Commissioners postpone award of county pauper cremation contract after questions about single‑vendor approach

HUNT COUNTY — Hunt County Commissioners on Tuesday postponed action on two procurement items for indigent burial and cremation services after commissioners questioned whether awarding the contract to a single vendor would reduce countywide service and response capability. The County’s pauper burial/cremation committee recommended awarding the contract to Love and Integrity Cremation Services, saying the vendor met mandatory requirements, offered competitive pricing and demonstrated the ability to provide services for indigent decedents. The proposed contract term was presented as effective Aug. 12, 2025, through Aug. 11, 2026, with renewals available for up to four additional one‑year periods (maximum term ending Aug. 11, 2030). Commissioners raised concerns that the two low bids were close to the county’s historical per‑case rates and that designating a single provider could leave parts of the county underserved in an event that required multiple simultaneous responses. "What happens when it's over in Commerce or Quinlan or somewhere else and longer to get there, and we're cutting somebody out in another part of the county instead of letting everybody do it at the current rates?" a commissioner asked. Anthony Alvarado of Ingram Funeral Home, who said his family is taking over that funeral home, told the court that some funeral homes did not submit proposals because they believed their prices would be too high to be competitive, and raised an operational concern: Love and Integrity’s facility is smaller and Alvarado said his own firm currently provides contracted storage and handling for Love and Integrity’s caseload. He said that, if Love and Integrity is awarded the county contract, his firm could be required to store decedents for the other vendor and would need to charge more to cover that capacity. County staff and commissioners discussed alternatives, including retaining multiple vendors at the county’s current rates, honoring the competitive process and using a first‑right‑of‑refusal/primary call order, or leaving the arrangement as is so that justices of the peace could continue to contact available vendors. After discussion the court voted to postpone both old‑business items to a future meeting for further consideration; no award was made Tuesday. The commission also discussed a possible budget reallocation to place the indigent burial expense on office budgets (such as the justices of the peace) to give those offices more direct responsibility for cost control. No formal reallocation was adopted Tuesday. Action: Items relating to award of pauper burial and cremation contracts were postponed to a future meeting. No vendor award or contract signature was recorded during the meeting.