHAT WOULD BE FANTASTIC OR WOULD BE ALL THE ASSOCIATED, ALL OF THE EXTRA STUFF THAT GOES WITH IT.
AND THOSE CAN GO IN THE NOTES SECTION.
LIKE WE, FOR OUR CRIMINAL DOCKETS, WE HAVE NOTES WHERE YOU CAN PUT DOCUMENTS THAT BACK UP THE COMPLAINT INFORMATION THAT WE HAVE.
I THINK THE BOTTOM LINE IS WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO DO THAT.
THAT WAY WE DON'T THAT WAY THAT WE WON'T HAVE A NOTEBOOK FOR EVERY PLAT.
THAT'S, THAT'S THE INITIAL COST TO GET EVERYTHING ONLINE AFTER THAT.
IT'S 35,000 A YEAR FOR MAINTENANCE.
WHAT, WHAT COUNTIES USE IT CURRENTLY? UH, CITY OF WEATHERFORD, UH, JOHNSON COUNTY I BELIEVE.
DID YOU? THE CITY, THE CITY OF WEATHERFORD IS, IS WHAT WE WENT TO AND WE DID THE DEMONSTRATION.
AND THAT'S JUST, IT'S JUST THE DEAL IS EVERYBODY KNOWS WHAT EVERYBODY'S KNOW.
SO WE GET SOMEBODY COME IN, DO A DEMONSTRATION FOR THE COURT.
AND THAT WAY, ANY QUESTIONS AS FAR AS, THAT'D BE GOOD PLEASE.
SO IF YOU'VE GOT SOMEBODY EVEN SAY THAT THEY DIDN'T INSTALL THE RIGHT SIZE CULVERT, YOUR GUY CAN COME IN, FLAG THAT PROPERTY THAT WE KNOW, OKAY, WE'RE GONNA HOLD A SEPTIC PERMIT UNTIL YOU TALK TO YOUR COMMISSIONER.
YOU KNOW, SO THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
THAT'S, THAT'S THE BUY THE IMPLEMENTATION OF IT AND THEN 35 AFTER THAT.
AND THEN AS FAR AS 9 1 1 DEPARTMENT, 6 0 1, UH, 700 FOR THE MAPPING BECAUSE WE GOTTA PAY THE ESRI LICENSE
[01:20:01]
TRAINING.WANNA UP IT BY A HUNDRED POSTAGE.
UH, WE DID LOSE SUBSIDY FROM COG OF $30,000 A YEAR FOR THAT DEPARTMENT.
UH, WE'VE DONE, I'M GONNA ASK FOR AN EMPLOYEE REDUCTION ON THAT DEPARTMENT.
UH, WE'VE DONE A WORK WORKFLOW ANALYSIS I THINK WE CAN GET BY, YOU KNOW, WITH ONE LESS EMPLOYEE ON THAT DEPARTMENT.
[I.H. Discussion/Presentation on Department 497 Treasurer/Human Resources budget requests. (Becky McCullough / Judge Deen)]
MOVING TO ITEM H ON THE DISCUSSION PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT 4 97 TREASURER HUMAN RESOURCES BUDGET REQUEST.BECKY, UM, I'M NOT ASKING FOR ANYTHING IN MY BUDGET.
I ACTUALLY LOWERED THE INCREASE I THINK IN MY CONTRACT SERVICES DUE TO JUST INCREASES ON OUR MAINTENANCE FOR OUR CHECK SEALER MACHINE.
UM, THE INCREASE THERE, I LOWERED SOMETHING ELSE TO MAKE IT BALANCE OUT AT $0.
THE THING THAT, UM, ISN'T REFLECTED IN THERE IS IN CONVERSATIONS WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
SO WE HAVE THE MALE COURIER POSITION, THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE HAS THE MONEY COURIER POSITION.
SO IN CONVERSATIONS, BASICALLY THESE TWO POSITIONS DO A LOT OF THE SAME THINGS.
THEY KIND OF DRIVE AROUND THE COUNTY, YOU KNOW, NOT, NOT EXACTLY THE SAME THING.
THERE'S A LITTLE TWEAKS HERE AND THERE, BUT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE HAS AGREED TO TAKE OVER THE DUTIES AND AS THE MONEY COURIER IS PICKING UP MONEY, HE WILL ALSO PICK UP MAIL.
MY OFFICE WILL STILL PROCESS THE MAIL.
WE WILL STILL GET IT TO THE POST OFFICE.
SO THAT PERSON WON'T HAVE TO DO ANY OF THAT.
IT'S JUST SIMPLY PICKING UP THE MAIL WHENEVER THEY'RE PICKING UP MONEY.
SO THAT IN ITSELF WILL REDUCE MY BUDGET BY APPROXIMATELY $64,000.
I DO ASK THE COURT TO ALLOW ME TO KEEP THE COURIER CAR.
UM, THIS COULD BE UTILIZED, IT WOULD STAY AT THE ANNEX.
IT WOULD NOT BE A TAKE HOME VEHICLE FOR ANYONE.
IT COULD BE AVAILABLE FOR THEIR OFFICES AS THEY GO ON TRAVEL CONFERENCES.
UM, AN OPTION TO THE PURCHASING TRUCK.
YOU KNOW, I KNOW SOMEONE WHO'S FIVE FEET TALL LIKE MYSELF.
IT'S NOT ALWAYS EASY TO DRIVE A BIG, A BIG TRUCK.
ARE YOU SURE YOU'RE FIVE FOOT TALL? I'M, I HEARD IT WAS FOUR 10.
YOU GOT PROOF OF THAT
SO ANYWAY, UM, I TRAVEL TO COG A LOT FOR PBC MEETINGS.
UH, IT WOULD HELP ME TO BE ABLE TO DO THAT AS WELL INSTEAD OF TURNING IN MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENTS.
I DON'T EVER DO MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENTS FOR IN COUNTY TRAVEL, BUT GOING TO COG OR CONFERENCES.
AND OF COURSE I TURN IN MILEAGE FOR THAT.
UM, I RECENTLY HAVE ANOTHER, OH, GO AHEAD.
CAN I ASK YOU A QUESTION ON THE VEHICLE? YEAH.
SO THE VEHICLE THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT WOULD STAY AT THE ANNEX.
WOULD THAT BE OPEN TO ALL DEPARTMENTS? THE ANNEX ABSOLUTELY.
BASICALLY JUST LIKE WHAT THE PURCHASING DOES WITH THE PURCHASING TRUCK, WE WOULD JUST SCHEDULE THAT OUT FOR THE COURIER CAR AS WELL.
DO YOU HAVE THAT VEHICLE NOW AS YES.
IT'S PAID FOR ALREADY HAVE, YOU KNOW, FUEL BUDGET, ALREADY HAVE THE BUDGET FOR THAT.
SO THERE'S NO INCREASE TO THAT REQUEST, JUST ASKING TO KEEP IT, EVEN THOUGH I'M GIVING UP THE POSITION THAT UTILIZES IT.
UM, THE ONLY OTHER OPTION THAT I'LL BRIEFLY TALK ABOUT AND UH, I RECENTLY HAD A UNEXPECTED VACANCY IN MY DEPARTMENT THAT I AM REVIEWING WHAT I'M GONNA DO MOVING FORWARD.
WE HAVE SOME NEW SOFTWARE COMING ONLINE FOR ONLINE OPEN ENROLLMENTS WITH THE NEW FINANCIAL SOFTWARE, THE NEW PAYROLL.
THERE'S GONNA BE ONLINE ONBOARDING.
SO I MAY HAVE SOME IDEAS HOW I COULD CHANGE THAT UP.
UH, I DON'T HAVE A PRESENTATION OR ANYTHING RIGHT NOW, BUT IT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT I WANTED TO MAKE Y'ALL AWARE OF THAT WE CAN TALK WHEN WE GET TO BED BEFORE.
UM, IF I MAY COMMENT ON BECKY'S BUDGET.
UM, WE USE THE PURCHASING TRUCK A LOT FOR OUR TRAVEL AND IT REALLY STRETCHES OUR TRAVEL BUDGET.
BUT I DO HAVE SOME EMPLOYEES THAT ARE NOT COMFORTABLE DRIVING THAT TRUCK.
SO YEAH, IT WOULD BENEFIT ME A LOT TOO, HAVING ABSOLUTELY A SMALLER VEHICLE.
I ACTUALLY LIKE DRIVING THAT TRUCK BECAUSE I PARK IT VERY BADLY AND IT SAYS PURCHASING ON IT AND I TAKE PICTURES OF IT.
UM, I KNOW CONSTABLE TOO, I THINK HE'S ACTUALLY NEXT.
HE IS ON HIS WAY FROM MILLSAP, BUT I KNOW THERE'S SOME OTHER PEOPLE IN HERE THAT MAYBE COULD GO AHEAD OF HIM AND THEN WHENEVER HE GETS HERE HE CAN SPEAK.
WELL, IF CONSTABLE TWO'S NOT HERE, HE JUST MISSED OUT ON HIS, UH, CLIENT I HAVE IS CONSTABLE TWO IS NOT HERE.
[01:25:01]
TO K JP THREE.[I.K. Discussion/Presentation on Department 463 Justice of the Peace Precinct #3 budget requests. (Judge Grissom / Judge Deen)]
ITEM K ON DISCUSS PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT 4 6 3.JUSTICE AT PEACE PRECINCT THREE.
UH, JUDGE GRISSOM IF YOU WOULD.
IT'S GOT A LITTLE HANDOUT PAMPHLET FOR YOU GUYS.
I KNOW Y'ALL LIKE INFORMATION.
BASICALLY, AS FAR AS OUR OPERATING BUDGET, WE'RE NOT ASKING FOR ANYTHING TOTAL WISE ABOVE WHAT WE DID LAST YEAR, ACTUALLY WE, UH, OR THIS YEAR FOR THE GOING FORWARD ACTUALLY WE'VE REDUCED IT A LITTLE BIT.
YOU'VE ALWAYS ASKED TO SEE IF WE CAN DO MORE WITH LESS.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE'VE MET THAT CHALLENGE.
UH, AS FAR AS OUR OPERATIONAL EXPENSES, I THINK THE ONLY THING, JOLIE, YOU CAN COME UP HERE AND HELP ME ON THIS.
UM, IS THERE SOME ASSOCIATION DUES? I BELIEVE, UH, THAT WENT UP JUST A LITTLE BIT, BUT WE'VE OFFSET IT IN OTHER AREAS.
WE'VE WORKED VERY, VERY HARD THIS LAST YEAR, PLUS, UH, GOING PAPERLESS IN OUR OFFICE.
SO THAT'S GIVEN US THE ABILITY TO REDUCE SOME OF OUR OFFICE SUPPLY LINE.
UH, THERE IN THAT THERE DOCUMENTATION SHE GAVE YOU, UH, IF YOU'LL LOOK AT THE 2025 YEAR TO DATE COMPARISON, THIS IS, HMM, I DID NOT MAKE A COPY OF THAT.
UH, ON CASE FILINGS, IF YOU, YOU DON'T NOT HAVE THAT, BUT I HAVE IT.
BUT ANYWAY, I'LL SHOW IT TO YOU RIGHT HERE.
UH, CRIMINAL CASES FROM LAST YEAR AT THIS TIME TO THIS YEAR, WE'RE SEEING A 63.33% INCREASE IN CRIMINAL CASE VIOLENCE.
63% FROM LAST YEAR, 20% INCREASE IN CIVIL CASES, NOT AS MUCH, BUT STILL IT'S A TREND.
SO IF YOU LOOK AT THIS PAGE HERE, IT'S KIND OF LIKE THE PITCHFORK AT THE END OF IT.
THIS IS THE MONTHLY REVENUE TREND.
IF YOU LOOK AT FEBRUARY OF LAST YEAR, WE WERE ABOUT 50,000 A MONTH NOW TARGETED.
WHEN YOU GET UP TO THE ORANGE, UH, WE'RE PROBABLY GONNA BE SOMEWHERE UP IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF, UH, 80 TO 90,000 MONTHLY IS THE TREND THAT WE SEE MOVING FORWARD.
UH, TROOPERS, TROOPERS BACK TROOPERS ACTUALLY, THEY'RE TRYING TO INCREASE MORE TROOPERS IN THIS COUNTY, UH, THROUGH A CONVERSATION I HAD THE OTHER DAY.
SO THAT MEANS WE'VE GOT MORE SAFETY PATROLS OUT THERE ON THE STREETS WHERE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT'S DOING THEIR PART.
THEY'RE, THEY'RE WORKING MORE TRAFFIC.
UH, AND SO WE HAVE OF COURSE THE BULK OF THE INTERSTATE FOR THE MOST PART SETS IN PRECINCT THREE, BETWEEN PRECINCT THREE AND PRECINCT FOUR.
UH, SO THE REVENUES ARE GOING UP, UH, WHICH MEANS THAT WE, UH, FOR A BETTER WORD ARE A SELF-SUSTAINING ENTITY AS FAR AS REVENUE VERSUS WHAT OUR BUDGET LINES ARE.
TOTAL REVENUE FOR THE YEAR TO DATE COLLECTED, UH, FROM LAST YEAR IS A 32.45% INCREASE TOTAL.
SO WITH THAT BEING SAID, UM, AS FAR AS THE OPERATION EXPENSES, OF COURSE WE SUBSIDIZE SOME OF OUR FUNDING THAT WE NEED OUT OF 57.
UH, OUR TECHNOLOGY LINE, WHICH WE CAN DO THAT FOR A LOT OF OUR TRAINING.
WE, WE TAKE QUITE A BIT OF MONEY OUT OF THAT, UH, AND USE THAT INSTEAD OF COMING OUT OF FUND 10 FOR OUR TRAINING AND TRAVEL.
REALLY THE ONLY THING MOVING FORWARD AND UH, I ADDRESS THE COURT EARLIER THIS YEAR, I BELIEVE IN MAY POSSIBLY, IS WE NEED, UH, AN EXPANSION IN OUR OFFICE.
WE'VE GOT, UM, TWO CLERKS BASICALLY THAT HAS THE ABILITY TO DEAL WITH THE PUBLIC UP FRONT.
AND A LOT OF TIMES WE END UP HAVING TO PUT FOUR CLERKS IN A TWO CLERK AREA DEALING WITH FOUR DIFFERENT SUBJECTS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WINDOW.
UH, AND IT'S JUST, IT'S A MESS.
IT'S THE CUSTOMER'S COMING IN AIN'T SURE WHICH CLERKS ARE TALKING TO 'EM AND WE GOT CIVIL CASES GOING ON.
WE GOT CRIMINAL CASES, WE'RE TRYING TO COLLECT MONEY, UH, WE'RE TRYING TO GET PEOPLE INFORMATION AND WE JUST, WE NEED MORE ROOM.
WE JUST NEED THE ABILITY TO ACCESS THAT SQUARE FOOTAGE
[01:30:01]
AND GET MORE CLERKS UP FRONT SO THE PER PEOPLE COMING IN, UH, CAN DEAL WITH 'EM MORE IN A 1 0 1 SITUATION.I THOUGHT WE ALREADY AGREED TO DO THAT WORD, DID WE NOT? NO SIR.
WE, WE MET AND WE TALKED ABOUT IT, BUT THERE WAS NEVER ANY FUNDING FOR IT, FROM WHAT I UNDERSTAND.
SO THERE WAS TWO PROPOSAL REGISTRATION STAFF.
WE HAVE THE COUNTERS BUILDING AND GROUNDS HAVE THE COUNTERS.
WE PULL THE CLERK COUNTERS OUT OF THE OLD ELECTIONS AREA.
SO THEY ALL THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT KNOCKING, THERE WAS A LITTLE WALL THAT NEEDED TO BE KNOCKED OUT AND YES, THEY'RE PROBABLY ABOUT RELATIVELY SMALL EXPANSION.
IT IS, IT'S ABOUT PROBABLY OUT A LOT 10 FOOT OF WALL SPACE WE NEED PULLED OUT SO WE COULD PUT THAT COUNTER IN THERE.
AND THEN WE WERE GONNA BUILD TWO OFFICES.
'CAUSE WE STILL, EVEN THOUGH WE'RE CORRECT.
SORRY, IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT? THESE? YES SIR.
WE'RE JUST GONNA EXPAND IT ON THIS SIDE OF THE WALL AND THEN WE'RE GONNA JUST GONNA PUT TWO LITTLE OFFICES BACK HERE.
SEE, I, I WAS THINKING LIKE COMMISSIONER CONLEY THAT WE HAD APPROVED THAT, BUT Y'ALL, Y'ALL WOULD KNOW BETTER THAN WE WOULD, BUT IT, IT WAS PRESENTED BUT IT NEVER GOT APPROVED.
IT CERTAIN SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IDEA TO ME.
SO THAT'S, THAT'S A GREAT IDEA.
AND UH, YOU KNOW, LAST BUDGET SESSION WE WERE TALKING ABOUT LANGUAGE BARRIER SITUATIONS.
I JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW WHAT WE'VE DONE IN OUR OFFICE.
WE WENT OUT AND WE FOUND AN AI TRANSLATING SYSTEM THAT ACTUALLY TRANSLATES, I DON'T KNOW, 50, 60 LANGUAGES, WHICH WE CAN USE QUITE A FEW OF THOSE.
IT'S ALL AUTOMATED, IT'S THROUGH A COMPUTER SYSTEM.
UH, AND IT WORKS VERY EFFECTIVELY.
HOWEVER, THE MICROPHONES ARE EXTREMELY SENSITIVE 'CAUSE IT'S TRYING TO PICK UP THE LANGUAGE.
UH, WE'VE USED IT WHEN YOU'VE GOT MULTIPLE VOICES GOING ON, IT GETS CONFUSING.
SO WE'RE KIND OF GOING TO USE THIS NEW EXPANSION AREA TO MAKE A LITTLE AREA WITH BARRICADES TO WHERE WE CAN ACTUALLY HAVE THOSE CONVERSATIONS WITH PEOPLE THAT NEED THAT LANGUAGE TRANSLATION SYSTEM, UM, TO WHERE WE CAN USE IT AND ACTUALLY COMMUNICATE WITH THEM.
SO I SAY THAT WITH, IF THERE'S ANY OTHER BUDDY THAT DEPARTMENTS ARE SOMETHING THAT HAS ISSUES WITH LANGUAGE TRANSLATION, UH, IF YOU WILL REACH OUT TO US, WE CAN GET YOU THE CONTACT FOR THAT COMPANY.
WE'VE ONLY, WE ONLY FOUND ONE THAT HAS THE CAPABILITY TO DO WHAT WE WANT IT TO DO AND IT WORKS VERY EFFECTIVELY.
AND UH, SO, UH, AND IT'S NOT OVERLY EXPENSIVE EITHER, SO IT'S REASONABLE IN PRICE COMPARED TO WHAT YOU CAN GET OUT OF IT.
HOW MANY EMPLOYEES DO Y'ALL HAVE? WE HAVE 6, 6, 6 CLERKS.
WE HAVE, UH, CURRENTLY WE HAVE TWO CRIMINAL CLERKS UP FRONT.
WE HAVE A CIVIL CLERK, WE HAVE ANOTHER CLERK THAT DOES CRIMINAL AND COLLECTIONS AND SHE DOES ALL THE WARRANTS AND STUFF.
WE HAVE A COURT ASSISTANT COURT COORDINATOR.
SHE DOES PRETTY MUCH ALL OF IT, CIVIL AND CRIMINAL.
AND THEN OF COURSE JOLIE IS THE COURT COORDINATOR AND SHE'S IN THE MIDDLE OF EVERYTHING.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS WE PROBABLY NEED THREE OR FOUR CRIMINAL CLERKS AND SO FORTH UPFRONT, BUT WE'RE NOT ASKING FOR ANY MORE PEOPLE.
IS THERE ANY QUESTIONS? WE APPRECIATE YOUR INPUT ON THIS.
ANY QUESTIONS FOR JUDGE WILSON? THANK YOU JUDGE.
[I.J. Discussion/Presentation on Department 402 County Judge budget requests. (Judge Deen)]
I WANT TO GO BACK JUST, JUST TO ADDRESS ON ITEM J ON DISCUSSION PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT 4 0 2 COUNTY JUDGE BUDGET.UH, THERE'S SOME, SOME DISCUSSION I WANNA GO OVER WITH BRIANNA BEFORE, CAN WE DEFER THIS TO ANOTHER TIME? UH, THERE'S SOME QUESTIONS ON THIS.
CAN YOU, CAN YOU COME UP, YOU DON'T MIND? UM, THERE HAS BEEN A CHANGE IN MY DEPARTMENT.
UM, YOU HAVE THE, I'LL GET TO IT HERE.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT I DID WITH IT.
UM, IT'S COUNTY JUDGE, IT WAS STUCK TO ANOTHER ONE.
SOMEWHERE HAD IT, THERE WAS, THERE WAS A ONE HERE FOR THE SPECIAL EVENTS.
BRIANNA, CAN YOU ADDRESS WHAT THAT IS? YES.
SO WE HAD CERTIFIED REVENUE WHEN THERE WAS THE DONATION, UM, FOR THE EXTENSION FOR THE CHRISTMAS TREE.
THANK UM, AND SO RIGHT NOW THAT'S WHY YOU SEE THE DECREASE.
AND SO, UM, I SPOKE TO THE JUDGE IF THERE'S ANY REQUEST OF WHAT NEEDS TO BE PUT IN THERE FOR
[01:35:01]
THE CHRISTMAS BUDGET FROM COUNTY FUNDS, WHETHER, YOU KNOW, I KNOW THAT THERE WAS ORNAMENTS AND DIFFERENT THINGS PURCHASED, BUT IF THERE'S ANYTHING YEAH, ANY BUDGET THAT NEEDS TO BE APPROPRIATED.YEAH, I THINK WE'RE WE'RE OKAY.
AND I THINK THAT'S SOMETHING WE'LL PROBABLY COORDINATE WITH BUILDING GROUNDS ON BECAUSE IT'S BEEN A COLLABORATION WITH THEM ON THAT.
AND, AND I THINK HOW THEY'VE DONE IT I IN THE LAST COUPLE YEARS IS ANYTHING RELATED TO CHRISTMAS AND COORDINATION WITH YOUR DEPARTMENT WAS IN UM, 4 0 2 SPECIAL EVENT LINES VERSUS YEAH.
AND I THINK WE, WHERE THE COURT WANTS TO PUT THOSE FUNDS AND HOW IT NEEDS TO BE COORDINATED.
YEAH, AND I THINK WE PRETTY MUCH HAVE, REGARDING THE SPECIAL EVENTS, WE'VE GOT DONATIONS ON THAT.
SO I DON'T REALLY SEE A NEED ON THIS.
THIS IS REALLY A ZERO ZERO DOWN BUDGET.
UM, AND LOOKING, LOOKING AT THIS, THERE'S ALSO ON THIS IN AUTO ALLOWANCE, THAT'S A ZEROED DOWN SO THAT I SEE THAT NUMBER GOING DOWN TOO AS FAR AS THE AUTO ALLOWANCE AS WELL.
SO THERE'S SOME DISCUSSION ON THIS.
THAT'S NOT ANY SORT OF OH, OKAY.
NEVERMIND SORT OF BECAUSE I, I WAS MORE SENSITIVE TO THE, UH, RIGHT, SO IF THERE'S ANY LOCAL TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT THAT IS, UM, REIMBURSED THROUGH THE TRAINING AND TRAVEL LINE, WHICH IT LOOKS LIKE YOU ALL HAVE.
AND SO I GUESS THE ONLY OTHER REQUEST, UM, IF YOU ARE REQUESTING TO REPLACE THE VEHICLE, UH, NO, THE COUNTY VEHICLE, UH, WHAT, WHAT, AGAIN, THIS IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE MOVE TO, WE HAVE, AND BECKY, YOU'RE YOU, THAT'S ANOTHER GREAT OPTION TO HAVE KNOWING THAT, UM, THAT THERE IS TO BE NO ALLOWANCE, UH, MILEAGE ALLOWANCE THAT IS AUTHORIZED HERE BECAUSE WE HAVE VEHICLES THAT COULD BE USED, UH, THAT HAS BEEN COMMUNICATED AND THAT'S THE POLICY WE'RE GONNA FOLLOW.
SO THERE IS NO VEHICLE THAT WE'RE GONNA REQUEST.
SO ARE YOU REQUESTING THIS 20 2007 80 LOOKS LIKE FOR A NEW VEHICLE FOR THE REPLACEMENT? UM, I THINK YOU ALL CURRENTLY HAVE, WHICH I KNOW HAS BEEN OUT OF COMMISSION.
YOU GUYS GOT FROM THE MEDICAL EXAMINER A TAHOE, I SAY SO SURPLUS IT AND GET RID OF THAT.
AND SO IT LOOKS LIKE THERE WAS A NEW VEHICLE REQUEST FOR THIS YEAR.
ARE YOU REMOVING THAT? NO, IT'S, THAT'S BEEN TAKEN OUT.
BECAUSE WE HAVE, AGAIN, JUST BEING FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE WITH TAXPAYER MONEY, WE HAVE TWO VEHICLES AND SO, UH, THERE CAN BE SOME COORDINATION, FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN THE POSITION IS FILLED.
UH, IF THERE IS A NEED THAT THAT POSITION WILL BE, UH, ACTIVE IN, IN ATTENDING MEETINGS AND, AND ON THESE BOARDS THAT, UH, THEY'RE GONNA SET ON, THERE'S VEHICLES AVAILABLE AND THERE'S NO NEED TO, UH, HAVE THAT ON THERE.
AND THAT HAS BEEN ELIMINATED OUT OF THAT.
SO IT SHOULD NOT BE ANY INCREASE AT ALL.
SO, AND WE, WE'LL TALK MORE ABOUT THAT TO GET AN ACCURATE PICTURE FOR THE COURT.
[I.L. Discussion/Presentation on Department 500 Sheriff's Office budget requests. (Sheriff Authier / Judge Deen)]
OKAY, WE'LL MOVE TO ITEM L DISCUSSION PRESENTATION ON DEPARTMENT OF 500 SHERIFF'S OFFICE BUDGET REQUESTS.SHERIFF, CHIEF BARNETT'S GONNA BE CHIEF BARNETT.
YEAH, YOU GUYS READY FOR A LONG ONE? EASY ON US.
WE USUALLY EAT LUNCH ABOUT 12.
SO IF IT'S OKAY WITH THE COURT, I'LL GO THROUGH, UM, BASICALLY BASICALLY OPERATING AND UM, CAPTAIN NON CAP.
THEN I'LL SWING BACK BY AND HIT THE, UH, PERSONNEL REQUEST ADJUSTMENTS.
SO LEMME MAKE A COMMENT BEFORE YOU START.
WE, WE MADE THESE BEFORE Y'ALL GOT HERE, BUT, UM, WE WERE WATCHING 'EM ON IT.
JUST A HIGH, HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW.
I'M NOT GONNA GET DOWN IN THE WEEDS, RIGHT.
IF WE ASK QUESTIONS, WE'RE NOT PICKING ON ANYBODY, WE JUST NEED CLARIFICATION.
WE'RE JUST KIND OF SENSITIVE TO THE THICKNESS OF THAT BOOK YOU GOT UP THERE.
YEAH, THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S A LOT.
UM, WE'LL JUST START OFF WITH FIVE 12.
SO, UM, ARE YOU ON THIS UP THERE? NO, NOT YET.
UH, UNLESS YOU HAVE SPECIFIC QUESTIONS ABOUT SOMETHING THAT IT'S SET UP FOR HIM WHEN HE IS READY, COMMISSIONER.
UM, SO THE MAIN INCREASE IN FIVE 12 WAS THE JAIL.
THE INCREASE IS, UH, THE CONTRACTED RATE GOING FROM $87 AND 45 CENTS A DAY PER INMATE TO 92 70 A DAY FOR INMATE.
THAT'LL BE THE, THE FIRST TAB HERE.
UM, THAT'S PART OF THE SCHEDULED INCREASE IN, IN THE CURRENT CONTRACT.
WE ARE CURRENTLY HOUSING OUT ROUGHLY ABOUT 30 PEOPLE, I
[01:40:01]
THINK RIGHT NOW.UM, OUTTA COUNTY IN DIFFERENT COUNTIES AND STUFF.
AND THAT'S, THAT'S ABOUT AVERAGE.
IT VARIES BETWEEN 20 AND 30 A DAY.
SO JUST OUTTA CURIOSITY, THE NEW ADDITION ONLINE, IS IT, IT IS NOT COMPLETE YET ANTICIPATED REAL CLOSE? YEAH.
THANK YOU FOR, WHEN DID YOU SAY HE SAID WE'RE REALLY, REALLY CLOSE BUT WE'RE NOT THERE YET? UH, PROBABLY A COUPLE WEEKS, MAYBE A MONTH.
WE'LL BE ABLE TO BRING BACK SOME OF THOSE INMATES THAT WE HAVE HOUSED OUT PLUS ADDITIONAL, ADDITIONAL ONES.
I, UM, SO THAT'S REALLY THE ONLY CHANGE I DID.
UM, WE DID INCREASE THE DAILY COUNT, THE MAX DAILY JAIL COUNT, UH, UP A LITTLE BIT TO, UM, ALLOW SOME, SOME, UM, ADDITIONAL COST FOR TRANSPORT BECAUSE ALL THE TRANSPORT COST THAT LASALLE CHARGES US FOR TRANSPORTING THOSE INMATES AND STUFF COME OUTTA THAT LINE TOO.
AND, UM, ALTHOUGH THEY'RE NOT, UM, EXTRAVAGANT COST OR LARGE COST, THEY ARE, THEY DO HIT US PROBABLY A, I DON'T KNOW, BETWEEN 15 AND $30,000 A MONTH OR EVERY TWO MONTHS.
JUST KIND OF DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH TRANSPORT IT HAS TO, LEMME INTERRUPT YOU, YOU ONE MORE TIME.
YOU KNOW, I'M ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT THE, THE, THE THREE CIRCLES, YOU KNOW, THE ONE YOU HAVE TO HAVE, UH, THAT 1.175 RIGHT THERE FALLS IN THAT DEAD CENTER CATEGORY RIGHT THERE OF WHAT YOU HAVE TO HAVE.
THAT'S WHAT I'M ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT.
WE HAVE TO COVER THOSE AREAS FIRST BEFORE WE GO ANYWHERE ELSE AND, AND FROM OUR COMMITTEE MEMBER OVER THERE, THAT'S, EVERYBODY GETS TIRED OF ME SAYING THAT, BUT THAT'S, THIS IS THE PERFECT EXAMPLE OF WHEN SOMEBODY'S ASKING US FOR SOMETHING ELSE AND WE PRIORITIZE THINGS.
THERE WE GO RIGHT HERE FIRST WE CHECK IT OFF AND THEN WE GO TO SOMETHING ELSE.
WHAT HAVE TO, HAVE, NEEDS HAVE TO HAVE COMPARED WITH WHAT WE'D LIKE TO HAVE.
I INTERRUPTED YOU THREE TIMES NOW, SO HEY, I TRY NOT TO DO THAT AGAIN.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THE JAIL CONTRACT? NO.
UH, MOVING OVER TO 5 45 COMMUNICATIONS, WE ASKED FOR, UH, A LITTLE BIT OF, UH, NON CAP.
WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA BE REMOVING ONE OF THOSE BECAUSE WE'RE PURCHASING THAT EQUIPMENT OUT OF THIS CURRENT BUDGET.
SO WE'LL, WE'LL BE REMOVING, UH, OUR REQUEST FOR THE HEADSETS.
YOU OKAY? YOU'VE ALREADY MADE THOSE CHANGES.
OKAY, THEN I WON'T EVEN BRING 'EM UP.
I WON'T WANNA WASTE YOUR TIME.
UH, MOVING OVER TO FIVE 60, UM, WHICH IS ADMIN ONE OF THE MAJOR INCREASES IN ADMIN.
AND WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO, I'M GONNA COME BACK TO YOU DURING A NORMAL COURT SESSION AND TALK ABOUT THE AXON CONTRACT.
YOU GUYS HAVE, UH, SHOULD HAVE, UM, THE CURRENT CONTRACT AND THEN THE, THE, UH, THE ONE THAT WE WANT TO GO TO.
THIS IS KIND OF A BIG ONE, SO I'LL GO AHEAD AND PUT THIS UP ON THE BOARD, IF YOU DON'T MIND.
HEY JUDGE, I'M SORRY, SWITCH CAN, YEP.
I'M DOING MULTIPLE TASKS HERE.
SO, UNDER OUR CURRENT CONTRACT, UM, WE ACTUALLY HAD THREE DIFFERENT CONTRACTS.
THE SHERIFF'S, THE COUNTY DOES FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE WITH, UH, AXON.
UM, ONE IS THE INTERVIEW ROOM AND DIS AND CID WE HAVE TWO INTERVIEW ROOMS THERE THAT AXON HAS INTERVIEW ROOM EQUIPMENT IN THERE.
THE OTHER ONE'S THE FLEET, WHICH IS ALL THE CARS, UH, INCAR VIDEOS.
AND THE OTHER ONE IS THE TASER AND BODY-WORN CAMERAS.
THEY'RE ON DIFFERENT CONTRACTS, WHICH, UH, EACH AXON CONTRACT'S FIVE YEARS.
AND BECAUSE OF THE WAY IT KIND OF WORKED OUT, THEY, THEY GOT STAGGERED A LITTLE BIT.
UM, AND THEY'RE NOT, THEY DON'T RUN IN LINE WITH EACH OTHER.
UM, WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS, WHAT AXON RECOMMENDS IS BECAUSE WE'RE HAVING TO ADD ADDITIONAL WE RESOURCES TO OUR CONTRACT, THEY WANT TO, UM, BASICALLY COMBINE ALL OF THOSE INTO ONE AND THEY WANT TO ADD A BUNCH OF, UH, ADDITIONAL CAPABILITIES FOR US, WHICH WHENEVER WE LOOK AT IT, SOME OF THESE NEW, THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY IS JUST AMAZING.
AND I'M GONNA BRIEFLY GO OVER THAT REAL QUICK.
UM, SO THIS IS OUR CURRENT CONTRACT, OUR 2025 STATS.
WE HAVE THESE THREE, THREE CONTRACTS AND, UH, THAT'S 80 83 TASER TENS, 85 BODY-WORN
[01:45:01]
CAMERAS, 32 PRO LICENSES, THE INTERVIEW ROOM, AND THEN THE FLEET.UM, PART OF THIS NEW CONTRACT IS A TRANSITION FROM THE TASER SEVEN PLATFORM TO THE TASER 10.
THE TASER 10 IS A, UM, IT'S, IT'S A MAJOR SHIFT WITH THE, WITH THE CURRENT TASER.
SO WHEN YOU PULL THE TRIGGER, TWO PROBES SHOOT OUT AND YOU HOPE TO GET CONTACT WITH TWO OF THOSE PROBES WITH THE INDIVIDUAL.
UM, IF THEY DON'T DEPLOY PROPERLY, YOU, YOU PULL THE TRIGGER AGAIN AND THEN YOU HOPE TO GET SOME CONTACT WITH, WITH THOSE THINGS.
UM, THE NEW TASER PLATFORM HAS 10 PROBES, AND WITH THE NEW PLATFORM YOU GET, I MEAN, YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE THE EFFECTIVE RANGE ON THE T SEVEN IS FIVE TO 25 FEET.
THE EFFECTIVE RANGE ON THE TASER 10 IS 45 FEET WITH THE TASER 10, YOU PULL THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOU GET COMPLIANCE.
SO YOU MAY DEPLOY TWO, OR YOU MAY DEPLOY ALL 10 PROBES UNTIL YOU MAKE GOOD CONTACT.
NOW THAT COMES IN HANDY WHEN YOU'RE CHASING SOMEBODY AND TRYING TO TASE 'EM.
UM, YOU JUST KEEP PULLING THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOU GET PROBES IN THERE AND YOU INCAPACITATE THAT PERSON.
ALONG WITH THIS, UM, NEW PLATFORM COMES VR TRAINING AND PART OF THE PART OF THE CONTRACT WOULD BE, UM, THEM PROVIDING THE VR UH, TRAINING EQUIPMENT FOR US TO ACTUALLY DO VR TRAINING.
SO THEY HAVE A, A BIG HEADSET.
THEY GO IN THERE AND THEY DO DIFFERENT SCENARIOS.
SHOOT, DON'T SHOOT, UH, LETHAL VERSUS NON-LETHAL TRAINING.
UM, A BUNCH OF ESCALATION TRAINING AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
AND THEY CAN FIRE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF ROUNDS IN THIS VR ENVIRONMENT.
BASICALLY WE PAY FOR THE VR EQUIPMENT AND THEN IT'S, YOU KNOW, ALL THE TRAINING IS BASICALLY INCLUDED.
IF WE HAD TO DO THAT KIND OF TRAINING, WHICH WE WILL START TO DO SOME LIVE FIRE TRAINING, UM, TASER DOES PROVIDE THOSE CARTRIDGES FOR US, UM, AT A CERTAIN AMOUNT FOR EACH YEAR FOR TRAINING.
BUT IF WE HAVE TO, UH, BUY THAT STUFF ON OUR OWN, THE CARTRIDGE, DEPENDING ON THE PLATFORM, COULD RUN UP TO ABOUT $50 A PIECE.
WELL, YOU'RE NOT GIVING THEM CRIMINALS MUCH OF A CHANCE.
NOW WITH SHOOTING 10, YOU KNOW, THEY DIDN'T HAVE THAT FANCY STUFF BACK WHEN I WAS ON PATROL.
IT'D BEEN NICE TO HAVE, IT'D HAVE KEPT ME OUT OF A LOT OF SCRAPS.
UM, SOME OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT THEY HAVE IS, UH, USE OF FORCE AND INTERNAL AFFAIRS INVESTIGATION ASSISTED, UM, SOFTWARE.
UH, THE NEW BODY CAMERAS ARE PRETTY AMAZING BECAUSE THEY COME WITH, UH, TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION.
SO YOU, THE, UH, THE DEPUTY ON SYNC CAN ACTUALLY SPEAK THROUGH THE, UM, BODY CAMERA TO SOMEBODY, YOU KNOW, THE SUPERVISOR OR SOMETHING IF THEY HAVE TO.
THE, THERE'S A PLATFORM FOR PEOPLE TO UPLOAD.
THERE'S THEIR VIDEOS STRAIGHT TO AXON TO THAT CASE.
INSTEAD OF ME HAVING TO SEND AN INVESTIGATOR OR DEPUTY OUT THERE TO RECOVER THAT, BRING IT BACK, UPLOAD IT, NOW WE CAN JUST GIVE 'EM A LINK AND THEY CAN DIRECTLY UPLOAD.
WHEN THIS GOES INTO EFFECT, THEY CAN DIRECTLY UPLOAD THAT VIDEO THAT WE NEED STRAIGHT INTO THAT CASE.
UM, AXON VIDEO, I MEAN, SOME OF THIS IS, I'M JUST GONNA GO OVER REAL QUICK.
SO WE'LL TALK A LITTLE BIT LATER ABOUT ONE OF OUR PERSONNEL REQUESTS.
BUT THE BIGGEST PROBLEM THAT WE'RE HAVING NOW WITH OPEN RECORDS AND WE GET A LOT OF OPEN RECORDS REQUESTS, IS, UM, REQUESTS FOR BODY CAM VIDEO.
THE HARD PART ABOUT BODY CAM VIDEO IS WE HAVE TO GO IN THERE AND WATCH IT MINUTE BY MINUTE, AND WE HAVE TO REDACT CERTAIN THINGS.
UM, IF WE HAVE TO REDACT SOMEBODY'S DRIVER'S LICENSE OR PERSONAL INFORMATION OR MEDICAL CONDITION, THEIR FACE, UM, THIS NEW SOFTWARE WILL DO A LOT OF THAT FOR US.
SO INSTEAD OF THE, UH, ONE OF MY CLERKS OR ONE OF MY DEPUTIES HAVING TO GO IN THERE AND WATCH THIS VIDEO, WATCH THIS 10 HOUR LONG VIDEO AND MANUALLY GO IN THERE AND REDACT IT EVERY TIME THE CAMERA MOVES THE AI VIDEO, UH, THE AI ASSISTANT WILL ACTUALLY DO THAT FOR US.
SO IT'LL MAKE IT A LOT QUICKER.
UM, WITH THIS ONE YOU CAN ACTUALLY DO UP TO 20 VIDEOS SIMULTANEOUSLY.
SO REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT.
SO THIS SYSTEM, BASICALLY AXON GOES OUT IN OUR COUNTY AND THEY IDENTIFY DIFFERENT CAMERAS, PUBLIC FACING CAMERAS, TRAFFIC CAMERAS, MAYBE THE SCHOOL, UM, HOSPITAL, YOU KNOW, ANYBODY WHO HAS A PUBLIC CAMERA.
[01:50:01]
CAMERA IS DOOR.THEY'LL GO OUT THERE AND IDENTIFY 'EM AND THEY'LL PUT 'EM ALL INTO THIS PLATFORM.
SO AT ANY POINT IN TIME, OUR DEPUTIES IN THE FIELD, OR OUR DISPATCHERS IN THE OFFICE, IN THE DISPATCH STATION CAN LOG INTO THE SYSTEM AND GO IN THERE AND VIEW THOSE CAMERAS UNTIL WE ACTUALLY SEE WHAT IF THE, THE CAMERA'S AVAILABILITY.
NOW THIS WILL BE CRITICAL IN, YOU KNOW, AN ACTIVE SHOOTER SITUATION OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, AS LONG AS THEY'RE IN THERE.
BUT AXON ACTUALLY GOES IN THERE AND THEY DO THAT FOR US.
THEY GO OUT AND THEY, THEY MAKE THESE REACH OUTS TO THESE DIFFERENT PLACES TO INCORPORATE THAT VIDEO INTO OUR CAPABILITY.
AUTOTAG, WE ALREADY HAVE, UM, AUTO TRANSCRIPTION AND AUTO TRANSLATION.
SO INSTEAD OF, UH, ONE OF MY CLERICAL STAFF OR SOMEBODY AT THE COUNTY OR DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE HAVING TO GO IN THERE AND TRANSCRIBE, UH, ANY AUDIO ABOUT OUR BODY CAMERA, I HAVE TO SIT THERE AND TRANSCRIBE THE DIFFERENCE.
THIS AI DOES IT NOW, UM, FOR THIS, UH, IT SUPPORTS MULTILINGUAL EVIDENCE, SO THE TRANSCRIPTS FROM SPANISH TO ENGLISH WILL BE EASIER.
UM, AND THEN THE, THE, THE NEATEST, ONE OF THE NEATEST ONES I THINK IS, IS THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS WHOLE SYSTEM IS AXON ASSISTED.
SO THE NEW BODY CAM NOW PROVIDES TRANSCRIPT OR TRANSLATION SERVICES RIGHT THERE.
SO WE CAN ACTUALLY PRESS THE BUTTON AND SAY SOMETHING INTO THE BODY CAM, IT'LL TRANSLATE IT INTO SPANISH OR PORTUGUESE OR FRENCH OR WHATEVER.
WE'LL BE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE EFFECTIVELY WITH A LOT OF OUR VICTIMS THAT WE DON'T, WE CAN'T ALWAYS FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON.
WHAT DO Y'ALL DO NOW? USE CELL PHONE TRANSLATOR? UH, SOMETIMES IF WE HAVE A, A DEPUTY ON DUTY OR SOMEBODY BACK IN THE JAIL MM-HMM
UM, IF WE CAN GET 'EM ON SCENE, THAT'S THE BEST.
UM, IT'S SOMETIMES IT'S PRETTY DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON.
YEAH, THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IMPROVEMENT.
OUR CAPABILITIES WILL BE MASSIVELY IMPROVED WITH THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY.
UM, THEN THE FLEET THREE, THEY'LL BE GONNA FLEET FOUR.
I TALKED ABOUT THE, UH, THE INTERVIEW ROOM.
THERE'S NOT A LOT OF CHANGE THERE, IT'S JUST NEW EQUIPMENT.
UH, SO IT IS A MASSIVE IMPROVEMENT OVER OUR CURRENT CAPABILITIES, UM, AND OUR ABILITY TO, YOU KNOW, EFFECTIVELY SAFELY DO OUR JOB THERE.
OBVIOUSLY THERE IS AN ADDITIONAL COST
BUT THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I'M GONNA NEED TO COME BACK TO YOU BEFORE YOU FINALIZE A BUDGET AND GET APPROVAL FOR THIS NEW CONTRACT, UM, TO BE ABLE TO MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS.
BECAUSE THE WAY IT'S SET UP RIGHT NOW IS THIS WON'T GO INTO EFFECT UNTIL AFTER OCTOBER ONE.
SO WHAT DO YOU ANTICIPATE THE COST TO BE? YOU DON'T KNOW.
YES, THE UM, UM, THAT'S IN FIVE SIX, THAT THE COST IS ACTUALLY IN 5 63.
SO I'M GONNA FLIP TO THAT REAL QUICK.
SO THE MAINTENANCE COST WILL GO UP TO $392,337.
UM, SO THE OVERALL INCREASE FROM WHAT WE'RE PAYING NOW TO WHAT WE'LL GO TO IS $108,495.
SO, LIKE I SAID, IS A SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE.
HAVING SAID THAT THOUGH, THIS ACTUALLY ADDS ADDITIONAL, UM, CAMERAS AND UM, UH, LICENSES THAT WE ALREADY NEED.
WE CURRENTLY NEED NOW WE DON'T HAVE ACCESS TO.
SO IT'S JUST NOT THE, THE ADDITIONAL, I MEAN, SOME OF THIS WOULD BE REQUIRED ANYWAY.
WELL, THAT'S SOME BIG UPGRADES.
MR. CONY, WILL YOU BE REQUESTING THE, UH, OLD TASERS FOR YOUR USE? YEAH, I WANT, NO, I WANT ONE OF THEM TENT TENTS.
YOU WANT ONE OF THE YOU WANT A NEW ONE? I'M NOT SIT NEXT TO HIM ANYMORE.
UH, I KNOW RADIOS IS A BIG ONE.
UM, THE QUESTION OF WAS DO WE HAVE ENOUGH RADIOS NOW? NO, WE DON'T.
WE WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO CONTINUE TO ADD RADIOS.
I'M GONNA TRY TO ACTUALLY SEE IF I CAN USE MONEY, MOVE MONEY AROUND IN THIS BUDGET TO MAYBE GO AHEAD AND PURCHASE SOME OF THESE SO I DON'T HAVE TO ADD IT TOO.
SO THERE'S UH, TWO, TWO MOBILES AND I THINK FOUR HANDHELDS, NO, I'M SORRY, TWO HANDHELDS
[01:55:01]
AND SIX MOBILES IN THAT REQUEST.MOVING OVER TO SPECIAL CRIMES, WHAT NUMBER ARE YOU GOING TO? IT'S 5 61.
SO THE BIGGEST INCREASE IN THIS IS A REQUEST FOR THE FLOCK CAMERA SYSTEM.
UM, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DON'T KNOW FLOCK, IT'S BASICALLY, IT'S UM, IT'S A SYSTEM SET UP.
FORT WORTH HAS A BUNCH OF 'EM.
THERE'S A LOT OF AGENCIES AROUND THAT HAVE 'EM.
BUT BASICALLY IT'S, IT'S A VIDEO, REMOTE VIDEO THAT CAPTURES VEHICLES AND LICENSE PLATES.
AND, UM, YOU CAN, WE CAN GO INTO THE FLOCK SYSTEM AND SEARCH IT.
AND IF WE'RE LOOKING FOR A SPECIFIC CAR OR A TYPE OF VEHICLE THAT HAS CERTAIN CHARACTERISTICS OR CERTAIN LICENSE PLATE, WE CAN ACTUALLY, IN REAL TIME, IF THERE'S A FLOCK CAMERA THAT'S PASSED BY, CAN TRACK THE MOVEMENT OF THAT VEHICLE OR FIND WHERE THAT VEHICLE HAS BEEN HISTORICALLY.
UM, AND SO WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THE CRIMES THAT WE WORK, KNOWING THE, THE MOVEMENT OF THAT VEHICLE WAS, UH, AS FAR AS THE IDENTIFYING THE SUSPECT AND THE PROSECUTE THE SUSPECT, IT'S PRETTY SUBSTANTIAL.
THE GOOD THING ABOUT YOU'RE NOT MAKING IT HARD ON THESE CRIMINALS.
I'M TRYING, UH, THE GOOD THING ABOUT THIS FLOCK SYSTEM, WHICH LEMME SEE HERE, UM, WHAT WE'RE LOOKING AT RIGHT NOW IS A REQUEST FOR $48,500 THAT'LL GIVE US 12 CAMERAS, 10 STATIONARY, AND TWO MOBILE CAMERAS TO PUT ON MAJOR HIGHWAYS IN THE COUNTY.
THE GOOD THING ABOUT IT IS THE, THE STATE DOES HAVE A, A MATCHING GRANT, OR I'M SORRY, I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S MATCHING, BUT THEY DO HAVE A GRANT AVAILABLE THAT WILL ACTUALLY PAY FOR SOME OF THE COST UP TO 80% OF THE COST OF THESE CAMERAS IF APPROVED.
UM, THE, SO OUR REQUEST IS THAT THE COURT APPROVE THIS MONEY AND THAT IT IS ONLY SPENT IN THE EVENT THAT WE ACTUALLY ARE AWARDED THE GRANT.
IF WE'RE NOT AWARDED THE GRANT, THEN WE WON'T, WE'LL EITHER TRY TO LOCATE ADDITIONAL RESOURCES TO PAY FOR IT OR NOT PURCHASE IT.
SO IF WE DON'T GET IT, ARE WORKING ON THAT GRANT NOW, OR NO, IT'S, NO, WE CAN'T, I CAN'T, I CAN'T WORK ON THE GRANT UNTIL I GET APPROVED FROM THE COURT TO, FOR THAT MONEY.
WE TALKED TO 'EM AND WE SAID, HEY, YOU KNOW, WE'RE WORKING ON THE BUDGET, UH, YEAH, GIVE US TILL OCTOBER ONE.
IF IT'S APPROVED, THEN WE'LL, WE'LL WORK ON THE GRANT.
PERHAPS WHEN THE PERSON STARTS AND THE GRANT PERSON ON THE 23RD, I CAN CONNECT YOU ALL AND THEN, UM, SHOULD WE MOVE FORWARD OR SHE GETS, YOU KNOW, TO THE APPLICATION PROCESS CAN COME REQUEST THAT.
SO YEAH, THAT'LL BE ONE OF THE FIRST ONES AT LEAST.
AND WHAT WE COULD DO TWO THINGS IS, UM, IF WE APPLY FOR THE GRANT AND WE DON'T KNOW BEFORE THE BEGINNING OF THE FISCAL YEAR, IF WE'RE AWARDED THAT GRANT, I CAN CERTIFY GRANT REVENUE, UM, AND THEN WE WOULD JUST NEED TO COME UP WITH A MATCH, WHICH THEN COULD COME FROM CONTINGENCY IF NEED BE.
THE BEAUTY OF THIS IS IF YOU'RE NOT GONNA BUY IT WITHOUT THE GRANT.
THE BEAUTY OF THIS IS, IS WE, THIS PERSON'S COMING IN AND THIS BUDGET'S DOWN THE PATH FAR ENOUGH, THEN WE CAN START PUSH PUTTING THEM INTO THE GRANT PROCESS TO SU TO SUPPORT THE BUDGET.
CHIEF, I HAD A QUESTION, JUST PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE.
ARE, DOES THIS FLOCK SYSTEM, IS IT A, IS IT HAVE THE ABILITY TO TRACK LIKE THESE FAKE PAPER TAGS AND THINGS THAT YOU SEE A LOT OF ON THESE VEHICLES? MY UNDERSTANDING IS YES.
UM, HOPEFULLY THAT WON'T BE AN ISSUE MUCH LONGER.
YEAH, I HEARD THAT THEY, THE PROBLEM IS, IS, YOU KNOW, YOU MAKE, YOU PUT IN A TAG NUMBER YOU'RE LOOKING FOR, AND IF THEY'RE ALL, IF THEY'RE ALL THE SAME, THEN YOU'RE GONNA GET, YOU KNOW, 153,000 HITS AT THE SAME TIME.
UM, GOING BACK TO THE AXON, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT AXON WILL GIVE US FOR FREE IS THE LPR.
SO THIS IS THE FLOCK SYSTEM'S, BASICALLY AN LPR LICENSE PLATE READER SYSTEM.
UM, AXON, IF WE GO WITH THE CONTRACT, IS GONNA GIVE US THEIR LPR SYSTEM FOR OUR INCAR VIDEO OR INCAR, UH, VIDEO SYSTEM FOR FREE FOR THE DURATION OF THE CONTRACT, WHICH IS ABOUT $300,000.
UM, SO THAT'S, THEY ARE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE MAKING AN EFFORT TO, TO HELP US OUT.
SO THE OTHER, UH, THE ONLY OTHER THING ABOUT IN SPECIAL CRIMES
[02:00:01]
IS, UM, REALLY OF SUBSTANTIAL IS CELLEBRITE.SO WE HAVE TO REPLACE OUR, OUR CURRENT CELLEBRITE SYSTEM BECAUSE IT'S BASICALLY CELLEBRITE REQUIRES YOU TO EVERY SO OFTEN UPGRADE.
UM, SO WE'RE HAVING TO REPLACE, OH, CELLEBRITE IS A CELL, I'M SORRY, CELLEBRITE IS A CELL PHONE UNLOCK SYSTEM.
SO ANYTIME WE ARREST SOMEBODY, WE WANNA SEE WHAT THEIR, WHAT THEIR CELL PHONE IS, WHAT THEY'VE BEEN DOING ON THE CELL PHONE, WHETHER IT BE LOCATION SERVICES, TEXT MESSAGES, VIDEOS, PHONE CALLS, THINGS LIKE THAT.
WE PLUG IT IN THERE AND WE HAVE REASONABLY GOOD, UH, ABILITY TO RETRIEVE A LOT OF THAT DATA DEPENDING ON THE PLATFORM.
UM, WE'VE BEEN USING IT FOR SEVERAL YEARS.
IT MAKES INVESTIGATIONS, I MEAN, TO, TO DO CURRENT INVESTIGATIONS THESE DAYS, ESPECIALLY NARCOTICS INVESTIGATIONS OR SOME OF THE STALKING CASES OR CHILD ABUSE, UM, CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE, A LOT OF THAT STUFF, UM, REALLY HELPS MAKE THOSE CASES.
AND SO WE HAVE TO REPLACE THAT EVERY SO OFTEN.
AND WE'RE ACTUALLY ADDING AN ADDITIONAL, UM, SYSTEM TO OUR, TO OUR CAPABILITIES.
SO SEU WILL HAVE ONE AND CID WILL HAVE ONE.
UH, WE'VE TAKEN SOME OF THIS, SOME OF THE NON CAP STUFF OUT THAT WE'RE, WE'RE BUYING ALREADY, WHICH I GUESS YOU GUYS DON'T EVEN SEE, UH, WITH THE CURRENT CAMERA, BUT IT'S, IT'S NOT A LOT.
I MEAN, THEY NEED A SHREDDER OVER THERE BECAUSE THEY HAVE CONFIDENTIAL FILES THEY NEED TO SHRED AND THEN THEY NEED TO DO A DIGITAL CAMERA.
I KNOW I HEARD YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT VEHICLES EARLIER.
WE ALWAYS TRY TO REPLACE, UM, TWO VEHICLES A YEAR.
SO WE'RE ASKING FOR TWO REGULAR STANDARD PICKUPS, NOTHING SPECIAL.
UM, WE RUN, OF COURSE EVERYBODY IN CID HAS A TAKE HOME BECAUSE TECHNICALLY THEY'RE ON CALL 24 7.
I MEAN, SOMETHING'S HAPPENED, THEY GOTTA GO.
UM, AND THEN WE HAVE TWO SPARES.
WE, WE'VE BEEN TO THE POINT NOW BECAUSE OF MAINTENANCE ISSUES AND STUFF WHERE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE TWO OR THREE VEHICLES ACTUALLY EITHER IN REPAIR OR DOWN FOR, FOR MAINTENANCE.
AND WE'RE HAVING TO PULL VEHICLES FROM OTHER, UM, DEPARTMENTS TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR PEOPLE HAVE THE MOBILITY.
HOW MANY DO YOU HAVE ON BACK ORDER? NONE.
I KNOW LAST YEAR WAS LIKE SEVEN OR EIGHT OR NINE OR 10, SO ALL THE VEHICLES THAT WE ORDERED, UM, HAVE ALL COME IN.
THE ONLY ONE THAT'S NOT DEPLOYED RIGHT NOW IS, UM, THE CID CRIME SCENE TRUCK.
UM, IT'S STILL AT DEFENDER SUPPLY, GETTING THE, THE EMERGENCY LIGHTING PUT ON IT.
BUT WE RECEIVED EVERY OTHER VEHICLE.
THE, THE, THE DAYS OF, HOPEFULLY THE DAYS OF US WAITING SIX MONTHS, A YEAR, TWO YEARS TO GET VEHICLES ARE GONE.
UH, AND THEN GOING INTO CAP, NON CAP FOR CID WE, WE WERE ABLE TO PURCHASE MOST OF THAT STUFF OUT OF THE CURRENT BUDGET.
SO I'VE REMOVED A BUNCH OF THAT STUFF.
UH, THE OTHER THINGS IS JUST LIKE OFFICE CHAIRS.
I MEAN, IF WE NEED AN OFFICE CHAIR, WE'LL BUY IT.
WE'RE NOT GONNA SPEND THAT MONEY.
SO, UH, ANYTHING IN 5 62, I'M DOING, GOING OVER TO 5 63.
OBVIOUSLY WITH PATROL BEING OUR LARGEST DEPARTMENT AS FAR AS, UM, PERSONNEL AND EQUIPMENT, UM, IT'S SUBSTANTIAL.
WE ALSO RUN OUR SWAT BUDGET OUT OF, UH, 5 63.
UM, IN 5 63, YOU'LL SEE THE, THE MAY NOT, UH, THE AXON MAINTENANCE CONTRACT.
AND THEN WE'RE REQUESTING, UH, 12 REPLACEMENT TAHOES, UM, FOR PATROL.
OBVIOUSLY WE WERE LUCKY THIS YEAR BECAUSE WHENEVER I CALLED DOWN TO CALDWELL AT THE START OF OCTOBER AND I TOLD HIM WHAT I NEEDED, HE SAID, HEY, I'VE GOT 'EM ON THE LOT.
WELL, WE GOT 'EM IN LIKE A MONTH LATER.
YOU KNOW, HISTORICALLY THAT EVEN GOING BACK PAST COVID, THAT HAS NOT, THAT'S NOT BEEN THE CASE.
UM, IT USUALLY TOOK US ABOUT SIX MONTHS TO GET THOSE VEHICLES IN.
UM, BUT WE, WE DO WANNA PUT IN FOR 12 REPLACEMENTS.
THE VEHICLES THAT WE HAD, WE JUST GOT BACK THE LAST FOUR VEHICLES OUT OF, UM, DEFENDER SUPPLY THAT WE ORDERED BACK IN OCTOBER.
SO THERE'S A, WE ORDER 'EM IN OCTOBER.
THERE'S A, THERE'S A, A TIME LAG BETWEEN THE, THE POINT THAT WE PAY FOR 'EM, AND WE'RE ACTUALLY ABLE TO DEPLOY THOSE ONCE THEY COME BACK.
WE STILL HAVE TO REMOVE THE CAMERA SYSTEM AND THE CRADLE POINT AND ALL THE, THE EQUIPMENT FROM AN OLD PATROL CAR THAT WE'RE GONNA SURPLUS, MOVE IT OVER TO THE OTHER ONE.
[02:05:01]
ONLY DO THAT ONE BY ONE.UM, SO IT'S VERY TIME CONSUMING.
IT TAKES ABOUT A DAY PER VEHICLE.
UH, I HAD AN ADDITIONAL PPV IN THERE THAT'S FOR THE, UM, TION OFFICER.
WAIT, WHAT? THOSE 12 VEHICLES, WHICH ONE ARE THOSE IN? UH, THAT'S 5 63.
AND THEN THE, UH, THE ONE RIGHT BELOW IT ON MY LIST IS FOR, UH, INTERDICTION.
SO THERE'S A TOTAL OF 13 THERE, WHICH MAY BE ON YOUR LIST AS 13.
MY UNDERSTANDING IS SB 22 HAS BEEN APPROVED, AGAIN, THE $500,000 GRANT, SO WE'LL BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY COVER A, A LARGE PORTION OF THESE COSTS WITH SB 22 BILLS OR MONEY BECAUSE IN, IN THE AUTOMOBILES LINE ON 5 63 FOR THE REQUESTED, IT'S CURRENTLY ZERO.
IS THAT BECAUSE IT'S IN THE, I'M, I'M LOOKING AT THIS SHEET, RIGHT? I'M LOOKING AT THE OTHER ONE.
AND OF COURSE THEN YOU HAVE, UH, OUTFITTING, YOU HAVE THE 12 FOOT PATROL, AND THE VEHICLE INTERDICTION IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT BECAUSE HE HAS A DOG BOX IN THE BACK OF HIS PATROL CAR.
HE'S A CANINE OFFICER, SO IT'S A LITTLE BIT MORE.
AND THEN ADDITIONAL RIFLE RATED SHIELDS WE'RE, WE'RE REPLACING SOME THAT ARE EXPIRED AND THEN ADDING ADDITIONAL TO OUR, TO OUR RIFLE SHIELD FLEET.
UM, I'M HOPING TO BE ABLE TO BUY THE NEW SNIPER RIFLE OUT OF THIS CURRENT BUDGET.
ARE COMMISSIONERS ARE ALLOWED TO, UH, SITE IT IN AND MAKE SURE IT'S ACCURATE.
I'M SURE WE COULD, UH, WORK SOMETHING OUT.
JUST RANDOM QUESTION,
THAT'S THE, UM, THE INTERDICTION OFFICER.
UM, AND THEN WE HAVE ONE ENTRY VEST FOR THE SWAT TEAM, AND THEN A NON NON CAP.
UH, THERE'S, THERE'S A WHOLE SLEW OF STUFF THERE.
IT'S KIND OF THE SAME THING WE WENT OVER LAST YEAR.
UM, A LOT OF THIS STUFF I'M, I'VE ALREADY PURCHASED OR AM ORDERING OUT OF THE CURRENT BUDGET, LIKE THE PORTABLE BREATH TEST, UH, THE TOURNIQUETS, THE MED, THE MED KITS, THE SPRAY, THE BREACHING TOOLS.
THEN A LOT OF THIS STUFF IS, UM, ADDITIONAL, NOT REPLACEMENTS LIKE THE, UH, THE RADAR, THE GAS MASK, THE HELMETS, STOP STICKS ARE REPLACEMENTS.
AND THEN YOU HAVE SWAT, UH, EQUIPMENT THAT THEY REQUESTED.
UH, THE NIGHT VISION GOGGLES, ENTRY HELMET, THE GAS MASK.
THEY'RE REQUESTING VEHICLE LOCK BOXES FOR THEIR, FOR THEIR VEHICLES, FOR THE PATROL UNITS TO LOCK UP THEIR, THEIR FIREARMS IN, UM, TARGET POINTER, THE BULLET RESISTANT VEST WITH CARRIERS AND RIFLE PLATES.
SO FOR A WHILE WE WERE GETTING A GRANT THROUGH THE, I DON'T REMEMBER IF IT WAS THE STATE OR NATIONAL, TO ACTUALLY DO THE STATE, UM, TO GET RIFLE RATED VEST.
AND, UM, WHAT THAT CONSISTED OF IS BASICALLY JUST A PLATE THAT GOES, THAT YOU THROW OVER YOUR REGULAR VEST AND IT GOES IN THE FRONT AND ONE IN THE BACK.
UM, RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT THOSE ARE DIFFICULT TO DEPLOY IN A CRITICAL INCIDENT AND, UM, TIME CONSUMING.
AND THEY DON'T, THEY'RE NOT ALWAYS WORN LIKE THEY NEED TO BE WHEN THEY, WHEN THEY SHOULD BE THE, A LOT OF THE VENDORS HAVE COME UP WITH A NEW PROGRAM OR NEW NEW THING WHERE WE ACTUALLY WENT TO WHERE WE HAVE ISSUED NEW, UM, CARRIERS AND, UH, THEY PUT THEIR SOFT BODY ARMOR INSIDE THE CARRIER.
THERE'S ALSO A POUCH FOR A TRAUMA, UH, RIFLE PLATE IN THE FRONT SO THAT THEY CAN WEAR THAT RLE PLATE 24 7 WHEN THEY'RE ON DUTY.
UH, THE RIFLE PLATE THAT WE BOUGHT IS, UM, TRANSITIONED FROM, YOU KNOW, METAL DOWN TO CERAMIC.
NOW IT'S STILL HEAVY, BUT IT'S A LOT LIGHTER THAN THE OLD METAL RLE PLATES.
UM, AND SO NOW THAT'S WHAT WE DO WHENEVER WE, SOMEBODY'S VEST RUNS OUT, YOU KNOW, THE TIME EXPIRES ON IT, THEY, UH, WILL BOMB A NEW, UH, SOFT BODY ARMOR AND WILL REPLACE THE OLD EXPIRED RAFFLE PLATE WITH THIS NEW TRAUMA PLATE.
AND SO IT'S A LOT CHEAPER TO WEAR.
RIFLE VESTS WOULD COST US ABOUT $1,500 BEFORE ROUGHLY.
NOW WE'RE ONLY BUYING THAT ONE TRAUMA PLATE AND IT'S ABOUT 350 BUCKS.
UM, THIS 40 INCLUDES THE ONES THAT EXPIRE, BUT ALSO BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENT SIZE VARIATIONS OF PEOPLE.
UM, WHENEVER WE HIRE A NEW DEPUTY, WE TRY TO FIT THEM WITH SOMETHING WE ALREADY HAVE THAT STILL HASN'T EXPIRED VEST, BUT THERE ARE CERTAIN TIMES THAT WE HAVE TO SPECIAL ORDER VESTS FOR PEOPLE IF THEY HAVE DIFFERENT BODY SHAPES.
SO THIS 40 INCLUDES NOT ONLY WHAT'S GONNA EXPIRE, BUT ALSO WHAT, UM, ADDITIONAL STAFF
[02:10:01]
WE MAY GET THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.AND THAT'S ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE FUNDS THAT WE DON'T NEED IT, WE DON'T USE IT.
WHAT'S THE AVERAGE WEIGHT OF ALL THAT STUFF THAT THESE DEPUTIES CARRY ON? 20 POUNDS.
I I COULD, I COULD PUT IT ALL ON A SCALE AND GET THAT GET BACK TO YOU, BUT IT'S SUBSTANTIAL.
NO, UM, THERE'S A LOT OF EQUIPMENT AND GEAR THAT THE, THE GREAT, ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT, OF COURSE, WHEN I WAS ON PATROL, EVERYTHING WAS ON YOUR BELT.
THIS NEW, UH, NEW CARRIER THAT WE'VE GOT HAS, UM, UH, MOUNTS ON ACTUALLY ON THE CARRIER.
SO INSTEAD OF HAVING TO CARRY ALL YOUR, YOUR GEAR ACROSS THE BACK, THAT REALLY MESSES YOUR BACK UP AND KIND OF THROWS YOUR BODY OUTTA WHACK.
NOW YOU CAN ACTUALLY CARRY IT, UH, IN A PLACE THAT'S MUCH MORE EASIER TO GET TO AND, UH, MORE CONVENIENT.
TECHNOLOGY HAS INCREASED A LOT FOR THE BETTER.
UH, THE, IT IS JUST REGULAR STUFF AS FAR AS 5 63 GOES WITH EQUIPMENT.
WITH 5 64 TRAINING, I REMOVED ALL MY TRAINING REQUESTS OUTTA THAT.
UM, AS FAR AS EQUIPMENT GOES, WE'VE ACTUALLY ALREADY BOUGHT ALL THAT WITH THIS, WITH THIS BUDGET MOVING OVER TO 5 66 ANIMAL CONTROL.
UM, SOME OF YOU MAY OR MAY NOT KNOW, THE CITY HAS SENT ME, SENT THE COUNTY A NEW INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT FOR SHELTER SERVICES.
UM, I THINK IT'S ALL, I THINK EVERYBODY'S RECEIVED A COPY OF IT, BUT PART OF THAT IS A SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE TO THE ANNUAL COST.
THE COUNTY WOULD BE REQUIRED TO PAY FOR THE OPERATION OF THE, OF THE, UM, SHELTER.
SO CURRENTLY WHEN I HAVE BUDGETED IS THE SCHEDULE 10% INCREASE OF $802,324, UM, ONTO THE NEW CONTRACT THE CITY EXPECTS US TO PAY.
UM, INSTEAD OF WHAT WE'RE CURRENTLY CONTRACTED TO TO PAY, WHICH IS WHAT, SEVEN SOMETHING? SEVEN SOMETHING.
SO WE GO FROM SEVEN SOMETHING TO NINE SOMETHING.
SO WE'RE, UH, FROM 800,000 TO NEARLY A MILLION DOLLARS.
YEAH, IT'S LIKE $150,000 MORE THAN WHAT WE'RE EXP NOT WHAT WE'RE CURRENTLY PAYING.
YEAH, WE'RE AT SEVEN 60, I THINK WE'RE AT SEVEN 60 OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, MAYBE.
UM, ARE THERE ANY OTHER OPTIONS WITH THIS ANIMAL CONTROL STUFF? WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK.
WE, WE, WELL, SHE GOT A, I MEAN, THERE ARE SOME OPTIONS THAT WE, WE COULD TALK ABOUT.
ONE, WE DROP 'EM OFF AT PRECINCT ONE.
UH, THERE'S ANOTHER MU MUNICIPALITY IN, UH, PARKER COUNTY THAT'S LOOKING ON BUILDING A SHELTER.
AND, UH, WE'VE BEEN TALKING TO THEM AND SEE IF IT, IF IT WOULD BE LARGE ENOUGH THEN MAYBE WE COULD CONTRACT WITH THEM IN ADDITION TO, OR IN ADDITION TO OR WITH, IT COULD BE IN ADDITION TO, OR IN LIEU OF, I MEAN, THAT WOULD BE ON THE SIZE.
SO YOU'RE AWARE OF COMMISSIONER WALTER AND MYSELF MET WITH THE CITY OF WEATHERFORD TO KIND OF EDUCATE AND UNDERSTAND THIS SITUATION.
AND SO NOTHING, WE KNOW IT'S TOUGH AND THEN WE KNOW ONE DAY POSSIBLY THAT THE COUNTY MAY HAVE TO, UH, JUST BITE THE BULLET AND DO IT OURSELVES.
SO, UH, THE THE COSTS KEEP GOING UP AND UP AND UP AND WE UNDERSTAND THAT, BUT IT'D BE, IT'D BE GREAT IF WE COULD WORK THIS THING OUT WITH THEM.
AT LEAST FOR RIGHT NOW, IT'S JUST, IT, IT, EVERYTHING'S EXPENSIVE AND THAT, AND THAT'S JUST A, THAT'S A LOT OF MONEY.
I KNOW ONE OF THE CITY'S ISSUES AND SOMETHING THEY WANT US TO DO, AND I TOLD 'EM THAT WE CAN'T BECAUSE IT'S THE COUNTY HAS AN ORDINANCE IS FERAL CATS.
THEY DON'T LIKE TAKING US, THEY DON'T LIKE US TAKING ALL THESE FERAL CATS IN.
THEY WOULD RATHER DO A, UH, TRAP AND RELEASE PROGRAM LIKE THEY DO WHERE WE GET THE FERAL CAT BRING IT IN, THEY FIX THE CAT, TAG IT, AND THEN WE TAKE IT BACK OUT, OR THEY TAKE IT BACK OUT AND RELEASE IT WHERE IT WAS CAPTURED.
UM, AND THE COUNTY ORDINANCE DOES NOT GIVE THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE ANY LEEWAY IN WHETHER WE ARE GONNA BRING THOSE CATS IN OR NOT.
WE DON'T HAVE ANY AUTHORITY TO AUTHORIZE A TRAP AND RELEASE PROGRAM.
UH, THE COUNTY ORDINANCE JUST DOESN'T ALLOW THAT FOR US.
BUT A LOT OF THE, UH, THE ANIMALS THAT WE DO TAKE ARE FOR FERAL CATS.
THE CHALLENGE OF THIS IS, IS IT WAS BROUGHT OUT WAS I THINK 60% OF THE, THE ANIMALS BROUGHT IN ARE FROM THE COUNTY.
WELL, WE, WE DO A LOT OF WORK.
WELL, WHAT'S THE LAW ON EUTHANIZING THOSE? WHY DON'T WE, WHY DON'T
[02:15:01]
WE, WHY DON'T WE TAKE 'EM BACK OUT AND LET 'EM GO AGAIN? WE DON'T BECAUSE WE CAN'T, WE TAKE THEM INTO THE SHELTER, WHAT THE SHELTER DOES WITH THEM AFTER THEY'RE THERE.WHETHER THEY TRY TO, UM, ADOPT THEM OUT OR THEY EUTHANIZE 'EM OR SOMETHING.
THE ONLY THING WE DO IS BRING 'EM IN.
SO THE MATTER IN HAND HERE THAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IS THE INCREASE IN THE REQUEST AND WHAT THEY'RE ASKING FOR US.
THE, YOU SAID THAT WAS 10%? IT'S WELL, UNDER THE CURRENT INTERLOCAL, IT GOES UP 10% A YEAR PER YEAR, PER YEAR UNDER THE NEW CONTRACT THAT THEY WANT US TO DO IT, IT'LL GO UP.
RIGHT NOW IT'LL GO UP TO 950, 40 5,000 OR WHATEVER IT IS, A THOUSAND DOLLARS.
AND EVERY YEAR OVER THAT, IT'LL CONTINUE TO INCREASE UNTIL WE GET TO WHATEVER PERCENTAGE FORMULA THAT THEY'VE CONTRIVED IN THEIR INTERLOCAL.
SO I MEAN, IT'S ALL DERIVED ON THAT 60% WHAT CONTINUES TO BE BROUGHT IN FROM THE COUNTY.
SO WHAT THAT'S, THERE'S SOME, UH, THERE'S, YEAH, SO THEY'RE SAYING THAT, YOU KNOW, THE COUNTY BRINGS IN X AMOUNT OF ANIMALS AND THEY BRING IN X AMOUNT OF ANIMALS, SO THEY WANT TO MODIFY THAT.
THE PROBLEM IS, IS THEY HAVE CONTRACTS WITH OTHER CITIES, UM, FOR THEIR ANIMAL PATROL SERVICES.
AND SO THE QUESTION IS, IS ARE THEY INCLUDING THOSE ANIMALS IN THAT CALCULATION? SO THERE'S SOME QUESTIONS THERE ABOUT HOW THEY COME UP WITH THEIR, THEY HAD THAT BROKEN DOWN AND THEY, IT DIDN'T SEEM TO BE, UH, WHEN COMMISSIONER WAL AND I MET WITH THEM, THEY HAD IT BROKEN DOWN SEPARATE.
BUT AGAIN, THAT'S A CONTINUED DISCUSSION ON THAT.
THEY ALSO WANNA TAKE OUT, YOU KNOW, THEY DON'T WANT TO COUNT TOWARDS, THEY DON'T WANT REDUCE THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF THE SHELTER COSTS BY THE MONEY THAT THEY BRING IN FROM THE OTHER CITIES.
SO THEY WANT, SAY, SAY THAT AGAIN, I'M SORRY.
SO THEY, THEY CHARGE THESE OTHER CITIES X AMOUNT OF DOLLARS FOR THE ANIMAL SHELTERS, MANUAL CONTROL COSTS.
WELL, THEY DON'T WANT THAT TO COUNT TOWARDS BRINGING DOWN THE TOTAL COST OF THE SHELTER, WHICH WOULD REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF, UH, MONEY THE COUNTY'S REQUIRED TO PAY AS FAR AS THAT PERCENTAGE.
SO ARE ANY OF THE COUNTY'S RESOURCES USED ON THOSE, SAY AGAIN, THE VEHICLES OR OFFICERS USED FOR, FOR ANY OF THOSE OTHER CITIES? MM-HMM
UM, WE DO PROVIDE SOME SERVICES FOR UNINCORPORATED CITIES OUT, YOU KNOW, THAT DON'T HAVE A CONTRACT.
UM, WE SHARE SOME EQUIPMENT WITH THE CITY BACK AND FORTH RIGHT NOW.
I MEAN, UM, FOR, THEY HAVE A TRACTOR DOWN THERE THAT WE USE TO CLEAN OUT THE PENS FOR THE LIVESTOCK AND DO SOME STUFF LIKE THAT.
AND THEN IN THE PAST THEY'VE SHARED, YOU KNOW, LIVE TRAPS AND LEASHES AND STUFF, BUT THE CITY'S WANTING TO GET AWAY FROM A LOT OF THAT.
THEY WANT TO BASICALLY NOT ONLY CHARGE THE COUNTY MORE, BUT PROVIDE ACTUALLY LESS SERVICES FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
THEY EXPECT US TO GO IN THERE AND DO A LOT OF THE WORK FOR THEM THAT THEY'RE ALREADY PROVIDING FOR US.
UM, LIKE ACTUALLY GIVING 'EM VACCINATIONS AND WASHING 'EM AND STUFF.
WHEN WE BRING AN ANIMAL IN, THEY'RE EXPECTING US TO DO THAT NOW INSTEAD OF HISTORICALLY WHAT THEY'VE BEEN DOING, WHICH WOULD TAKE OUR ANIMAL PATROL OFFICERS OFF THE STREET THAT MUCH LONGER.
SO THERE'S A LOT OF, I HAVE A LOT OF ISSUES WITH THE CONTRACT AS IT'S PRESENTED.
UM, WOULD REALLY HAMPER OUR OPERATIONS.
I, I HAVE A QUESTION, PARDON MY IGNORANCE ON THIS, BUT SOME, SOME OF THE SMALLER CITIES, YOU KNOW, THERE'S SEVERAL IN PRECINCT FOUR, IF WE DO HAVE A, WE PICK UP AN ANIMAL IN THEIR LIMITS, DO WE HAVE AGREEMENTS OR DO WE SEND THEM AN INVOICE, OR HOW DOES THAT WORK? UM, IT DOESN'T HAPPEN VERY OFTEN.
I MEAN, A LOT OF THESE CITIES ARE REALLY SMALL.
UM, AND NO, THEY, WE HAVE TALKED TO A BUNCH OF THE CITIES, WELL, WE'VE TALKED TO ALL THE CITIES ABOUT IT, THAT AT SOME POINT THEY'RE EITHER GONNA HAVE TO CONTRACT WITH THE, WITH THE COUNTY, OR THEY HAVE TO CONTRACT WITH THE WEATHERFORD OR TO START THEIR OWN ANIMAL PATROL UNDER THEIR CODE ENFORCEMENT.
UH, THE CITY A WHILE BACK, UH, SAID THAT WE ONLY COULD BRING IN ANIMALS FROM THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS WITHIN THE COUNTY.
AND IF YOU'RE LOOKING AT LIKE PI VILLE BROCK OR THE AN NETTAS, YOU KNOW THAT THEY DON'T CONTRACT.
THEY'RE SAYING NO IF THEY'RE FROM A CITY THAT THEY'RE GONNA CHARGE THAT CITY.
LET'S JUST SAY IT WAS LIKE $350 PER ANIMAL TO BRING THAT IN.
WE MADE THE AGREEMENT THAT IF THOSE CITIES WOULD PAY THAT, YOU KNOW, THE BROCKS OR THE PIS, WE WOULD, WE WOULD HAUL 'EM FOR FREE.
SO I, TO DATE, I DON'T THINK WE'VE HAD MUCH OF THAT BECAUSE IT, IT'S A LARGE EXPENSE FOR SOME OF THESE SMALL CITIES TO BEAR.
UH, NOW OUR, THOSE ANIMALS IN THOSE CITIES
[02:20:01]
GETTING DUMPED OUT IN THE COUNTY AND THEN WE'RE GETTING CALLS, I DON'T KNOW, PROBABLY SO.BUT THAT, UH, IT'S JUST A THING.
AND I KNOW SOME OF THE CITIES, I KNOW DENNIS AND I THINK BROCK, THEY ENTERED INTO AGREEMENTS WITH THE CITY OF WEATHERFORD.
I DON'T KNOW IF THOSE HAVE BEEN UTILIZED OR NOT.
AND THAT WOULD BE WHAT YOU WERE REFERENCING OR WHEN THEY WERE PAID FOR THOSE SERVICES? WE WEREN'T, WE WOULDN'T GET ANY CREDIT OR BENEFIT FROM THAT.
YEAH, THERE'S, THERE'S, THERE'S A LOT OF ISSUES WITH THE, THE INTERLOCAL.
LIKE, UM, FOR INSTANCE, WE, WE UTILIZE, THAT'S WHERE WE HOUSE LIVESTOCK, YOU KNOW, STRAY, UH, SEIZURE ANIMALS, COWS, HORSES, DONKEY, SHEEP, WHATEVER.
WELL, UNDER THE, UNDER THE, THE NEW CONTRACT, THEY WOULD BE ABLE TO TELL US, HEY, YOU NEED TO GO FIND SOMEWHERE ELSE TO STICK YOUR, YOUR LIVESTOCK.
UM, THERE'S, THEY BASICALLY STRIP THE, THE COUNTY OF ALL THEIR, NOT ONLY THE RIGHTS, BUT THEIR ABILITY TO ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, CONTROL OR MITIGATE OR FACILITATE WHAT GOES ON DOWN THERE.
AND THEY EXPECT US TO, I THINK UNDER THE, THAT NEW CONTRACT EXPECTS US TO GO IN THERE AND REDO ALL THOSE PENS AND LOAFING SHEDS AND THINGS LIKE THAT AT OUR COST.
UM, SO THE COUNTY, WHATEVER, IF THE COUNTY DOES DECIDE TO RENEGOTIATE THAT CONTRACT, THEY NEED TO TAKE A DEEP LOOK AT EXACTLY WHAT IT SAYS AND WHAT KIND OF IMPACT IT'S GONNA HAVE ON THE CITIZENS AND THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
UH, GETTING BACK TO THIS ANIMAL CONTROL, UH, JUST REPLACED, WE HAVE A ONE YEAR OR A ONE VEHICLE REPLACEMENT, UM, POLICY WITH ANIMAL CONTROL VEHICLES.
WE HAVE TO PLACE ONE OF THE VEHICLES EVERY YEAR, UH, AND THEN DOG BOXES.
SO WE BOUGHT NEW DOG BOXES THIS YEAR.
UM, THEY'RE DESIGNED TO MAXIMIZE AIRFLOW AND REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF, UH, HEAT DISTRESS THE ANIMAL ACTUALLY SUFFERS DURING THE TRANSPORT.
UM, POLYETHYLENE, WHATEVER THAT REFLECTS HEAT.
WE, WE WE'RE GONNA PUT, WE WE'RE PUTTING, UM, SPECIAL FLOOR MATS IN THERE SO THE HEAT WON'T TRANSFER UP FROM THE, THE ACCUMULATED HEAT IN THE DOG BOX.
UM, AND THESE, THIS IS JUST ADDITIONAL DOG BOXES FOR US AND NON CAP, IT'S JUST THE STANDARD STUFF.
UM, TRANSFER CAGES, DOG TRAPS, UM, EQUIPMENT LEASHES.
UM, ONE OF THE THINGS, ONE OF THE ISSUES WE'RE HAVING NOW IS THE CITY'S COMPLAINING ABOUT WE'RE ALWAYS STEALING THEIR LEASHES, BUT I MEAN, WE DO TAKE LEASHES, BUT THE, THEY ALWAYS COME BACK WITH AN ANIMAL.
IT'S NOT LIKE WE HAVE A STASH OF LEASHES SOMEWHERE, BUT THEY END UP DISAPPEARING SOMEHOW.
SO, UM, SO ANYWAY, THAT'S, THAT'S PRETTY MUCH IT FOR ANIMAL CONTROL.
DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS? OKAY.
UH, SO 5 67, I PUT THIS IN FUND TEN FIVE SIXTY SEVEN INSTEAD OF FUND 73 5 67.
BECAUSE FUND 73 IS ALREADY, THEY ALREADY HAVE A DEPUTY BEING A COURTHOUSE SECURITY W BE PAID OUTTA THAT.
AND THAT, I DON'T THINK THAT FUND COULD SUSTAIN ADDITIONAL STAFFING.
UM, BUT THIS IS THE, UH, THE REQUEST FROM THE COURTHOUSE SECURITY COMMITTEE TO PLACE A, UM, METAL DETECTOR, A SECURITY STATION AT THE CCL ONE DOWN AT THE ANNEX.
AND I'LL GO OVER THAT WHENEVER I GO OVER TO PERSONNEL REQUEST, IF THAT'S OKAY.
BUT IN THE EVENT THAT THAT'S APPROVED, THEN IT'LL HAVE TO BE SOME OFFICE FURNITURE METAL DETECTOR AND A WALKTHROUGH METAL DETECTOR WOULD BE THE, WE, WE HAVE THAT ALREADY, DON'T WE? SO I HAVE, YES.
WELL, I, AND I CAN BUY THAT STUFF OUT OF FUND 73.
IT WON'T COST THE COUNTY ANY MONEY, BUT I WANTED TO PUT IT IN HERE SO YOU UNDERSTAND WHAT THE, THE ASSOCIATED AND ADDITIONAL COST WOULD BE.
UM, I DO HAVE ONE SPARE WALKTHROUGH, BUT IT'S A SPARE.
I CAN'T REALLY AFFORD TO, IF ONE OF MY METAL DETECTORS GOES DOWN.
I CAN'T AFFORD TO NOT HAVE ONE IN THE BACKUP.
SO TO UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU JUST SAID WHEN YOU SAID TO BUILD IN YOU STAY START OR OR SECURITY STATION, THAT WOULD BE TO MOVE THAT.
'CAUSE THE POINT OF CONTENTION WITH THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM IN THE NEX IS THAT, TO MOVE THAT DOWN WHERE THAT OFFICER IS NOW, CORRECT? NO, SIR.
CAN YOU CLARIFY THAT THEN? YES.
SO WE DON'T, WE DON'T FEEL IT'S, WE DON'T FEEL THAT WE SHOULD OR WILL MOVE THE CURRENT SECURITY STATION FROM WHERE IT'S AT.
UM, SO YOU HAVE BASICALLY KIND OF TWO ISSUES GOING ON DOWN THERE AT THE ANNEX.
YOU HAVE THE OVERALL GENERAL SECURITY OF THE BUILDING.
SO YOU HAVE THE, THE, UH, COURT GENERALLY SPEAKING, WE HAVE TWO COURTHOUSE SECURITY DEPUTIES THERE.
AND THE WAY, WITHOUT GETTING TOO FAR INTO SECURITY MATTERS, UH,
[02:25:01]
THAT BUILDING REQUIRES AT LEAST TWO, UM, ONE TO MONITOR THE, UH, CAMERAS AND THEN ONE TO RESPOND TO INCIDENTS OR WALK AROUND AND DO WHATEVER IT NEEDS TO DO.UM, WE WOULD HAVE TO ACTUALLY PLACE AN ADDITIONAL SECURITY STATION FURTHER DOWN THE HALL THAT WOULD BASICALLY BLOCK OFF ALL OF CCL ONE, INCLUDING THE, THE, THE JUDGE'S OFFICE, THE COURTROOM, AND THOSE, UH, THE COUNTY CLERK'S TWO OFFICES DOWN THAT HALLWAY.
UM, SO THAT'S WHERE WE, WE PLACED THAT SECOND SECONDARY STATION.
AND THEN, UH, 5 68, THAT'S EXTRADITION.
UH, SOME OF THE COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH EXTRADITION WOULD BE ONE ADDITIONAL ANKLE SHOCK RESTRAINT.
THEY USE THOSE IN WHATEVER HAVE JURY TRIALS OR TRIALS AT COURT.
IF, UH, THE SUSPECT OR THE SUBJECT THE DEFENDANT IS, UM, COULD BE DEEMED A RISK OR IS DISRUPTIVE OR SOMETHING, THEY'LL PUT THOSE ON THEM TO CONTROL 'EM IN THE EVENT OF A, AN OUTBREAK.
AND THEN, UH, HANDHELD DOCKING STATIONS WITH THE VEHICLES.
I, UM, SO THE WAY THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE OPERATES IS THE ONLY MOBILE RADIOS THAT GO INTO A VEHICLE ARE IN PATROL CARS.
UM, EVERYBODY ELSE HAS A HANDHELD, SO YOU HAVE A PATROL, DEPUTY PATROL, SERGEANT PATROL, CORPORAL PATROL, LIEUTENANT PATROL CAPTAINS, UM, THEY ALL HAVE A HANDHELD AND THEY ALL HAVE IN-CAR RADIOS.
UM, EVERYBODY ELSE JUST HAS A HANDHELD.
AND SO WHAT WE'VE DONE IS IN, IN ORDER TO MAXIMIZE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE HANDHELD RADIO, WE BOUGHT DOCKING STATIONS FOR THOSE.
AND WHEN YOU PUT THE HANDHELD IN THE DOCKING STATION, IT BOOSTS THE, THE TRANSMIT AND RECEIVING, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY OF THE, OF THE HANDHELD.
UM, IT MAKES IT LESS EFFICIENT AS FAR AS BEING ABLE TO SEE THE RADIO AND FLIP THE CHANNELS OR WHATEVER, BUT THOSE GUYS ARE NOT RESPONDING TO EMERGENCY CALLS.
THEY HAVE TIME TO POP IT OUT AND LOOK AT THE, LOOK AT THE RADIO CAR.
YEAH, THE DOCKET STATIONS ARE MOUNTED INSIDE THE VEHICLES, UM, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE IN THIS INSTANCE.
SO ALL THE TRANSPORT, CID, UH, BASICALLY IT'S JUST TRANSPORT, EXTRADITION AND CID THAT HAD THESE DOCKING STATIONS.
AND THEN REPLACING THREE, UH, THREE TAHOES, TRANSPORT, EXTRADITION, TAHOES, THOSE GUYS DRIVE A LOT OF MILES.
WE LIKE TO, WE HAVE TO REPLACE 'EM ABOUT EVERY TWO YEARS, THREE YEARS, JUST DEPENDING ON THE MILEAGE.
UM, AND THEN THE OUTFITTING, OUTFITTING IS PRETTY MINIMAL ON THAT.
IT'S PRETTY MUCH JUST A CAGE AND A CONSOLE, UM, GUN LOCK, THINGS LIKE THAT.
THAT'S PRETTY MUCH IT FOR CAP, NON CAP AND OPERATING EXPENSES.
YOU GUYS WANNA TAKE A BREAK BEFORE I MOVE INTO PERSONNEL? KEEP GOING.
SO STARTING OFF AT 5 45, UM, FONDA O'CONNOR IS OUR CURRENT DISPATCH SUPERVISOR.
SHE'S GONNA BE RETIRING HERE IN THE NEXT COUPLE WEEKS, 38 YEARS OF SERVICE.
UM, FOR A LONG TIME WE WANTED TO MIGRATE THAT POSITION UP TO A SWORN POSITION, SOMEBODY THAT, UM, NOT TO TAKE ANYTHING AWAY FROM ANYBODY BUT SERGEANTS, LIEUTENANTS, AND CAPTAINS TO HAVE, UH, A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF MANAGING DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT.
UM, THAT INCLUDES DISPATCHING AND, UH, MANAGING PERSONNEL, PERSONNEL ISSUES THAT ARE ASSOCIATED SPECIFICALLY WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT.
WE, WE WOULD, WE WANT TO, UM, TRANSITION THIS POSITION FOND AS A POSITION FROM A CIVILIAN DISPATCH SUPERVISOR UP TO A SWORN SERGEANT'S POSITION.
AND THEN WE WOULD, UH, BRING ONE OF OUR SERGEANTS OVER TO ACTUALLY TAKE OVER THE DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS AND MANAGEMENT OF DISPATCH.
YOU GUYS WANT NUMBERS ON WHAT THAT WOULD COST, PLEASE? YOU GUYS GOT THE BOOKS.
SO THE CURRENT RATE OF PAY FOR THE CURRENT RATE IS, UH, $73,557.
[02:30:05]
UM, THAT WOULD BE INCREASED UNDER THE CURRENT SALARY STRUCTURE TO $99,000 FOR AN ANNUAL INCREASE OF $25,443.YOU NEED ME TO GO INTO MORE JUSTIFICATION, BUT I THINK THE, THE SALARY OR THE, THE COMMITTEE PROBABLY HAS ALL THE JUSTIFICATION AND THEY CAN MAKE THAT DECISION.
ALSO, WE'RE REQUESTING, UM, TWO ADDITIONAL DISPATCH POSITIONS.
YOU KNOW, I'VE COME TO YOU A FEW MONTHS AGO AND TOLD YOU ABOUT THE PROBLEMS WE'RE HAVING TO DISPATCH.
WE HAVE OVER, I DUNNO, 600, 650 HOURS OF PAID OVERTIME THROUGH DISPATCH NOW, UM, WE ARE SHORT THREE DISPATCHERS RIGHT NOW AND WE'RE ABOUT TO PROBABLY LOSE ANOTHER TWO.
ONE THAT'S GONNA GO TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UH, AS A DISPATCHER AND ONE'S GONNA GO TO FORT WORTH PD AS A, AS A, UH, RECRUIT TRAINEE.
UM, WE CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE WITH STAFFING IN DISPATCH.
I KNOW ADDING MORE POSITIONS, IT KIND OF SEEMS COUNTERINTUITIVE, BUT THAT DOESN'T MITIGATE THE FACT THAT WE DON'T NEED MORE STAFF IN THERE JUST TO BRING UP OUR MINIMUM STANDARDS OR MINIMUM STAFFING.
UH, WE'RE CONSTANTLY, EVEN PRIOR TO THESE SHORTAGES, WE WERE SHORT OF PEOPLE, WE WERE ALWAYS HAVING PEOPLE MOVE THEIR SCHEDULES BACK AND FORTH.
IT'S SOMETIMES TWO OR THREE TIMES A DAY, WE HAVE TO ADJUST THAT SCHEDULE TO TRY TO MAINTAIN MINIMUM STAFFING.
UM, DISPATCH, WE DISPATCHED FOR SEVERAL DIFFERENT LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES IN THE COUNTY.
UM, HUDSON OAKS, WILLOW PARK, RENO, UH, ALITO, ISD POLICE DEPARTMENT AS SOON ALITO, ISD POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UM, THEY DO MITIGATE SOME OF THE COST OF DISPATCH.
ONCE, UM, ALITO COMES ONLINE, WE EXPECT THE REVENUE TO BE ABOUT $448,000 IS WHAT THE PAY US.
SO THAT DOES MITIGATE A LOT OF THE DISPATCH COST.
UM, WHAT DOES THAT COMPOSE OF, UH, DISPATCH AND AT LEAST A PHASING OF THE PATROL? NO, THAT'S SEPARATE AND APART FROM PATROL.
SO WE'RE STILL TALKING TO, TO ALITO ABOUT THAT AND HOW THAT'S ALL GONNA PLAY OUT.
THEY, UH, THEY STILL DON'T KNOW EXACTLY HOW THEY'RE GONNA FUND THEIR NEW POLICE DEPARTMENT.
LAST I HEARD ABOUT WHERE THAT MONEY'S GONNA COME FROM AND HOW MUCH THEY'LL, THEY'LL ACTUALLY BE ABLE TO COVER.
UM, SO THEY WERE WANTING TO PHASE IN THEIR POLICE DEPARTMENT IN STAGES AND AFTER SEVERAL MEETINGS WITH THE, WITH THE, THEIR STAFF, UM, WE MAY HAVE WORKED OUT A PRETTY DECENT PLAN TO, TO HELP THEM PHASE IT IN, BUT NOT SO THAT IT OVERBURDENS THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE OR WE HAVE TO ACTUALLY DO THE JOB THAT THEY, THEY WANNA DO FOR THEM.
SO IT'S CHANGED SINCE THAT MEETING THAT I, I ATTENDED WITH YOU GUYS.
UM, SO AT AND ADDING THE, THE TWO DISPATCH POSITIONS KIND OF GOES HAND IN HAND WITH MY NEXT REQUEST OF, UH, WITH PATROL SERGEANTS.
SO MOVING OVER TO 5 63, OUR REQUEST IS FOR FOUR NEW SERGEANT POSITIONS IN PATROL.
UM, AND EACH ONE OF THOSE SERGEANTS IS MANAGING BETWEEN NINE AND 10 DEPUTIES, A COUPLE CORPORALS, AND THEN, YOU KNOW, SIX OR SEVEN OR EIGHT DEPUTIES DEPENDING ON STAFFING LEVELS.
UM, THAT'S, THAT'S JUST TOO MANY COPS TO HANDLE, HONESTLY.
I MEAN, IF YOU HAVE A, A DEPUTY ON, ON A CALL UP NORTH AND, UH, THE SERGEANT'S UP THERE HELPING HIM OUT AND YOU HAVE A DEPUTY DOWN SOUTH THAT HAS A MAJOR CALL AND NEEDS ASSISTANCE AND THERE'S NOT A CORPORAL ON, AND THE SERGEANT HAS TO FIGURE OUT, OKAY, IT'S GONNA TAKE ME 30 MINUTES TO GET DOWN TO THIS OTHER DEPUTY, YOU KNOW, WHAT CAN I DO ON THE PHONE? WHAT CAN I HELP HIM WITH? UM, PART OF THE PROBLEM WE HAVE IS THAT OUR STAFF, OUR PATROL STAFF IS SO YOUNG.
UM, YOU KNOW, YOU TALKING ABOUT THE AVERAGE, YOU KNOW, 60% OF OUR, I THINK IT WAS 60% OF OUR CURRENT STAFF HAS, YOU KNOW, THREE OR LESS YEARS ON THE STREET.
AND SO THERE'S A LOT OF SITUATIONS THAT THEY HAVE NOT RUN ACROSS.
THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO HANDLE QUESTIONS.
THEY HAVE A SERGEANT'S POSITION IS REALLY TO MANAGE, TO LEAD THOSE GUYS, TO GIVE 'EM INSTRUCTIONS, TO KEEP 'EM OUT OF TROUBLE, TO HELP 'EM MAKE THE RIGHT PROPER DECISION AT THE RIGHT AND PROPER TIME.
UM, AND THEM TRY TO MANAGE AND HANDLE, YOU KNOW, THAT AMOUNT OF PERSONNEL IS JUST, IT'S JUST NOT A GOOD SITUATION.
SO WHAT WE WANNA DO IS, AND IT'LL ACCOMPLISH SEVERAL THINGS FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
[02:35:02]
WE WE'RE GONNA BREAK THE COUNTY.WE'D LIKE TO BREAK THE COUNTY OUT IN TWO SERGEANT DISTRICTS.
SO BASICALLY YOU'D HAVE A SERGEANT AND SOME DEPUTIES UP NORTH, AND A SERGEANT AND SOME DEPUTIES DOWN SOUTH.
UM, WHAT THAT'LL DO IS THAT'LL REDUCE THE SPAN OF CONTROL.
THAT MEANS THAT THE SERGEANT WILL HAVE A SHORTER AMOUNT OF, UH, GROUND TO COVER TO GET TO ONE OF HIS DEPUTIES WHEN HE NEEDS IT, BE ABLE TO ACTUALLY BE THERE WITH HIS DEPUTIES AS BACKUP TO MONITOR TO TRAIN.
UM, AND IT WILL REDUCE RESPONSE TIMES.
SO WE HAVE THOSE TWO SERGEANT DISTRICTS, YOU WON'T ACTUALLY HAVE MORE DEPUTIES IN THE COUNTY RIGHT NOW, BUT WITH ONE GEOGRAPHICAL RESPONSE AREA, THEY WON'T HAVE TO BE TRAVELING 30, 40, 50 MILES OR WHATEVER, UH, TO TRY TO ACTUALLY GET TO A CALL OR TO AS A BACKUP.
SO THESE, THESE FOUR NEW SERGEANTS, ARE THEY ALREADY SERGEANTS OR ARE YOU GOING TO HAVE TO MAKE FOUR NEW NO, WE'LL HAVE TO PROMOTE UP.
YOU GOT ENOUGH GUYS WITH ENOUGH EXPERIENCE.
SO I'M ASSUMING I, I DID A, A STUDY OF OUR PERSONNEL AND I, YOU GUYS SHOULD HAVE A COPY OF THAT.
UM, WELL, LET ME GO OVER THAT REAL QUICK SOMEWHERE.
THE WORK CHART? YEAH, I THINK IT'S, I JUST READ IT LIKE RIGHT BEFORE I CAME.
IT'S UNDER A YELLOW PAD ADDITIONAL.
WHILE HE'S LOOKING FOR THAT, RIGHT NOW, EACH SERGEANT HAS TWO CORPORALS AND PLUS LIKE SIX OR SEVEN DEPUTIES.
UM, THE NEW SERGEANTS WON'T HAVE TWO CORPORALS.
THEY'LL HAVE ONE CORPORAL, SO FOUR SERGEANTS NOW EIGHT CORPORALS, AND YOU END UP WITH EIGHT SERGEANTS AND STILL EIGHT CORPORALS.
SO YES, WE WILL HAVE ENOUGH QUALIFIED PERSONNEL TO MOVE THOSE CORPORALS UP TO SERGEANT.
SO RIGHT NOW WE HAVE, UH, 29 DEPUTIES, PATROL DEPUTIES THAT ARE EMPLOYED BY THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE FOR TWO YEARS OR LESS.
29 PATROL DEPUTIES TWO YEARS OR LESS.
THAT DOESN'T, THAT DOESN'T MEAN ALL OF 'EM HAVE LESS THAN TWO YEARS.
SOME OF 'EM HAVE COME FROM OTHER AGENCIES.
UM, BUT THAT'S A SUBSTANTIAL PART OF OUR PATROL DIVISION.
UH, ARE YOU STILL HAVING TROUBLE WITH TURNOVER WITH THE, IT'S NOT AS BAD AS IT USED USED TO BE.
EXPERIENCE DEPUTY MOST, WELL, MOST OF WHAT WE'RE HIRING NOW ARE COMING RIGHT OUTTA THE ACADEMY.
UM, THAT'S ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE MAIN ISSUES.
ONE OF THE BIG ISSUES WE HAVE IS, WHICH WE CAN TALK ABOUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT PAY AND BENEFITS, UM, BUT YEAH, WE'RE NOT ATTRACTING A LOT OF, UH, EXPERIENCED PERSONNEL, MOTIVATED, EXPERIENCED PERSONNEL.
AND A LOT OF THAT REVOLVES AROUND OUR PAID PAY DIFFERENTIALS THAT WE PAY COMPARED TO OTHER AGENCIES.
UM, OUR CURRENT PATROL CORPORAL STAFF HAVE BETWEEN TWO AND 19 YEARS OF SERVICE.
AND SO WE HAVE CONFIDENCE THAT 'CAUSE NOT ONLY CORPORALS, BUT ALSO INVESTIGATORS FROM CID AND SEU CAN APPLY TO BE, UM, ON OUR CURRENT RULES CAN APPLY FOR THAT SERGEANT'S POSITION.
AND THEN OUR SERGEANTS, OUR CURRENT PATROL SERGEANT STAFF HAS BETWEEN SIX AND 19 YEARS OF SERVICE.
AND THEN WE TALK ABOUT LIEUTENANTS.
THEY'RE BETWEEN 18 AND 25 YEARS.
THE CAPTAINS ARE 25 AND ABOVE, AND OF COURSE I'M OVER 32 NOW, SO, SO AS YOU TALK ABOUT, UM, THE EXPERIENCE WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, YOU TALK ABOUT, UM, THE KNOWLEDGE, THE TRAINING, AND THE ABILITY TO ACTUALLY DO THE JOB.
UM, WE EXPECT THE CORPORALS TO HAVE A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE WITH THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE SERGEANTS, LIEUTENANTS AND ABOVE.
SO AS YOU, YOU MOVE UP THAT HIERARCHY, WE EXPECT MORE AND MORE OUT OF, RIGHT.
UH, THE, SO ANOTHER FACTOR FOR BREAKING THE COUNTY OUT INTO TWO SERGEANT DISTRICTS IS A LOT OF TIMES WE DON'T HAVE A SERGEANT ON DUTY.
THE CORPORAL'S RUNNING THE SHIFT, WHICH IS NOT A GOOD, IT'S NOT A GOOD SITUATION.
WE DON'T CONSIDER CORPORALS, THEY'RE NOT FIRST LINE SUPERVISORS.
THEY DON'T HAVE THE AUTHORITY OR THE ABILITY UNDER CURRENT SHERIFF'S OFFICE POLICY TO DISCIPLINE.
I MEAN, IF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS, THEY CAN SEND SOMEBODY HOME, BUT THEY CAN'T, THEY CAN'T DISCIPLINE ONE OF THE EMPLOYEES.
UM, WITH THIS NEW, UH, SITUATION GOING INTO SERGEANT DISTRICTS, WE WOULD ALWAYS HAVE, AND WE WOULD MANDATE THAT THERE'S ALWAYS A SERGEANT ON DUTY AT ALL TIMES.
SO ONE SERGEANT IN SOUTH DISTRICT MAY BE OFF, BUT THAT NORTH SERGEANT'S GONNA BE WORKING.
[02:40:01]
I CAN'T THINK OF ANY OTHER, I CAN'T THINK, I MEAN, WE, WE TALKED ABOUT THE JUSTIFICATION AND WE CAN GO OVER THAT AGAIN WITH THE, WITH THE COMMITTEE, BUT THAT'S KINDA JUST KIND OF HIGH LEVEL OVERVIEW.NOW, WHAT THAT WOULD, WHAT THAT WOULD DICTATE IS PART OF THE REMODELING PRO, UH, PROGRESS DOWN THERE AT THE DISPATCH CENTER IS OUR ABILITY TO, UM, ADD ADDITIONAL CAPABILITY DOWN THERE.
SO WE WOULD ACTUALLY HAVE TO BREAK OUT A COUPLE DIFFERENT CHANNELS.
WE'D HAVE A NORTH DISPATCH CHANNEL IN SOUTH DISPATCH CHANNEL.
SO WE WOULD, EVERYBODY, ALL THE CALLS UP NORTH WOULD BE DISPATCHED ON ONE CHANNEL.
THE CALLS DOWN SOUTH WOULD BE DISPATCHED ON A SEPARATE CHANNEL AS THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE GROWS AND, AND WE HAVE, UM, ADDITIONAL STAFF, ADDITIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES, ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.
THIS IS EXPECTED STEP FOR AN AGENCY OF OUR SIZE.
IT'S PAINFUL TO MAKE THAT BIG LEAP RIGHT NOW, BUT GOING FORWARD, WE WON'T EXPECT TO HAVE TO BREAK OUT ANOTHER SERGEANT DISTRICT OR ADD MORE SUPERVISORY STAFF AT THE SERGEANT LEVEL FOR A LONG, LONG TIME.
UM, IF YOU LOOK AT SOME OF THE LARGER AGENCIES, THEY HAVE, YOU KNOW, TWO SERGEANTS OR TWO, THREE SERGEANT DISTRICTS, UM, OF COURSE YOU CAN'T REALLY COMPARE WITH FORT WORTH, BUT YOU KNOW, THEY HAVE A BUNCH.
UM, BUT THAT'S WHAT YOU GET WHENEVER YOU, UM, AS YOU GROW, YOU HAVE TO BREAK, YOU HAVE TO MINIMIZE THAT OVERALL SPAN OF CONTROL.
YOU HAVE TO ADD THOSE ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.
AND YOU KEEP IN MIND ALSO THE DENSITY OF THE PEOPLE.
60% OF THE GROWTH IS IN THE ETJ AND THIS FACTORS INTO A LESS RESPONSE TIME, OBVIOUSLY, AS YOU KNOW AS WELL.
UM, YEAH, PART OF THE, UH, IN THE PAST THREE BUDGETS, COMMISSIONER'S COURT HAS AWARDED US OR APPROVED US FOR 17 ADDITIONAL SWORN POSITIONS.
UM, THAT HAS HELPED US BASICALLY KIND OF MAINTAIN, ACTUALLY ALMOST NOT MAINTAIN, BUT PRETTY MUCH OUR POLICE TO CITIZEN RATIO.
NOW, A LOT OF THOSE POSITIONS ARE NOT ON PATROL, YOU KNOW, SOME OF 'EM IN CID, TRANSPORT, COURTHOUSE SECURITY, THINGS LIKE THAT.
BUT THAT ALL, Y'ALL WRAP THAT UP WHENEVER YOU TALK ABOUT, UM, UH, POLICE TO CITIZEN RATIO, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO CONTINUE IF KINDA CONTINUES TO GROW WITH THE RATE IS GOING IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THAT POLICE TO CITIZEN RATIO, WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO ADD, YOU KNOW, FIVE TO SIX SWORN POSITIONS TO THE BUDGET EVERY YEAR.
SO WE, UH, WE PUT IN ORIGINALLY GOING OVER TO ANIMAL CONTROL REAL QUICK.
WE ORIGINALLY PUT IN FOR ANOTHER ANIMAL CONTROL POSITION BECAUSE WE ARE SO BUSY IN ANIMAL CONTROL, WE GOT A LOT GOING ON.
UM, CALL TIMES ARE LONG, YOU KNOW, SOMEBODY CALLS IN IT, IT MAY TAKE US 20 MINUTES, IT MAY TAKE US TWO HOURS TO GET TO A CALL.
UM, TWO THINGS HAVE KIND OF HAPPENED THAT WE DECIDED TO PULL THAT REQUEST OUT, WITHDRAW THAT REQUEST FOR AN ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER.
NUMBER ONE IS THE NEW SHELTER CONTRACT, IF IT'S APPROVED, THE ADDITIONAL INCREASED COST OF THAT.
AND THEN UNDER A NEW BILL, UH, HOUSE BILL 33 THAT JUST PASSED, UM, AND SIGNED BY THE GOVERNOR.
THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS NOW REQUIRED TO, UM, EITHER APPOINT OR HIRE, UM, A PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER.
AND THE PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER HAS CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS AS FAR AS TRAINING GOES, AS FAR AS THEIR DUTIES GO AND CERTIFICATIONS.
AND SO WE TALKED A LOT ABOUT IT.
UM, WE'RE ASKING FOR, I THINK THE COMMITTEE HAS THIS INFORMATION, BUT I'LL HAND THIS OUT HERE IN JUST A MINUTE.
UH, REQUEST FOR PIO POSITION, UH, THE LEGISLATION KNOWN AS THAT YOU ALL STRONG ACT INTRODUCES AMENDMENTS TO SETTLE, UH, TO MULTIPLE SECTIONS OF LAW, INCLUDING EDUCATION CODE, OCCUPATION CODE, LOCAL GOVERNMENT CODE, ET CETERA.
IN ADDITION, ACT, THIS ACT ESTABLISHES SPECIFIC TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.
UM, WHEN YOU GET RIGHT DOWN TO IT AT PRESENT, THE, THE WORKLOAD FOR PIO DOESN'T NECESSITATE ADDITIONAL STAFF.
I MEAN, IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT WE'RE ASKING FOR AND, YOU KNOW, THAT'S ALL THEY'RE GONNA BE DOING BECAUSE THERE'S JUST NOT THAT MUCH WORK DOWN THERE.
THE, THE PROBLEM IS, IS THERE'S WORK DOWN THERE FOR THE PIO THAT'S NOT GETTING DONE AT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
THINGS THAT WE SHOULD BE DOING THAT WE JUST DON'T HAVE TIME TO DO.
UM, SO THE SHERIFF TALKING TO THE SHERIFF, WHAT WE DETERMINED IS WE HAVE A, A VERY REAL NEED IN OUR RECORDS DIVISION, ESPECIALLY WITH OPEN RECORDS REQUEST.
WE WERE GONNA ASK FOR AN ADDITIONAL CLERICAL STAFF IN THE NEXT BUDGET.
BUT WITH THIS COMING UP, WE'VE ASKED FOR, UH, THIS PPIO POSITION AND IN ADDITION TO THE PIO RESPONSIBILITIES THAT THIS PERSON WILL HAVE, UH, THEY'LL ALSO MANAGE OUR RECORDS DIVISION.
THEY'LL GO IN THERE AND HELP THEM PROCESS THOSE, THOSE REQUESTS, UH, AND MANAGE THEIR, THEIR OPERATIONS AND STREAMLINE THEIR OPERATIONS.
[02:45:05]
JUST SOME NUMBERS, UH, REAL QUICK.IN 20 23, 2 EMPLOYEES FROM THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE MANAGED A TOTAL OF 3,126 OPEN RECORDS REQUEST.
AND 24, THAT NUMBER INCREASED TO 3,891 REQUESTS, THEN HANDLED BY THREE, UH, EMPLOYEES.
CURRENTLY WE'VE PROCESSED, UH, 2,236 AND ON TRACK TO, UH, PROCESS A TOTAL OF 4,460.
AND WE DON'T HAVE THE RESOURCES, WE DON'T HAVE THE PERSONNEL TO PROCESS THAT MANY BASED ON THE THREE PEOPLE THAT ARE IN THERE.
SO WE'RE EITHER GONNA HAVE TO, AND WE HAVE, UM, REALLOCATE SOME SHERIFF'S OFFICE STAFF TO HAM START HANDLING THESE.
WE NEED TO ADD STAFF, AND WE'D RATHER ADD STAFF AND INCLUDE, COMBINE SOME OF THESE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.
UH, THIS WOULD ALSO TAKE, UM, CURRENTLY THE RECORDS MANAGEMENT FALLS UNDER ONE OF THE CID SERGEANTS WHO HAS TO ALLOCATE A LOT OF HIS TIME AWAY FROM HIS, WHAT WE WANT HIM DOING, WHICH IS MANAGING HIS CID INVESTIGATORS.
AND HE HAS TO HANDLE ALL THOSE RECORD PROBLEMS. WHO'D THOSE COME FROM? ATTORNEYS? UH, SOME OR IS IT JUST A VARIETY? IT'S, IT'S JUST IN GENERAL.
A LOT OF 'EM COME FROM, UH, SOME OF 'EM COME FROM ATTORNEYS.
THE ATTORNEYS CAN'T GET AS MUCH AS THEY LIKE TO THINK THEY CAN.
A LOT OF THE, THE STUFF THAT THEY GET IS ACTUALLY FROM THE PROSECUTOR'S OFFICES.
A LOT OF THIS ARE JUST FROM CITIZEN REQUEST.
UM, SOME OF 'EM ARE FROM NATIONAL, YOU KNOW, AGENCIES, ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE LOOKING TO CENTRALIZE OR DO A EXPOSE OR WHATEVER.
AND THEN, UM, A LOT OF 'EM ARE FROM OTHER GOVERNMENT AGENCIES.
SO WE, WE COMBINE ALL THOSE INTO ONE OPEN RECORDS.
UM, LIKE I SAID BEFORE, THE BIGGEST PROBLEM WE HAVE IN OPEN RECORDS RIGHT NOW IS THE NUMBER OF BODY CAM AND IN-CAR VIDEO REQUESTS, OPEN RECORDS REQUESTS WE GET, AND THE AMOUNT OF TIME IT TAKES TO, UH, ACTUALLY PROCESS THOSE.
I MEAN, WE'RE, WE GOT 10 DAYS TO RESPOND AND WE'RE PRETTY MUCH ALWAYS ON.
WITHIN THAT 10 DAY TIME LIMIT ON A LOT OF THAT STUFF.
UM, SO YOU'RE DOING ALMOST 400, LITTLE LESS THAN 400 AVERAGE A MONTH THIS YEAR? YEAH, THEY, THEY CONTINUE TO INCREASE THIS SKYROCKETING.
SO NOW, NOW WE STARTED GETTING 'EM FROM THE, FROM RICH.
RICH HAS STARTED GETTING A BUNCH OF THEM ON THE COUNTY WEBSITE THAT HE'S FORWARDING OVER TO US.
THIS, THIS NEW POSITION THAT WE'RE REQUESTING, UH, YOU KNOW, WOULD NEED ADDITIONAL, WE WOULD NEED ANY EQUIPMENT FOR IT.
UM, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, DON'T NEED CAR AND ALL THAT OTHER STUFF.
WE'LL, WE'LL, WE'LL FIGURE THAT OUT.
BUT THIS WOULD HELP US REALLOCATE AND FOCUS, UM, A CERTAIN SWORN POSITION INTO THAT POSITION, UH, OR PERSONNEL TO MANAGE RECORDS TO ACTUALLY GO IN THERE, BE IN THERE DAY TO DAY, SEE WHAT'S GOING ON, HELP THE GIRLS, UH, THE WOMEN, UH, PROCESS THOSE REQUESTS, UH, SEE IF THEY CAN MITIGATE IT.
IS THERE, YOU KNOW, SOME SOFTWARE THAT WE CAN PURCHASE THAT WILL HELP SPEED UP SOME OF THIS STUFF.
UM, IT IS SUBSTANTIAL, THE WORKLOAD IN THERE.
I'M GONNA HAND THIS OUT AND I'LL TALK ABOUT THE LAST ONE REAL QUICK.
SO THAT LAST ONE I HANDED OUT AND SHOWS YOU, UH, OUR CURRENT SETUP WITH 38 DEPUTIES, EIGHT CORPORALS, AND FOUR SERGEANTS.
IF WE WENT TO THE, IF WE WENT AHEAD AND DID THE, THE TWO DISTRICT SOLUTION, WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE WITH THE CURRENT STAFF AND THEN WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE WITH THESE, UH, THESE REQUESTS FOR FOUR ADDITIONAL SERGEANTS.
I'LL POINT OUT THAT ONCE AGAIN, UM, WE CAN'T REALLY RUN A SHIFT WITH THE CORPORAL CONTINUALLY BECAUSE THEY CAN'T DO LEGALLY THEY CAN'T DO THE SAME WORK FOR LESS PAY.
IF YOU'RE GONNA, IF THEY'RE GONNA DO SERGEANT WORK, THEY HAVE TO BE SERGEANTS, GET PAID AS SERGEANTS.
UM, CORPORALS ALSO DON'T HAVE THE, UH, AUTHORITY TO DISCIPLINE OR DO A LOT OF THINGS THAT THE SERGEANTS DO.
[02:50:01]
OUR LAST, UH, PERSONNEL REQUEST COMES FROM, UM, COURTHOUSE, UH, SECURITY COMMITTEE.WE PUT IT IN FOR IT LAST YEAR, AND WE, WE, WE APPLIED FOR IT AGAIN THIS YEAR.
UM, AND THAT'S THE, UH, ADDITIONAL SECURITY DOWN AT THE ANNEX.
THIS IS BASED ON RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE COURTHOUSE SECURITY COMMITTEE.
CCL ONE IS CURRENTLY THE ONLY COUNTY LEVEL COURT, EXCLUDING JP COURTS THAT DOES NOT HAVE A DEDICATED SECURITY CHECKPOINT OR STAFF ASSIGNED TO OPERATE A METAL DETECTOR.
AS A RESULT, ALL INDIVIDUALS ENTERING CCL ONE DO SO WITHOUT BEING SCREENED, POSING A SIGNIFICANT RISK.
THIS LACK OF SCREENING MEANS THAT KNIVES, FIREARMS, AND OTHER WEAPONS COULD BE BROUGHT INTO THE COURTROOM UNNOTICED AT ANY TIME.
GIVEN THE EMOTIONAL AND OFTEN VOLATILE NATURE OF MANY CC ONE CASES.
THIS PRESENTS A CREDIBLE AND ONGOING THREAT TO COURT PERSONNEL, OTHER COUNTY EMPLOYEES AND THE PUBLIC.
UM, BASED ON WHAT WE BELIEVE WOULD ACTUALLY, WHAT WOULD BE REQUIRED TO, TO DO THIS IS WOULD BE TWO, TWO DEPUTIES, TWO COURTHOUSE, TWO ADDITIONAL COURTHOUSE SECURITY DEPUTIES.
UM, ONE DEPUTY WOULD STAFF THE STATION ON NON COURT DAYS ALLOWING FOR FLEXIBLE REASSIGNMENT TO OTHER BUILDINGS COVERAGE.
BOTH DEPUTIES WOULD BE ASSIGNED TO THE STATION DURING ACTIVE COURT SESSIONS, WHICH IS KINDA WHAT YOU SEE AT THE, AT THE DISTRICT COURT'S BUILDING.
UM, IT, IF YOU'RE GONNA BE RUNNING COURT, IT'S A LITTLE DIFFERENT HERE AT THE MAIN COURTHOUSE.
PEOPLE JUST HAVE TO WAIT, YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES THEY'RE WAITING OUT IN THE COLD AND THE RAIN AS THEY GO THROUGH THE METAL DETECTOR STUFF.
IN THE DISTRICT COURT, YOU'VE GOT TWO COURT BUILDINGS DOWN THERE AND YOU'VE GOT THE, THE CLERK'S OFFICE.
AND SO WE STAFF WITH TWO OR THREE AT TIMES, YOU'RE GONNA NEED THE SAME THING DOWN THERE DUE TO CURRENT STAFFING CONSTRAINTS, IT'S NOT POSSIBLE TO REDESIGN EXISTING COURTHOUSE SECURITY PERSONNEL OF THIS STATION COURTHOUSE SECURITY VISION HAS HISTORICALLY BEEN UNDER-RESOURCED AND OPERATES WITH MINIMAL STAFFING, UH, MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO MEET EVEN BASELINE SECURITY OBLIGATIONS, ROUTINELY PULLING DEPUTIES FROM OTHER ASSIGNMENTS TO FILL GAPS.
WE DO, AND YOU GUYS HAVE PROBABLY SEEN THEM A LOT OF TIMES WE DO HAVE TO PULL OUR EXTRADITION PERSONNEL TO FILL THOSE GAPS.
YOU'LL SEE THEM WE'RE WEARING BLACK AND KHAKI OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, WE JUST ALWAYS DON'T, MINIMUM STAFFING IS OUR CURRENT STAFFING LEVEL.
SO IF SOMEBODY'S OFF VACATION, SICK DOCTOR'S APPOINTMENT, WHATEVER THAT GOES UNFILLED.
UM, SO THE ONLY THING THAT THEY WOULD NEED WOULD BE THEIR, OBVIOUSLY THEIR EQUIPMENT THAT THEY WEAR, VEST, HANDHELD, THINGS LIKE THAT.
PARDON MY IGNORANCE AGAIN, BUT LIKE WHEN THE COURT'S NOT IN SESSION OR THE JUDGES AREN'T THERE, WHAT, WHAT ABOUT, UH, THE DEPUTY OR THE BAILIFF FOR THE PERSON THAT'S USUALLY ASSIGNED IN THAT COURT? WHAT ARE THEY DOING? UH, THE BAILIFFS ARE COMMISSIONED BY THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE, BUT THEY DO NOT WORK FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
UH, THEY ARE HIRED BY THE JUDGES.
SO, UM, AND I CAN'T CONTROL THE BAILIFF SCHEDULES OR ANYTHING ELSE LIKE THAT.
SO WHETHER THEY'RE THERE OR NOT, WHEN THE JUDGE IS THERE OR NOT, I, I DON'T KNOW, AND I CAN'T CONTROL.
I DIDN'T KNOW THE STRUCTURE, HOW THAT WORKED.
THEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT FLOATING PEOPLE TO COVER SPOTS OF MEETING WITH PEOPLE, SO I DIDN'T KNOW IT.
IT WOULD, IT WOULD BE GREAT IF THEY WERE UNDER MY CONTROL.
WE COULD UTILIZE THEM, YOU KNOW, WHEN, IF COURT WERE NOT IN SESSION, YOU KNOW, THEN YES, WE MAY MOVE THEM TO A, A SECURITY STATION OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
YEAH, THAT'S WHY I WAS WONDERING IF Y'ALL WERE DOING THAT.
UH, I WOULD, I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THAT IT'S, IT WOULD BE UP TO THE JUDGES TO ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN.
SO WHY WOULD THEY NOT WANT TO LET THAT HAPPEN? I MEAN, WHAT DO THEY, WHAT DO THEY DO WITH THEM GUYS? UM, WHAT WAS YOUR QUESTION, COMMISSIONER? WHY WOULD THEY NOT ALLOW YOU TO BE UNDER, WHY WOULD THEY NOT ALLOW THEM TO BE UNDER YOUR CONTROL? I, I CANNOT SPEAK FOR THEM, BUT, UH, I COULD SURMISE IT, IT'D BE THE LACK OF CONTROL OF THEIR, THEIR PERSONNEL.
BUT THEY'RE BEING PAID TO BE SOMEWHERE THEY ARE COUNTY EMPLOYEES.
AND, UH, COMMISSIONED PEACE OFFICERS COMMISSIONED BY THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
SOME OF 'EM WEARING, YOU KNOW, MY UNIFORM, UH, ALL OF 'EM WITH MY BADGE.
BUT THE BOTTOM LINE IS THE JUDGES OF THE SOLE ARBITER OF THEIR TIME.
IS THAT CORRECT? ABOUT 100%, YES.
AND AS FAR AS THE HIRING AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS TOTALLY
[02:55:01]
IN CONTROL OF THAT, THAT BAILIFF.THAT'S, THAT'S NOT ANYTHING THAT Y'ALL HAVE A VOICE IN OR WE HAVE A VOICE IN IT.
IT'S NOT UNIQUE TO THIS COUNTY AND NO, YOU'RE CORRECT.
WE DO NOT HAVE ANY SAY IN THAT.
IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT THE COURTHOUSE SECURITY STUFF THAT PRETTY MUCH I KNOW YEAH, NO, WE, NO, THE TO ANSWER YOUR OTHER QUESTION, THEY DON'T, THEY DON'T DO ANYTHING FOR US.
I MEAN, THEY'RE, THEY'RE IN THE COURTROOM AND, BUT WE ALSO HAVE, WE'RE REQUIRED TO BE IN THE COURTROOM AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, IF WE HAVE INMATES IN THERE, OUR COURTHOUSE SECURITY STAFF IS IN THERE AS WELL TO PROVIDE COURT SECURITY.
UM, THEY, THE BAILIFFS HAD OTHER ASSIGNED DUTIES WHEN COURT'S GOING ON.
UM, THAT PRETTY MUCH WRAPS UP MY, MY PART OF THIS.
ANYBODY HAVE ANY FURTHER QUESTIONS FOR ME? YEAH, THANKS FOR COMING IN.
JUST BECAUSE HE'S DONE DOESN'T MEAN I'M NOT DONE
UM, NO, I'M JUST GONNA GO OVER THE SALARY REQUEST.
SALARY RECLASSIFICATIONS AGAIN.
UH, IT'S IN YOUR, IT'S IN YOUR BINDERS.
UM, Y'ALL ARE ALL HERE LAST YEAR, SO YOU KNOW, THE CLASSIFICATIONS THAT I KIND OF RUN THROUGH.
UM, BUT JUST FOR, I KNOW THIS, THIS IS FOR A LOT OF THE OTHER PEOPLE THAT ARE NOT HERE TODAY AND ONLINE.
UM, AND JUST REAL GENERAL, I HAVE TO ALMOST START FROM THE BEGINNING.
OUR STARTING PAY AT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE IS GOOD.
AND, AND I'M GONNA USE WEATHERFORD PD AS A COMPARISON BECAUSE AS FAR AS A METROPLEX, EVERY, THEY, THEY KIND OF RUN THE NORM OF WHAT THE SALARY RUNS IN THE METROPLEX.
OUR STARTING PAY IS ABOUT 1% HIGHER THAN WEATHERFORD PD.
NOW, WEATHERFORD WILL TOP OUT IN NINE YEARS ON THEIR PAY, AND THEN THEY'RE RIGHT AT 20% HIGHER THAN WE ARE IN THOSE NINE YEARS.
AND, UH, THEY START OUT ABOUT THE SAME, BUT THEY'RE GOING UP, YOU KNOW, A LOT FASTER RATE THAN WHAT WE'RE DOING.
DO YOU SEE A CORRELATION BETWEEN, AT THAT POINT, LOSING OFFICERS WHEN THE, THE, THEY HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, THIS IS A RHETORICAL QUESTION.
WE ALREADY HAVE THE ANSWER TO THIS.
THIS IS WHEN THE REVOLVING DOOR HAPPENS, CORRECT? IT IS NOT AS MUCH AS IT USED TO BE.
I, I, I'LL BE QUITE HONEST, AND, UH, I THINK THE PEOPLE, MOST OF 'EM THAT WE GET WANT TO WORK THERE.
UH, BUT WE ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT THEY'VE GOTTA, YOU KNOW, FEED THEIR KIDS AND, AND EVERYTHING ELSE THEY WANT, EVERYTHING ELSE THAT MONEY CAN BUY.
UM, SO IT IS, IT'S A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD.
UM, WE KNOW WE'RE NEVER GONNA BE WEATHERFORD.
WE KNOW WE'RE NEVER GONNA BE THE METROPLEX, BUT WE'RE JUST TRYING TO TAKE A BITE OUTTA THAT APPLE AND GET A LITTLE BIT CLOSER.
CAN I ADD SOMETHING TO THIS THOUGH? THERE IS A COST ASSOCIATED, I THINK THAT WE NEED TO CONSIDER THAT THAT STILL EXISTS WITH THAT REVOLVING DOOR THAT WE TRAIN THEM, WE PUT 'EM OUT THERE, THEY GET TO THAT POINT, AND THEN THEY MAKE A DECISION.
I MEAN, NO REFLECTION ON THEM FOR IT TO PROVIDE FOR THEIR FAMILY BETTER.
BUT THAT'S WHERE THE PROBLEM EXISTS, IS WHEN WE TRAIN THEM AND THEN THEY MOVE ON, THAT THEY CAN, THEY BECOME A VERY VIABLE, MARKETABLE PERSON WITH ABOUT, THEY'RE TRAINED YEARS OF EXPERIENCE.
AT OUR SHERIFF'S OFFICE, UH, WE, WE TRAIN INTENSIVELY AND UH, YES, BUT AGAIN, WE DON'T LOSE AS MANY AS WE PROBABLY SHOULD WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE NUMBERS.
SO I, I THINK THEY ENJOY BEING THERE, BUT, BUT IT'S STILL, IT'S TRYING TO BALANCE BOTH THOSE, TRYING TO GET THE APPLICANTS IN THE DOOR.
LIKE THE CHIEF SAID EARLIER, MOST OF THE FOLKS WE'RE GETTING NOW ARE, ARE JUST STRAIGHT OUTTA THE ACADEMY.
NOT NECESSARILY BAD OR GOOD, BUT YOU LIKE A BALANCE.
YOU LIKE SOME OFFICERS WITH SOME EXPERIENCE AS WELL AS NEW OFFICERS UP AND COMING.
SO YOU HAVE A NICE BALANCE IN THERE, BUT THERE'S A RETENTION ISSUE ALSO.
UH, KEEPING THOSE OFFICERS THAT WE'VE INVESTED IN TO KEEP THOSE, OBVIOUSLY THE, I THINK PROBABLY EVERY DEPARTMENT HAS THAT, BUT WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT MORE OF AN ISSUE WITH IT.
WOULD YOU SAY? WE DO, HISTORICALLY WE HAVE, UM, AND I THINK KIND OF HISTORY WILL SHOW YOU IF YOU CAN KEEP SOMEBODY SEVEN OR EIGHT YEARS, YOU PROBABLY HAVE 'EM FOR THEIR CAREER, YOU KNOW, UNLESS SOMETHING REALLY STRANGE HAPPENS.
IT'S THOSE FIRST FEW YEARS AND LIKE YOU SAID, THAT'S WHERE THE REVOLVING DOOR HAPPENS.
SO, SO THE PAY SCALE THAT'S IN THERE, UH, IT'S A LOT SMALLER THAN WHAT IT WAS LAST YEAR.
I KNOW BECKY'S PROBABLY RUN ALL THE NUMBERS AND SHE COULD, UH, KIND OF PRESENT THOSE TO YOU, BUT, UH, IT'S JUST TRYING TO GET US THERE A LITTLE BIT CLOSER.
TAKING A 12 YEAR GAP, YOU KNOW, MAX OUT WHERE WE'RE AT TO A 10 YEAR, WEATHERFORD'S AT NINE, BUT WE, WE GO TO 10, SO STILL BE A LOT LESS THAN THEM, BUT WE'RE JUST GONNA TRY TO, TRY TO STAY IN THE SAME BALLPARK.
SO AGAIN, I'M NOT GONNA GO THROUGH EVERYTHING HERE WITH YOU.
I KNOW IT'S IN YOUR BOOKS AND, UH, THIS IS JUST FOR, FOR THE BENEFIT OF Y'ALL.
AND AGAIN, I KNOW Y'ALL HAVE HEARD THIS STORY BEFORE,
[03:00:01]
SO I APPRECIATE Y'ALL AND EVERYTHING YOU DO.I WANT TO, I WANT TO SAY ARE, ARE, ARE YOU GOT ANYTHING ELSE YOU WANNA ADD TO THIS? UM, I WANT TO, THIS IS A VERY, OBVIOUSLY A LARGE PART OF OUR BUDGET, BUT IT'S, IT'S, IT'S VERY ORGANIZED, VERY DETAILED AND YOU'VE DONE A GREAT JOB IN PRESENTING THE NEEDS FOR THIS TO, UH, BE CONSIDERED IN OUR BUDGET PROCESS.
AND I'M REALLY GLAD OF THE BUDGET COMMITTEE.
THEY CAN GO THROUGH THIS AND DO A LOT OF THE WORK AND ASSESS WHAT THE PRIORITIES ARE, IS ARTICULATED.
UM, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO THESE DISCUSSIONS AND CONTINUING TO MEET THE NEEDS OF, AND THIS COURT HAS ALWAYS BEEN AS BEST WE CAN, SUPPORTIVE OF THAT AND UNDERSTAND THAT.
THANK YOU FOR THE, THE ORGANIZATION OF WHAT YOU'VE PRESENTED HERE TODAY.
AND I'LL REITERATE THAT WELL AS WELL FOR OTHER PEOPLE.
DUNNO, THIS COMMISSIONER'S COURT SUPPORTS LAW ENFORCEMENT IN PARKER COUNTY CRIMINAL JUSTICE.
AND THEN IF SOMEBODY'S NEW THAT'S MOVED TO THIS AREA AND DOESN'T KNOW THAT, I CAN TELL YOU RIGHT NOW THERE'S NOT A BETTER COMMISSIONER'S COURT AS FAR AS SUPPORT IN LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THIS COUNTY OR THIS STATE.
THE ONLY THING I'LL ADD IS, UM, WE ASKED FOR A, UH, UPDATED PAY SCALE FOR OUR DISPATCHERS LAST YEAR.
WE RESUBMITTED THAT THIS YEAR.
I REALLY HOPE YOU GIVE THAT AN HONEST LOOK.
I THINK THAT WILL HELP US ATTRACT
UM, LIKE I SAID, RIGHT NOW WE'RE, WE'RE THREE SHORT AND ABOUT TO BE FIVE DOWN OF OUR TOTAL STAFF.
UM, I'M HOPING THAT THAT WILL HELP MITIGATE SOME OF THE PEOPLE LEAVING, UH, FOR ADDITIONAL PAY OR JUST LEAVING.
CAN I REMIND ME, IF, IF WE WERE TO FILL OUT IN A PERFECT WORLD, UH, FILL OUT ALL OF THE OPEN DISPATCH POSITIONS AT THE CURRENT PAY SCALE VERSUS THE REVISED PAY SCALE, WHAT WOULD THAT NET DIFFERENCE BE IN PAY? I'LL HAVE TO GET BACK TO YOU ON THAT.
I CAN GET YOU THAT INFORMATION.
'CAUSE UM, WHEN I RAN FOR A JUDGE, I, I WANNA RUN AND TOURED A LOT OF COUNTIES.
THIS IS NOT JUST A PARKER COUNTY ISSUE, IT'S THE STRESS THAT THEY'RE UNDER.
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY IT'S PRETTY DRAMATIC TAKING THESE CALLS AND BEING IN THAT POSITION AND, AND IT'S NOT A, IT'S NOT A, A DIFFERENCE IN OTHER COUNTIES AS WELL.
I THINK WE NEED TO ALSO CONSIDER THE FACT THAT, YOU KNOW, TRYING TO KEEP THESE, UH, I THINK THAT NEEDS TO REALLY BE CONSIDERED IN THIS BUDGET PROCESS BECAUSE THAT, THAT IS WHERE THE REVOLVING DOOR IS RIGHT THERE.
AND SO, UH, KEEPING THE DISPATCHERS, UH, IS CRITICAL TO THIS PROCESS.
WELL, OUR DISPATCH STARTING SALARIES IS ABOUT WHAT CLERICAL STAFF AND THE COUNTY MAKES, BUT OUR DISPATCHERS HAVE TO WORK NIGHTS AND EVENINGS AND WEEKENDS AND HOLIDAYS AND THEY HAVE TO COME IN WHEN THE COUNTY'S CLOSED ON SNOW DAYS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
AND HAS A STRESS, A STRESS OF ATTRIBUTED TO THAT AS WELL.
NOBODY WANTS TO SIT THERE AND GET SCREAMED AND YELLED AT FOR EIGHT HOURS AND I SEE.
UM, OKAY, UNLESS THERE'S ANYTHING ELSE, I WANT TO GO TO A VERY PATIENT CONSTABLE THAT'S BEEN SAID IN THE, I SORRY.
WE, WE, WE HAVE A VERY PATIENT CONSTABLE BACK THERE.
[I.I. Discussion/Presentation on Department 552 Constable Precinct #2 budget requests. (Joe Harris / Judge Deen)]
UH, WE'RE WE'RE GOING BACK TO, UH, ITEM I ON THE DISCUSSION PRESENTATION DEPARTMENT 5 52 ON THE CONSTABLE PRECINCT TWO.THIS IS THE VEST BY THE WAY THAT, UH, THE CHIEF WAS TALKING ABOUT A LITTLE BIT AGO.
THAT'S THE ONE THAT YOU CAN SLIDE THAT PLATE IN.
I THOUGHT YOU JUST BULKED UP, BUT IT'S, IT'S YOUR PLATE.
WELL WHAT ARE YOU, WHAT ARE YOU SAYING? WHAT ARE YOU REFERRING TO ABOUT BULKING, SIR.
THAT'S WHY HE DIDN'T GET ON A BIGGER RUNWAY MODEL
THEY ARE, THEY DO STRETCH HERE.
SO I AM SURE Y'ALL ARE GETTING READY TO LOOK EVERYTHING OVER.
I DON'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT THIS, THIS YEAR.
UH, YOU GUYS HAVE REALLY TAKEN CARE OF OUR, MY OFFICE LAST FEW YEARS AND, AND THE CONSTABLES AS A WHOLE AND I KNOW WE APPRECIATE IT.
UM, IF I, I'M HERE TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS OR, OR YOU WANT ME TO PRESENT WHAT I'VE ASKED FOR, I THINK PROBABLY LAYING IN FRONT OF US RIGHT HERE.
IS THERE ANYTHING IN PARTICULAR THAT YOU WANNA TELL US ABOUT, UM, THE, UH, CAR SITUATION? UM, I DON'T KNOW IF Y'ALL HAD HAVE ALREADY TALKED TO EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT.
AND THAT, THAT SITUATION IS TBD DEPENDING ON FIRE MARSHAL AND OTHER FACTORS KIND OF OUT THERE.
THAT WAS JUST SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED.
UH, HIM AND I TOOK A TRIP THE OTHER DAY ON A CALL, UM, AND IT WAS KIND OF DETERMINED MAYBE THAT HIS VEHICLE'S NOT SUITABLE FOR
[03:05:01]
SOME OF HIS ACTIONS THAT HE'S DOING.UM, AND THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT COULD SAVE THE COUNTY A LITTLE MONEY THIS YEAR IN THE BUDGET IF HE WAS ABLE TO TRANSFER THAT VEHICLE OVER TO US.
UM, IT'S ALREADY PRETTY MUCH OUTFITTED FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT JUST NEEDS A CAGE THROWN IN IT.
AND I COULD PROBABLY GRAB ONE OF THOSE FROM ONE OF THE VEHICLES THAT'S ALREADY BEEN SURPLUSED, UM, THAT WOULD ALLOW ME TO REMOVE MY REQUEST AND THEN ALLOW HIM TO ACTUALLY GET A VEHICLE THAT THAT'S SUITABLE FOR HIM AND, AND WHAT HE'S DOING.
MORE INFORMATION, MORE INFORMATION WILL COME ALONG ON THAT.
BUT IT TURNS OUT THAT YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT MIGHT WANT THAT VEHICLE.
FIGURED THAT WAS GONNA HAPPEN.
AND THE, I I SAID THIS AT THE VERY BEGINNING, I THINK THAT WAS WELL BEFORE YOU WERE HERE.
UM, WE HAVE A BUDGET COMMITTEE THIS YEAR, SO YOU'LL BE GETTING AN EMAIL FROM ME, UH, LATER THIS WEEK THAT WILL OUTLINE A FEW QUESTIONS.
UM, JUST ASKING FOR MORE INFORMATION.
I THINK THE NOTES THAT I HAVE SAY THAT, UH, IF, AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO RESPOND NOW IN THE EMAIL WOULD BE PREFERABLE.
UM, TALK ABOUT THE ABILITY POSSIBLY TO SHARE DRONES WITH OTHER CONSTABLES INSTEAD OF HAVING YOUR OWN.
UM, AND THEN, UM, I THINK THAT WAS JUST ABOUT MY ONLY YEAH, THAT AND THE VEHICLE, I THINK WERE THE ONLY TWO THINGS.
I'LL MAKE MY GENERAL STATEMENT IF YOU DIDN'T HEAR, WE'RE NOT PICKING ON YOU OR ANYBODY ELSE, BUT, BUT ANYTIME THERE'S A REQUEST LIKE THAT MM-HMM
WE, WE, WE WE'RE GONNA SEND AN EMAIL BACK THAT SAYS WE NEED MORE INFORMATION, MORE JUSTIFICATION, JUST, JUST MORE INFORMATION FROM YOU.
SO, UM, YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I, I MEAN THAT'S WHAT I CAME HERE FOR TODAY.
I, I'M IN SOME TRAINING AND SO IF YOU GUYS DON'T NEED ANY MORE OF ME, I'LL, WE, WE APPRECIATE YOU BREAKING OUTTA THAT AND COMING.
SO WE, WE KNEW YOU WERE IN TRAINING.
THAT IT, DO Y'ALL HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR HIM, SIR, WHILE WE GOT HIM HERE? YEAH, I GOT ONE, UH, ON THE DRONE.
UH, DO YOU HAVE TWO DRONES OR YOU'RE WANTING WE DO NOT.
YOU HAVE ONE DRONE AND SO I HAVE MY OWN PERSONAL DRONE CURRENTLY THAT I OPERATE WITH.
SO LAST YEAR WHEN, UH, A DRONE WAS GIVEN OUT, I REMEMBER, UH, YOU ASKED IF WE NEEDED ONE FOR OUR PRECINCT.
AT THE TIME I DID NOT HAVE MY PILOT'S LICENSE.
UH, I HAVE SINCE OBTAINED MY PILOT'S LICENSE FOR THAT.
AND SO, UM, I HAVE MY OWN PERSONAL DRONE THAT I USE ON OCCASION.
UH, WE JUST GOT CALLED OUT ON THE SWAT TEAM AND I USED, YOU KNOW, WAS USING IT THERE.
UM, BUT IF THE BATTERY GOES DOWN OR, OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT, IT'S NOT SOMETHING I CAN PURCHASE WITH COUNTY FUNDS.
I THINK WE RAN INTO THAT A COUPLE YEARS AGO.
SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WE, SO WHAT ARE ASKING FOR HERE? IT SAYS DRONE TWO.
AND SO THERE'S TWO, THERE'S TWO TYPES OF DRONES.
THERE'S ONE THAT'S INTERIOR AND THEN ONE THAT'S EXTERIOR.
UM, ONE INTERIOR WOULD BE FOR US ON EVICTIONS WHEN WE HAVE TO GO IN AND CLEAR THE HOUSE.
THIS IS SOMETHING REALLY SIMPLE THAT WE CAN USE THE DRONE TO GO INTO THE HOUSE BEFORE WE MAKE ENTRY.
UM, GET A A, A PRETTY GOOD SWEEP OF THE HOUSE AND THEN, UH, AND THEN MAKE ENTRY AFTER THAT.
UM, THAT DRONE COULD ALSO BE UTILIZED ON THE SWAT TEAM.
IT COULD BE UTILIZED FOR ANY OF THE LOCAL DEPARTMENTS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
SO I THINK I'M ONE OF MAYBE THREE OR FOUR PILOTS THAT WE HAVE IN THE, IN THE COUNTY NOW.
UM, AND THE OTHER DRONE IS JUST A, IT'S JUST A LARGER SCALE.
UM, AND THAT WOULD BE USED IN OUR ENVIRON OUR ENVIRONMENTAL DEPARTMENT.
SO I WOULDN'T BE OPPOSED TO SHARING NOT OPPOSED TO THAT AT ALL.
UM, I SEE THE PLUS AND THE MINUSES OF IT.
UM, IF THEY'RE ACTIVELY USING IT AND WE ACTIVELY NEED IT, THERE'S AN ISSUE.
OTHER THAN THAT, I WOULD NOT BE OPPOSED TO THAT.
UM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT I CAN LOOK AT AND GET WITH YOU IN AN EMAIL.
EVERYBODY WANTS THEIR OWN TOYS.
WELL, I MEAN IT'S, IT'S ONE, UM, WITH A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT LIKE THAT.
UH, I MAY MAINTAIN MINE A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN SOMEONE ELSE OR THEY MAY MAINTAIN THEIRS A LITTLE BIT BETTER THAN ME.
WE UM, THERE'S JUST SOME LEGALITIES TO IT TOO.
'CAUSE EACH DRONE IS REGISTERED, UM, WITH THE FAA, THE FLIGHT TIMES, THE LOGS, UH, THERE'S A LOT OF THAT THAT GOES IN INTO EFFECT.
SO IT'S NOT JUST BECAUSE WE WANT OUR OWN.
THERE'S SOME LEGALITIES TO THAT AND I CAN, I CAN GET THAT IN AN EMAIL TO YOU TO SHOW YOU WHAT IT IS AND YOU CAN JUST WORK WITH JACOB ON THAT ON THE COMMITTEE AND THAT INFORMATION WILL BE PROVIDED TO THIS.
YEAH, I'LL JUST WAIT TO HEAR WHAT THE, FROM THE EMAIL AND COME BACK.
[I.M. Discussion/Presentation of FY 2026 County Budget. (Judge Deen)]
THAT TAKES US TO ITEM M,[03:10:01]
SORRY, PASS THE INFORMATION ALONG TO THE JUDGE AND I THINK BECKY THEN PASS PASSED IT ALONG TO THE ADDITIONAL BUDGET COMMITTEE.UM, BUT WITH THE PASSAGE OF SENATE BILL 2 93, IT CHANGED, UM, STATE, UH, PAY FOR JUDGES, WHICH HAS A, UM, EFFECT ON OUR COUNTY COURT AT LAW JUDGES, UM, AS WELL AS BOTH OUR, UH, COUNTY AND DISTRICT ATTORNEY, UM, AS WELL AS THE SUPPLEMENT THAT WE PAY TO THE DISTRICT JUDGES.
AND SO WE CAN DISCUSS THIS A LITTLE BIT MORE AT A, WHETHER NEXT WEEK OR WHATEVER WHEN YOU ALL ARE ABLE TO LOOK AT IT.
UM, BUT FOR YEARS, I'M NOT SURE HOW LONG IT'S BEEN.
I KNOW OUR SYSTEM GOES BACK TO OH EIGHT AND WE'VE BEEN PAYING, UM, THE MAXIMUM COUNTY SUPPLEMENT TO OUR DISTRICT JUDGES, WHICH IS 18,000.
UM, THAT IS NOW INCREASING WITH THE OPTION TO, UH, PAY UP TO 25,000.
UM, THE MOST SIGNIFICANT, UH, I WOULD SAY, UM, BUDGET IMPACT THAT WE HAVE TO DO THAT SUPPLEMENT.
IS THAT A LAW THAT WE HAVE TO DO? IT'S NOT A LAW.
I MEAN, WE HAVE BEEN PAYING THEM THE MAX.
WE HAVE FOR, YOU KNOW, 20, BUT IT'S NOT A LAW I'M SURE 20 PLUS YEAR.
UM, NO, I THINK IT ACTUALLY, I THINK IT IS ONE THAT SAYS A MAY, MAY PAY UP TO, UM, COULD, COULD YOU PROVIDE US, NOT NOW, BUT IT AT SOME OTHER POINT THE WHAT THEIR SALARY IS CURRENTLY AND THEN WHAT IT WOULD CHANGE TO, WE PAY 18,000 TOTAL.
AND SO THIS WOULD BE 25 5 MEAN THE TOTAL SALARY IS YES, IT IS ON THIS FIRST PAGE.
UM, AND SO THESE, DEPENDING ON WHAT THAT SUPPLEMENT IS, IT DIRECTLY IMPACTS HOW WE PAY OUR CCL JUDGES AND WHAT THE MINIMUM AND MAXIMUMS ARE.
UM, AND SO IF YOU LOOK AT PAGE FOUR, IT SHOWS THE COUNTY COURT AT LAW JUDGES.
AND THEN THE WAY THEY DO THIS IS THERE'S A MINIMUM, UM, BASE SALARY DEPENDING ON THEIR YEARS OF SERVICE, AS WELL AS IN THE MAXIMUM COUNTY, UM, SALARY THAT WE PAY.
SO EACH YEAR WHAT WE'VE DONE IS THERE'S A MINIMUM OBVIOUSLY ESTABLISHED BY STATUTE.
AND THEN WHEN ALL YOU KNOW OF COUNTY EMPLOYEES GET A COLA, UM, WE'VE SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED YOU TO ADDRESS THOSE, WHETHER THEY WILL GET A COLA IN ADDITION TO THAT MINIMUM SALARY.
AND SO, UM, HISTORICALLY YOU ALL HAVE GIVEN THEM THE COLAS.
UM, CURRENTLY, UM, ONE OF 'EM IS MAXED OUT, THE OTHER ONE ISN'T.
HOWEVER, THIS WILL, THIS WILL CHANGE NOW.
WE WILL DEFINITELY HAVE A, HAVE AN IMPACT ON THAT.
UM, AND THEN THE OTHER ONE WILL HAVE TO LOOK AT IS, UM, WAS IT LAST BUDGET YEAR OR TWO? TWO AGO? YEAH, TWO AGO THAT, UM, WE STARTED PAYING THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY A SUPPLEMENT TO MAKE HIS SALARY IN LINE WITH OUR COUNTY ATTORNEY.
UM, THE STATE SALARY FOR STATE PROSECUTOR FELONY PROSECUTORS HAS CHANGED.
UM, SO WE'LL HAVE TO LOOK AT THAT.
UM, OUR COUNTY ATTORNEY RECEIVES A STATE SUPPLEMENT AND IT'S BASED OFF OF A FACTOR OF A BASE SALARY.
SO, YOU KNOW, WE'LL HAVE TO LOOK AT WHAT THAT INCREASE IS AND WHETHER, UM, WE HAVE TO ADJUST, UH, THE DA'S SUPPLEMENT, WHETHER THAT GOES DOWN OR UP DEPENDING ON THAT.
SO THESE ARE ALL THINGS, UM, THAT WE WILL DISCUSS IN GREATER DETAIL COMING UP.
THIS IS EFFECTIVE SEPTEMBER 1ST.
UM, SO WE'LL HAVE TO TALK ABOUT THAT.
'CAUSE OBVIOUSLY OUR BUDGET DOESN'T BEGIN TILL OCTOBER 1ST, SO WE'LL NEED TO, UM, IN AUGUST DISCUSS THIS OF, YOU KNOW, THAT EFFECTIVE DATE.
WE HAVE EVERYTHING IN PLACE FOR THAT FIRST PAY PERIOD THAT BEGINS SEPTEMBER 1ST.
AND THEN OBVIOUSLY WHERE THOSE, WHERE THAT FUNDING WOULD COME FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE FISCAL YEAR.
BUT I WANTED TO BRING THIS TO YOUR ATTENTION SO YOU'RE AWARE OF IT.
SO I, I KNOW WE'RE REQUIRED TO PUBLISH THE, THE SALARIES OF, OF THE COUNTY ELECTED OFFICIALS.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT AS, UH, I GUESS PEOPLE FROM THE OUTSIDE WHO ARE LOOKING IN, THEY, THEY SEE THE SALARIES OF COUNTY OFFICIALS, FOR EXAMPLE, THE COUNTY JUDGE'S SALARY.
AND THEY DON'T REALIZE THAT, THAT THERE ARE, UH, COUNTY COURT AT LAW JUDGES OR UH, DISTRICT JUDGES WHO MAKE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE THAN THAT.
AND I KNOW THAT WE'RE REQUIRED TO, TO PUT THE COUNTY ELECTED OFFICIALS SALARIES IN A NEWSPAPER, YOU KNOW, AND ADVERTISE THAT.
UM, IT SEEMS TO ME THAT WE SHOULD BE LOOKING AT PUTTING ALL OF THOSE SALARIES IN THERE SO THAT PEOPLE CAN UNDERSTAND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN, UH, FOR EXAMPLE, A DISTRICT JUDGE AND WHAT THEIR SALARY IS.
AND FOR EXAMPLE, THEN THE COUNTY JUDGE'S SALARY, WHICH IS SIGNIFICANTLY LESS.
RIGHT? WE WOULD WOULD HAVE TO ASK FOR, BECAUSE THE, THE ISSUE I GUESS WITH THE DISTRICT JUDGES, SO THE STATUTE, THE WAY IT READS, AND IT'S UP TO YOU ALL OF HOW, HOW THAT, UM, NEWSPAPER POSTING
[03:15:01]
IS MM-HMMUM, SO WHAT THE REQUIREMENT IS, IS ANY INCREASES IN THOSE ELECTED OFFICIALS.
SO IF YOU ALL WANT TO JUST PUT THE INCREASES EVERY YEAR, THAT'S FINE.
AND SO I KNOW, YOU KNOW, IN MY FIRST YEAR HERE, WE HAD DISCUSSED IT WITH, WITH THE JUDGE AND THEY COORDINATE THAT.
AND SO IT WAS, HE FELT THAT IT WAS MORE TRANSPARENT TO PUT THE TOTAL OF EVERYTHING.
WHICH IS BEYOND THE, I BELIEVE IT'S TOO, BUT AGAIN, IT'S EVERY, YOU KNOW, EVERY COUNTY DOES IT VERY DIFFERENTLY WHAT THEY DO.
OBVIOUSLY WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE MEETING THE STATUTE OF WHAT IS REQUIRED.
WE PUBLISH MORE THAN WHAT IS REQUIRED.
SO IF THERE IS A CHANGE OF HOW WE DO THAT, UM, I THINK BECAUSE THE DISTRICT JUDGES ARE PAID BY THE STATE, THE ONLY THING THAT HAS I THINK EVER MAYBE BEEN INCLUDED OR IF AGAIN, WITH THIS WOULD BE THEN THAT INCREASE IN THAT BECAUSE IT COMES FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES OF NOT THE COUNTY'S TAX PERIOD.
I WAS JUST TRYING TO BE MORE TRANSPARENT BECAUSE PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE THAT THAT WHERE THINGS ARE IN RELATION TO OTHER THINGS, THEY SIT THERE AND, AND, AND OF COURSE THE OTHER THING THAT I, I BROUGHT UP LAST YEAR TOO AS WELL IS, IS, IS THOSE OF US WHO ADD TRAVEL TO OUR SALARY, IT SHOWS UP THAT OUR SALARY WHERE IT SHOULD BE, IN MY OPINION, OUR SALARY AND THEN THE TRAVEL IS A DIFFERENT, OH, WE'VE LISTED THAT.
AND, AND THAT'S ONE THING, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THAT AD WE CAN ADJUST THAT TABLE MM-HMM
TO BE AS DESCRIPTIVE TO BREAK OUT EACH PIECE PIECE OF IT AS WELL.
I WOULD SAY THAT WE, THE COURT WILL MAKE THAT DECISION THIS YEAR AS TO HOW THAT'S GONNA BE DONE AND GIVE A TEMPLATE TO THEM TO RIGHT.
I JUST WANTED YOU ALL BRING THAT UP.
AND THEN AGAIN, BECAUSE UM, YOU KNOW, THE EFFECTIVE DATE IS SEPTEMBER 1ST.
WE NEED A PLAN ACCORDINGLY FOR PAYROLL PURPOSES, BUDGET PURPOSES.
AND YOU KNOW THE QUESTION, AND I KNOW THAT CAME UP ON OUR LISTSERV OF, YOU KNOW, THIS IS OBVIOUSLY BEFORE OUR BUDGET YEAR STARTS AND WE ALWAYS PUBLISH THOSE SALARIES.
AND SO I THINK WHERE IT WAS TAKEN WHERE IT'S A, A STATUTORY THING VERSUS THERE'S DISCRETION IN WHAT IT IS THAT I THINK SOME WERE, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT WOULD BE OKAY.
I KNOW WE HAD ONE WHERE THERE WAS, UM, WITH A PRIOR CCL JUDGE, THERE WAS LIKE AN AG OPINION THAT CAME OUT OF HOW SOME OF IT WAS CALCULATED.
AND SO WE HAD ALREADY PUBLISHED THE SALARY AGAIN, BUT STATUTORILY WE SHOULD HAVE BEEN PAYING, UM, A, A DIFFERENT AMOUNT.
AND SO WE WENT AHEAD AND BROUGHT IT UP BEFORE THE COURT AND WE GOT THAT, UM, CORRECTED AT THAT TIME.
AND AGAIN, YOU KNOW, WE HAD QUESTIONED BECAUSE OF THE PUBLICATION IN THE NEWSPAPER, IF THERE WAS ANYTHING WE NEEDED TO CONSIDER.
BUT AGAIN, IT WAS A STATUTORY REQUIREMENT THAT IT WASN'T JUST, IT WAS ALSO NOT JUST THE DISTRICT, BUT CCL.
AND THOSE ONES ARE IN THERE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE DO RECEIVE SOME, UM, SOME FUNDING RIGHT.
TO HELP OFFSET THAT AS WELL AS SOME, YOU KNOW, SUPPLEMENTAL, UM, FOR YOU.
BUT IT'S, WE, WE PUBLISH WHAT THAT SALARY IS 'CAUSE THEY ARE COUNTY EMPLOYEES AND NOT STATE EMPLOYEES.
I THINK THE THEME OF IT IS, IS JUST, IS COMPLETE AND TOTAL TRANSPARENCY IS, IS AGAIN, COMMISSIONER YEAH, THAT'S WHAT I WAS TRYING TO DO.
SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT CAN BE WORKED ON OF WHAT THAT AD WILL LOOK LIKE AS WE GO FORWARD TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S WHAT IT NEEDS TO BE AND THIS COURT WILL MAKE THAT DECISION ON WHAT THAT TEMPLATE'S GONNA LOOK LIKE AND WHAT WE PUBLISH IN THE PAPER.
SO ANYTHING ELSE, BRIANNA? NOPE.
UM, ANYTHING ELSE ANYBODY WANTS TO TALK ABOUT BEFORE WE, WE ALREADY GOT A MOTION, UH, MOVED.
WE HAVE A MOTION? UH, DO WE HAVE A SECOND? UH, I THINK SECOND.
UH, RECORDS SHOW THAT WE'LL ADJOURN AT 1239.