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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Monday, September 8, 2003
Marshal's Service shorts RCDC payment to county
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, Mon., Sept. 8, 2003 -- Reeves County, which is seeking all the money
it can get to meet looming bond payments on the Reeves County Detention
Center, got less money than it was owed by the U.S. Marshal's Service for
housing prisoners at the facility, commissioners were told this morning.
A check from the Marshal's Service to Reeves County in the incorrect
amount was discussed this morning by commissioners, who also talked about
a grant from the Criminal Justice Division were discussed during their regular
meeting at the Reeves County Courthouse..
Commissioners were scheduled to discuss several items, including the
ratification of professional services contract between Reeves County and
Public Private Strategies, Inc. However, that item was tabled until 5 p.m.,
today. The group was going to meet this evening to discuss the water payment
of $422,320 to be made to the Town of Pecos City on Oct. 15 and opted to
discuss the contract with Randy DeLay at this time as well.
The county is contracting with DeLay to lobby for it in Washington, D.C.,
in an effort to get additional inmates assigned to the Reeves County Detention
Center III unit. The 960-bed addition was completed in March, but was unable
to get any additional inmates from the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. The BOP houses
about 2,000 inmates in RCDC I and II.
The only inmates the county has gotten for RCDC III have come from the
U.S. Marshals Service. However, commissioner's were told during the reports
from various departments that the check sent to the county by the Marshals
Service was for the wrong amount.
"This item was billed on July 7 for the Reeves County Detention Center
at the man-day rate of $47.47, which was the rate on July 7," said Reeves
County Judge Jimmy B. Galindo.
Galindo said that the amount of the check was made out with the wrong
man-day rate. "The U.S. Marshals Service has been in a dilemma in the sense
that they have paid us under the contract with the downtown jail and the
services were provided at the Reeves County Detention Center," said Galindo.
Galindo said that the Marshals Service was billed correctly to reflect
the rate on the contract with the Reeves County Detention Center, which
is $47.47. "Therefore, we should be paid based on this amount and I believe
we should take this check back to the U.S. Marshals Service and have it
processed properly," he said.
Galindo said that he had met with them during his recent trip to San
Antonio. "I'm asking you to hold on to it until we resolve this matter,"
said Galindo.
County Auditor Lynn Owens said that the discrepancy, which comes to about
$12 a day per inmate, was why he had not cashed it or done anything with
it.
"So, they actually owe us money?" asked commissioner precinct 3 Herman
Tarin.
"Yes, they paid us on the rate on the downtown jail contract which is
$35," said Galindo.
The county had about 100 inmates from the Marshals Service in RCDC III
during the summer. The billing rate error based on that would come to about
$1,200 per day. The county owes $40 million for construction of RCDC III,
and made its first payment last week, but had to delay action on paying
the $422,320 owed the Town of Pecos City for construction of the South Worsham
water field, a bill that also was due last week.
In other action, a grant in the amount of $9,700 was approved for the
Reeves County Juvenile Detention Center, from the Criminal Justice Division.
"There is no cash match for this grant, but it is a reimbursement grant,"
said Owens. "We pay first and then get reimbursed," he said.
Owens said that the grant was to be used for counseling services for
the youth at the detention center.
"The good thing is, we get that money back," he said.
A payment to the inmate transportation crew in the amount of $4,304 was
approved, along with budget amendments and line-item transfers.
Owens told the group that most of the transfers were done within the
departments were very small. "We also had to transfer some funds to cover
the emergency management coordinator and his travel budget," said Owens.
Galindo said that he had understood that Ricky Herrera was going to meet
with the city about providing half of the emergency management fund.
"I think Mr. (Ricky) Herrera met with you in regards to the city paying
for half of the emergency management services," Galindo told Town of Pecos
City Mayor Dot Stafford who was in the audience at this morning's meeting.
"He made a proposal, but we haven't discussed again, he was going to
come up with another proposal," said Stafford.
The group will meet again at 5 p.m., today and the public is invited
to attend.
Alzheimer's group holding meeting Thursday
PECOS, Mon., Sept. 8, 2003 -- The Alzheimer's Association STAR Chapter
will host the Pecos Support Group meeting at 4 p.m., Thursday, at the Pecos
Senior Citizen's Center, 119 S. Cedar St.
This group meets the second Thursday of the month and everyone is invited
to attend.
Weather
PECOS, Mon., Sept. 8, 2003 -- High Sunday 97. Low this morning 67. Forecast
for tonight: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows
near 70. South winds near 10 mph. Tuesday: Partly cloudy with isolated
thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 90s. East winds near 10 mph. Tuesday night:
Partly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 60s. South winds
10 to 15 mph. Wednesday: Partly cloudy with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms.
Highs near 90. West winds near 10 mph. Wednesday night: Partly cloudy with
a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms. Lows in the mid 60s.
Obituaries
W.D. Dinwiddie and Mattie Thorp
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 2003 by Pecos Enterprise
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