At Monday’s meeting of the Brown County Commissioners Court, approval was given to the purchase of several new vehicles.  The Sheriff’s Department has been running short on vehicles for several months, and has had trouble finding new vehicles available.  Sheriff Vance Hill recently did find a dealer with three new Dodge SUV’s that meet the requirements of the Department.  Commissioners voted to purchase the three new Dodge Durango vehicles at a cost of $45,000 each, plus another $9,700 for extra equipment necessary for law enforcement work.

The Commissioners also voted to purchase for Precinct 3 a used Ford F350 truck, with 73,000 miles, at a cost of $52,000.  The truck will be purchased from Wildfire Truck Sales, and was the only sealed bid received.

Sheriff Hill also requested new cameras in the County Jail.  He told the Commissioners that there are some segregation cells that are not currently under video surveillance. The Commissioners agreed to purchase the new cameras for the Jail’s video monitoring system at a cost of $30,590.25.  The cameras will be purchased from Guardian Security Systems, and the funds for the purchase will come from the Inmate Commissary Fund.

In other business:

*** The Commissioners agreed to pay local funeral homes $2.50 per loaded mile for the transportation of deceased bodies to other cities for autopsies.

*** Took no action on a burn ban, leaving the current burn ban “OFF” in place.

*** Approved the appointment of Brenda Arp as new County Elections Administrator, effective April 1.

*** Approved a real estate development plat for Pleasant Valley Ranches.

*** Approved authorization of advertisement for bids for a bank depository for the next four years.

The Commissioners also toured the “Old Jail” of the Brown County Museum of History to see the several repairs needed in that building.  No action was taken, but the cost of the repairs will be discussed at a future meeting of the Commissioners Court.