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Sheriff’s refusal to accept federal inmates could cost Nueces County $450,000 and imperil jail annex plans
Summary
Commissioners were told the sheriff believes a recent law change prevents accepting federal inmates; the court identified a roughly $450,000 revenue shortfall and said the McKinsey annex opening and staffing plans may need reassessment pending a county‑attorney advisory.
NUECES COUNTY — County leaders said Wednesday the county could lose roughly $450,000 in expected revenue after the sheriff indicated he will not accept federal inmates because of a recently passed law affecting mental‑health evaluation and holding requirements.
Miss Gartner, the county auditor, had included an estimate for housing federal inmates in revenue projections but cautioned the line may be high. The county judge told commissioners the sheriff ‘‘is of the opinion that he will not have any federal inmates in the jail for the foreseeable future because of the pending changes in the law,’’ and the court marked the $450,000 as a material issue to revisit in the budget.
Commissioners discussed asking the county attorney for an advisory opinion to determine whether the sheriff’s interpretation is a legal bar that could be remedied administratively. One commissioner said a legal advisory ‘‘might change his mind’’ if it showed acceptance of federal inmates is legally permissible; others stressed that if the sheriff’s concern is operational (jail population and classification requirements) a legal opinion may not resolve the staffing and classification constraints.
The revenue uncertainty has direct implications for the McKinsey annex jail expansion. Commissioners said the annex’s financial model assumed some federal inmate revenue to offset costs and staffing (corrections officer) commitments. The judge said the McKinsey annex will not open in the current budget year (estimated completion January–February 2019) and the court will revisit whether to proceed as planned, consider pausing construction spending or absorb potential breach‑of‑contract consequences if adjustments are necessary.
Next steps: commissioners agreed to request an advisory from the county attorney and continue conversations with the sheriff and judges about jail population reductions and classification steps that might permit federal inmate housing in the future.
No formal vote was taken on the matter during the workshop.
