Freestone County discusses draft budget, ambulance grant opportunity, staffing and tech costs

Freestone County budget officials reviewed proposed changes to the county’s draft fiscal-year budget Thursday, discussing contingency legal fees, senior-services staffing, cellphone allowances, technology wiring costs and a new state ambulance grant available under House Bill 3000 that the county would have 30 days from its fiscal-year start to apply for.

The discussion matters because the grant, as described in the meeting, could supply one-time funds to purchase ambulances for eligible rural counties, and the county is also weighing routine operating costs and staffing choices that affect service delivery.

Budget staff identified several near-term cost items. Speaker 1, a meeting participant, noted an existing line item for “a fire truck payment” and said she would check that allocation. Speaker 4, a meeting participant, flagged expected additional utility and information-technology expenses tied to the county’s planned move, saying some buildings “don't have a CAT 6 wire run throughout” and that bringing wiring and network connectivity up to standard would be an upfront expense. Speaker 1 added that final amounts for those IT upgrades would become clear after the county receives and accepts construction bids.

The draft budget includes a $7,500 legal contingency listed “in case we do actually go to trial on the ground bar situation,” Speaker 1 said. On senior services, presenters recalled that the program previously used a part-time position and said the county had reverted to part-time staffing after the full-time worker left; Speaker 1 said the current incumbent has also left.

Speakers discussed recurring personnel costs. The draft includes a $20,000 line for a county salary supplement, and Speaker 5 said he provided pay-scale materials and living-wage comparisons from surrounding counties for review. The group also discussed differential pay tied to emergency medical licensure: Speaker 5 said the highest certification level would receive $2,400 per year, paid monthly. On open positions, Speaker 5 said incorporating three vacancies into the salary sheet would change a particular subtotal from $22,800 to about $30,000, though Speaker 3 cautioned the final amount depends on the licenses new hires hold.

County officials also questioned a longstanding cell-phone allowance. Speaker 1 asked whether the budget item titled “cell phone allowance” included SIM-card costs; Speaker 4 and Speaker 1 debated how many county cellular lines existed (17 was mentioned), and Speaker 4 said the budget difference was only about $100 in the current presentation.

On a newly available state grant, Speaker 6, a meeting participant, described a program created by “House Bill 3,000,” operated through the Texas comptroller’s office, that allows rural counties to apply for funds to purchase new ambulances. Speaker 6 said application must be made within 30 days of the county’s fiscal-year start (the speaker cited October 1 as the start) and that the grant requires no local match. According to the discussion, counties with populations of about 10,000 or under could qualify for up to $500,000; counties above that threshold could be eligible for smaller amounts (Speaker 6 cited $315,000 for the next population tier). Speaker 6 emphasized the grant is a “one-time” award and that a county approved for the funding cannot reapply.

No formal motions or votes were recorded during the excerpts reviewed; speakers focused on clarifying line items, reviewing pay scales, and noting the grant application window. Multiple participants asked staff to monitor the grant application process and to supply additional detail on pay scales and payroll-tax treatment of allowances before the court adopts a final budget.

The county’s next steps, as discussed, are to collect bids for the move-related work to fix wiring and utilities, finalize salary-sheet calculations for open positions and benefits, and watch for the comptroller’s application process for the ambulance grant, since the application window is limited to 30 days from the fiscal-year start.