Trending
GRANTSVILLE -- The Calhoun County Commission is paying down its jail bill and voted to keep the county dry.
Commission President Chip Westfall said the county has an outstanding jail bill from a few years back, but is paying it off. The commission was able to pay off the bill for last year and get current on this year's bill, he said.
A few years ago, the bill was higher because of the level of criminal activity at the time.
A murder took place which led to the arrest of seven people in Calhoun County, Westfall said.
"Our bill now is running between 20 to 25 thousand, at that time it was $30 to $35 thousand per month," Westfall said.
Revenue from a compression station kicked in along with the help of other property tax payments. The station will bring in more funds during the next fiscal year.
The commission also reduced courthouse expenses to free more funds to pay down the jail bill.
The county clerk's office runs with only one employee the only county in the state to do so, Westfall said.
However, with those cuts, nobody was laid off or lost their job. If someone quit or retired, they didn't find replacements for those positions, Westfall said.
During the June meeting, the commission voted to keep the county "dry" in accordance with what the citizens voted on in the past.
State legislation earlier this year provided all counties would be wet, but counties were given the opportunity to remain dry.
Westfall said the commission made that decision, but if citizens proposed a petition signed by 25 percent of voters, it would pave way for a special election on the issue.
Westfall said he hasn't heard of a petition. Calhoun is the only county in the state that is dry, he said.
Candice Black can be reached at cblack@newsandsentinel.com.