Extra beds for state at jail promise revenue
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is requesting additional beds for former inmates enrolled in substance abuse and other treatment programs, because the programs discourage repeat offenders, officials have said.
The state would pay for the use of the beds, County Commissioners were told at their meeting Tuesday.
“I think it is very positive for our community,” County Judge Donna Klaeger told the Daily Tribune.
While TDCJ seeks to procure more beds by March, county officials plan to open the new jail near the Ellen Halbert Unit for Women on April 1.
“Reincarceration (from drug crimes) costs our taxpayers money,” Klaeger said.
C3 Corrections President Russell Rau, a jail consultant, informed the commissioners about the TDCJ request during the meeting.
“We feel very fortunate this proposal has become available,” Klaeger said.
Rau said letting the new jail provide TDCJ with surplus beds for persons in treatment and “not officially considered inmates” will produce revenue for the county.
“It is a great opportunity,” Rau said. “There are a lot of features to this jail that could be very attractive to TDCJ.”
In response to questions from Precinct 2 Commissioner Russell Graeter and Precinct 3 Commissioner Ronny Hibler, TDCJ would fund the programs and pay for the extra beds without jeopardizing the security of the jail, Rau said.
A job fair for the new 587-bed jail is set for 9 a.m.-noon Nov. 21 at the Texas Workforce Center, 1001 W. Buchanan near City Hall.
More than 100 positions are open at the new facility, including corrections officers, administrative, food, maintenance and medical personnel, officials have said.
Burn ban
Turning to other matters, the commissioners took no action on the burn ban in effect for unincorporated areas.
“This is a tough call,” said County Environmental Services and Floodplain Director Herb Darling, adding weather officials recorded less than 1 inch of rain falling on southern Burnet County Tuesday morning, while nearly 2 inches fell within the central-western part of the county.
However, the average Texas Forest Service Keetch-Byram Drought Index for the county is 639, up 11 points from last week, and the KBDI is as high as 754 in some parts of the county, Darling said.
KBDI measures the potential for forest fires based on daily water balance, and the highest index of 800 indicates extremely dry conditions.
Precinct 4 Commissioner Joe Don Dockery asked if a “specific period of time” could be set aside for burning.
“We have tried that before, and it didn’t work,” Precinct 1 Commissioner Bill Neve said.
About “eight wildfires” broke out when county officials relaxed burn-ban restrictions during a drought several months ago, Neve added.
Road repairs
Turning to discussion of bridge and road repairs still in progress since the June 2007 flood, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has not asked for more documentation regarding the Dry Creek Crossing Improvement Project in Highland Haven, Darling said.
FEMA is still reviewing an application by the county for a grant of $350,000 from the Office of Rural Community Affairs to repair the low-water crossing and culverts at the creek, Darling added.
“It is a no-news, good-news situation,” Darling said.
Workers plan to complete repairs to flood-damaged CR 328 near Cow Creek by the end of the week, Precinct 3 Commissioner Ronny Hibler said, adding repairs to Camp Creek Park and CR 343 near the park will continue through the end of the year.
Talks are still under way between the Governor’s Division of Emergency Management, the Lower Colorado River Authority and county officials over an interlocal agreement that may permit LCRA staff to help clean up the park, Darling said.
drill went well
During time reserved for public comment, Klaeger said the recent Capital State Planning Region 12 Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosives task force exercise went very well.
From command posts in Cottonwood Shores and Granite Shoals, the exercise simulated drowning, sniper fire, plane crashes, road closures and other drills for catastrophic scenarios other than natural disaster, officials said. Hundreds of emergency and communications personnel from Burnet and surrounding counties took part in the exercise Nov. 4, Klaeger recalled.
“It was just an amazing coordination of resources,” Klaeger said. “I feel more confident that if something happens, we will know who to call and how long it will take for them to get here.”
Also during public comments, Neve praised the Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District board.
“The gentlemen on that board are working very hard to protect our water rights for the future,” Neve said.
If the district did not exist, regional planners would stipulate the rules for local groundwater usage, Neve added.
The district held a public meeting to discuss several proposed rules earlier this week, Neve recalled.
“I thought the process went very well,” Neve said, adding he attended the meeting with Graeter.
Neve said he does not agree with all the rules proposed by the district.
According to the draft of the proposed rules, the district has proposed exemptions for existing or new wells from permits provided the wells cannot “produce more than 17.36 gallons of groundwater per minute” and other conditions.
Neve has called the proposed rule “heavy handed.”
While the district was established to regulate the export and commercial use of groundwater, it is not obligated to issue permits for domestic or ranch wells, Neve has said.
raymond@thepicayune.com