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Miller County sheriff reports jail population above rated capacity, seeks higher inmate rates
Summary
Sheriff told the quorum court the county jail held 327 inmates with a rated capacity of about 300 and outlined per-diem reimbursements and plans to negotiate higher federal and state rates to avoid drawing on county funds.
The Miller County sheriff reported to the quorum court that the jail recorded 343 bookings last month and that "today's population was 327," above what he called the facility's "rated capacity is about 300." The sheriff said deputies answered 1,431 calls last month and processed 83 reports tied to 77 arrests.
The sheriff described current per-diem reimbursements and recent payment timing: "We're getting 40 something for the ADC inmates. We're getting 60 for the fed inmates, and we're getting 50 for the sick inmates, right now currently," and said some federal payments had been delayed but were now being processed. He said county leadership plans to seek a rate increase with federal and state partners and to renegotiate the county's federal contract when it comes up for renewal.
Why it matters: The court's budget depends in part on reimbursements for housing inmates from state and federal authorities; when reimbursements lag or rates are low, county general funds may be used to cover jail costs. The sheriff warned that without higher reimbursements or contract changes the county risks operating at a deficit by "holding other people's inmates."
Support and capacity details: During the exchange the sheriff noted the Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC) policy and county limits: "ADC won't go over population, but they expect all county jails to go over population." He said the county has at times handled inmates the state could not accept, and that mental-health or evaluation delays in the local court system can lead to long stays: "we got some inmates over there that we've had there for 2 years... to get them evaluated, sometimes it's 6 months to a year."
Next steps: The sheriff said the county will attempt to negotiate higher per-diem rates with the feds and is expecting potential rate increases for federal, state and city inmates. The court did not take immediate legislative action on jail rates during the meeting; the matter was discussed as part of the sheriff's monthly report.
Ending: The report concluded with follow-up questions from justices about capacity and rates; no formal vote or ordinance on rate changes was recorded in this meeting.
