Baxter County Sheriff John Montgomery offered a possible solution Friday to funding an expansion of the county jail. His presentation was made to a large crowd in the courtroom in the Baxter County Courthouse. Sheriff Montgomery proposes a one cent, eight-month sales tax and a one-quarter cent annual sales tax. He says the jail has been operating at or near capacity for several years and came to the Building and Grounds Committee earlier to address the issue. The committee recommended he and Baxter County Judge Mickey Pendergrass meet with architects to determine the feasibility and cost to expand.
In Friday’s meeting, a presentation was given by the SouthBuild Team of architects, who have studied the jail’s location since Tuesday and developed an expansion design and budget for the overall cost to the tune of just over $4.1 million.
Montgomery says the jail is 15 years old and no longer the “new jail” and it is in desperate need of expansion due to overcrowding and safety concerns.
He says the architectural plans date back to 2002 and the present jail has undergone a lot of maintenance. The previous design of the jail has not allowed staff to maximize bed space due to the need to separate males from females, sex offenders, and aggressive inmates. The jail opened in 2004 with a capacity of 33 beds. The current jail has 101.
According to Montgomery, in 2005 the average daily inmate count was 36. In 2014 it jumped to 87, in 2015 it was 97, in 2016 the inmate average was 85 and this year the average is 92. He says, according to experts, a county should consider expansion when a jail operates at 80 percent capacity or above for a period of two years.
Montgomery also mentions in 2015 inmates waiting in the county jail to go to the state prison numbered approximately 28 percent. In 2017 the number waiting for a prison bed has decreased to 13 percent, yet the average daily inmate count remains the same. Montgomery suggests the reason the percentage is lower is due to prisons releasing inmates early. He says the higher average inmate totals at the county jail show the problem is local.
Montgomery says this issue has caused some inmates to be set free early and forced prosecuting attorneys to make plea bargains they may not necessarily make if the jail wasn’t overcrowded.
Jail staff identified the amount of beds needed and determined 12 two person cells with 24 beds would make those who need to be isolated easier to accomplish. Above those beds, on the next floor, two dorm rooms would house another 24 beds for 309 state inmates and minimum security inmates. A new lobby area would also decrease current safety concerns of inmates traveling the nurses station.
Montgomery says the plans will have to be approved by the Quorum Court as well as the proposal to place the sales tax increase before voters. The suggestion is for the Quorum Court to put the tax up for a vote by special election to Baxter County residents. If approved a one cent sales tax would begin March 1st, 2018 and end October 31st. Those traveling to the area would help pay for the construction of the jail. According to Baxter County Treasurer Jenay Mize that would generate approximately $4.4 million in income. Leftover funds would be set aside for the county. Those municipalities who house their prisoners in the Baxter County Jail would no longer have to pay.
After the one cent sales tax sunsets, a quarter cent annual sales tax would immediately begin, if approved by voters, to run the new facility with a projected revenue of approximately $1.6 million. Projected cost to run the facility is $1.4 million. The current budget for the jail during 2017 is approximately $1.1 million.
Both Montgomery and Pendergrass plan to have meetings throughout the county to present the proposal and gather feedback from the public.
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