Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the County Budget Vote topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Strafford County criminal-justice subcommittee approves 2026 public-safety budget recommendations
Summary
The Strafford County criminal-justice subcommittee voted to approve 2026 budget recommendations covering corrections, sheriff, dispatch, the county attorney—s office and community corrections. The package reflects nearly $800,000 in lower DOC expenditures and carries risks if federal housing contracts end.
Dover, N.H. — The Strafford County criminal-justice subcommittee voted Jan. 28 to approve its recommendations for the county—s 2026 public-safety budgets, moving a package that covers the Department of Corrections, Jail Industries and HOC laundry, the County Attorney—s Office and Child Advocacy Center, the Sheriff—s Office and Dispatch, Community Corrections, Drug Court and Transitional Housing.
The motion to adopt the subcommittee—s recommendations was moved by Representative Harrington and seconded by Representative Schmidt; a roll call produced an affirmative result and the chair stated the motion passed by 11. The approval advances the subcommittee—s spending guidance to the full delegation and to related revenue subcommittees.
Why it matters: the package contains operational changes and program investments but also reflects shifts intended to address countywide fiscal constraints. The Department of Corrections (DOC) budget presented a net reduction of about $800,000 for 2026; officials said the savings come from unfilled positions, reallocated supervisory roles and other line-item adjustments. The subcommittee also heard that the county—s corrections revenue is closely tied to contracts with federal partners, a factor the panel flagged for further review on the revenue side.
The superintendent of the Strafford County Department of Corrections, Chris Crackett, outlined the department—s key changes, including a reduction in overtime spending he attributed to reaching what he described as a "full contingent" of officers after recruitment efforts. "I do have a full contingent of officers at this time," Crackett told members, noting some positions in the packet were removed because they were unfilled rather than because current employees lost jobs.
Members asked for clarifications on items that changed by more than $10,000, a threshold the chair had set for presenters. The packet showed a decrease in a correctional-staff line from 6,103 to 5,975 (the packet did not specify the units for those figures); Crackett said the difference reflects positions not filled and internal reassignments rather than layoffs.
Other items reviewed included the jail—s HOC laundry contract and the Jail Industries work program, which officials said generates wages and job skills for participants and produced a modest budget increase tied to expanded work. The dispatch budget included higher outside-services costs related to licensing and maintenance after a recent radio-system upgrade; officials said a related grant of roughly $725,000 equipped local municipalities to use the new system.
The subcommittee also heard from community corrections staff about expanded electronic monitoring and a victim-notification app tied to GPS exclusion zones, and from the county attorney and the Child Advocacy Center staff, who said their budgets are largely level.
Next steps: the approved recommendations go back to the full delegation and the revenue subcommittee for parallel review; members indicated they will raise the county—s dependence on federal housing contracts when revenue items are discussed on Feb. 6.
Vote and action: Motion to approve the subcommittee—s recommended budgets was moved by Representative Harrington, seconded by Representative Schmidt, and recorded in a roll call (motion carried; passed by 11).
