Trinity County officials weigh closing century-old jail as inmate housing costs soar

Trinity County officials spent a workshop session reviewing rising jail costs, options for housing inmates offsite and operational consequences if the county closes its nearly century-old local jail.

The discussion focused on whether the county should keep the jail open, operate a “skeleton” facility, or rely entirely on contracts with neighboring counties such as Angelina County, where officials said Trinity has a block of 40 beds at roughly $75 per inmate per day. A commissioner who put the topic on the agenda told colleagues the auditor’s packet and a spreadsheet show maintenance, utilities, staffing and inmate-housing costs have grown and that the court needs more information before making a decision.

Why it matters: County staff and elected officials said closing the jail now could remove a local capacity the sheriff uses every day and could shift hundreds of thousands of dollars into contract bed charges and added staffing/transport costs. Officials also flagged non-monetary impacts, such as lost inmate labor used for county maintenance, evidence-storage capacity and animal-control work, and the court’s statutory obligation to provide a jail or an approved alternative.

Sheriff: operational necessity and rising per-diem costs

The sheriff, who presented arrest and cost trends, told the court the county has been sending most inmates to outside jails and that per-diem prices have risen markedly in recent years. He said the county is averaging about 37 inmates housed in Angelina County (the number on the day of the meeting was reported as 41) and that daily per-inmate charges have increased from roughly $25–$40 a day in earlier years to $75–$85 a day in 2025–26. "This jail is my tool," the sheriff said, arguing that routine policing functions — from transporting inmates for court to relying on inmate labor for maintenance — would be harder and more expensive if the county lost local holding capacity.

Legal and operational limits on moving inmates to city holding

Participants reviewed an Attorney General opinion cited in the packet that county inmates in custody must be kept in facilities meeting jail standards. Officials said that if Trinity Police or the city were to hold more inmates, the police facility would likely need upgrades, jail-certified staff and annual inspections — steps that would add cost. The court also noted variability in neighboring counties’ availability and pricing for overflow beds: Angelina County was described as charging $75/day, San County $65/day and Houston County $75/day, with no guaranteed long-term access if beds fill.

Costs, staffing and SB22/SP22 funding

The court reviewed line-item trends for maintenance, utilities, linens and supplies across fiscal years. Speakers said maintenance and plumbing repairs have repeatedly exceeded the $10,000 maintenance allocation and that, when combined with other items, fiscal-year totals have been much higher. Participants also raised staff-safety and payroll issues: dispatchers currently double as jailers in shifts, and speakers warned that moving dispatch elsewhere or eliminating the jail could jeopardize supplemental funds (SP22/SB22) and lead to staffing changes that might prompt turnover.

Practical consequences and program services

Officials listed routine county services that rely on inmate labor — washing county vehicles, maintaining seized properties, cleaning animal-control kennels, preparing meals for in-court inmates and other day-to-day tasks — and warned that shifting those tasks to employees or contractors would add recurring expense and operational coordination. Speakers also raised concerns about court appearances and transport time: deputies spend hours transporting and processing inmates at distant facilities, which reduces patrol coverage.

Options discussed and next steps

Commissioners discussed several alternatives: (1) immediate closure (opposed by the sheriff), (2) maintaining a skeleton operation with a bare-minimum staff model (one speaker estimated a minimum of two full-time jailers and one part-time), and (3) continued use of contracted beds with neighboring counties. Participants also raised the risk that once the county surrenders variances and closes the jail, state regulators are unlikely to reissue the variances, making reopening difficult.

Near the meeting’s end one commissioner moved and another seconded a proposal to carry the jail and staffing issue into the upcoming budget deliberations for more study; the transcript records the motion and seconding but does not show a roll-call vote in the workshop record. The court agreed to hold additional workshops and examine countywide trimming options before making a final decision.

The workshop concluded with officials agreeing to continue working together to identify options and funding sources, including outreach to state and federal partners, and to revisit the matter during the budget cycle.