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Bedford County jail reports more than $4.2 million in annual revenue offsets from phones, commissary and inmate housing
Summary
Jail leadership told the committee estimated inmate-related revenues for the year amount to about $4.25 million (phones, commissary, fees and housing), which officials said helps offset a $6 million operating budget but does not make the facility a profit center.
The jail’s administrator reported detailed revenue estimates and said the figures are close approximations, not penny-accurate accounting.
The presenter listed revenue categories: inmate phone revenue of about $203,726.57; commissary receipts of roughly $30,004.80; sheriff’s fees around $49,675; outside-worker offsets of about $58,200; inside-worker offsets of about $91,800; and housing revenues for state and DeKalb County inmates totaling approximately $2,153,889. The presenter gave a combined annual revenue estimate of $4,245,120.97 and noted the county’s annual jail appropriation is about $6,000,000.
The jail official said the intent is not to "turn the Bedford County jail into a for-profit organization," but to be fiscally responsible and reduce the net burden on the county budget by offsetting costs where possible. Committee members asked about program details such as the garden and fair entries; the administrator described community involvement and some operational pressures (high intake in non-winter months).
The committee received the report; no policy change or budget action was requested at the meeting.
