At Monday’s meeting of the Brown County Commissioners, approval was given to funding for the Brownwood Senior Citizens Center.  The funding in the amount of $164,284, which is in the approved County budget, goes toward the Center’s meal service.  This funding from the County is needed for the Center to apply for additional funding from the Texas Agriculture Department’s “Texas Feeding Texans” grant program.  The Senior Citizen Center serves meals at noon Monday through Friday.  Citizens age 60 and above are suggested to make a donation of $6 for the meal, but the donation is not required.  Citizens under the age of 60, who are accompanying a senior citizen, are required to pay $6.44 for the meal.  Senior Citizen Center Director Angie Dees said that in fiscal year 2023/2024, the Center served 33,604 meals on site, and home-delivered 48,862 meals.

In other business:

*** Commissioners approved the suggested change of vendor for the Brown County Sheriff’s Department Inmate Telephone System.  That service is currently provided by CTC Tele Coin, and comes up for renewal every five years.  Six companies submitted bids on the contract for the next five years.  The Sheriff’s Department recommended contracting with NCIC Correctional Services for the next five years, citing service, rates, commissions, and other benefits in NCIC’s bid.  Commissioners approved.

*** Sheriff Vance Hill reported no change in service fees in the Sheriff’s Department and the Constables Office for fiscal year 2025/2026, other than a possible increase in jail fees.  The Sheriff’s Department currently charges cities in Brown County $35/day to house persons arrested by the cities, but would like to raise that to $45/day, if agreed to by the cities.  Commissioners approved.

*** Sheriff Hill also presented an agreement between the Sheriff’s Office and Lifeguard Ambulance Service regarding transfers of inmates from Brown County Jail.  In the proposed agreement, Lifeguard would charge the Sheriff’s Department the standard Medicare transport fee plus 30%, when transporting inmates from the Jail.  Hill said the new agreement will save his department about $30,000 per year.  Commissioners approved.

*** Commissioners approved the Preservation and Restoration Record Archival Fee, as presented by District Clerk Cheryl Jones.  The fee of $30, which is included in all civil fees, will remain the same in the new fiscal year, per Jones’ request.  The fee is used to preserve and restore official paper records in the District Clerk’s office, as the name suggests.

*** Commissioners agreed to keep the Burn Ban in effect for now.

*** David Becktold, Deputy Treasurer of Brown County, presented the monthly Treasurer’s/Auditor’s report for August 2025.  At the end of August Brown County had on hand in the bank $19,283,820.19, in the form of cash and certificates of deposit.