The Williamson County Commissioners Court approved a majority of the final county budget for fiscal year 2018-19 Tuesday.

The budget order included salaries, holidays, supplemental pay, purchasing, accounts payable and financial policies for the next fiscal year, however there was some back-and-forth between commissioners on the procedure for taking home county-owned vehicles.

County Judge Dan Gattis said the previous policy did not allow for county vehicles to leave the county, with the exception of some personnel who lived only a couple of miles outside the county line and needed to have a vehicle on hand.

Gattis said the county sheriff’s office reported having 21 cars outside of the county line, far more than the three he recalled approving.

“If we’re not going to follow the rules and there’s nobody to make you follow the rule, then why are we going through all of this heartburn?” Gattis said.

Gattis said his concern arose when the sheriff’s office approached the court over the summer asking for more gasoline funding, as funding provided would not last through the end of the current fiscal year.

Precinct 2 Commissioner Cynthia Long said she deemed five of the seven requested Sheriff’s Office exceptions as acceptable since they were ”operationally practical.”

Gattis said he agreed with some exceptions but not all, and ultimately wanted clear rules and accountability on the matter.

“I don’t want departments or elected officials or anybody else going blatantly against those rules,” Gattis said. “When the chief law enforcement agency says, ‘we don’t care what the rules are,’ I get really worried.”

The final decision on the matter was tabled until next Tuesday’s regular meeting, as the Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Tim Ryle requested the commissioners take individual time to talk with Sheriff Robert Chody before coming to a final decision.

Fiscal year 2018-19 begins Oct. 1.

Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey was not present during the meeting.

View the agenda from today's meeting below: