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Potter County forms review committee after dispute over mortuary transport and cremation contracts
Summary
The court approved creating a committee of county attorneys, JPs, purchasing and vendors to review contract, licensing and outstanding invoices after a prolonged dispute about whether the county must pay a $3,080 storage bill and which vendors should be used for transport and cremation.
A heated exchange at the Nov. 12 Potter County Commissioners Court led the court to form a review committee to examine recent awards and outstanding invoices related to county body transport and cremation services. The item grew into an extended debate after some justices and funeral‑service providers urged the court to allow Schaeffer Mortuary to be paid for services provided under earlier arrangements; county counsel and purchasing staff said the court had followed counsel and procurement process when the contract was awarded to Lighthouse (and an entity identified as Joe Mortuary).
Judge Taylor described a case where the county was billed $3,080 for storage and said the county “spent roughly $3,000 more than what we should have.” Taylor and other JP representatives argued Schaeffer had served the county during COVID and should not be penalized for prior service. County purchasing staff said the transport contract had been awarded following the required bidding process and that some checks were voided and would be reissued correctly.
County attorney staff and commissioners repeatedly cited the need to verify licensing and regulatory requirements. A commissioner asked counsel to clarify whether transport alone triggers licensing under the Texas Funeral Service Commission rules and related administrative code provisions; counsel advised additional research and recommended a focused meeting. Several local funeral professionals, including Patricia Garcia of Lighthouse Funeral Home and Joel Carver (identified as Lighthouse owner), spoke to describe refrigerated storage capacity and the practice of holding decedents until families choose a funeral home.
The court voted to assemble a review group including the county attorney's office, purchasing, representatives of JP judges, the sheriff and invited representatives from the state funeral commission for technical guidance. County staff were instructed to hold two voided checks for Schaeffer and an Underwood Law Firm invoice pending the committee’s review and to rerun the voucher report to correct total amounts appearing because of voided checks. The court did not authorize retroactive payments at the Nov. 12 session; commissioners said they would return with the committee’s findings.
