Here are two other agenda items approved at the June 28 session.
$500,000 approved for behavioral health services
Commissioners unanimously approved $500,000 from the county’s American Rescue Plan Act funds for the nonprofit Montgomery County Children’s Advocacy Center, doing business as Children’s Safe Harbor. The approved funds will go toward behavioral and mental health services.
According to a publication from the U.S. Treasury designating uses for ARPA funds, approved uses include outreach to at-risk individuals, improved behavioral services in schools and support for equitable access to treatment. The full list of approved treatments can be viewed here.
Children’s Safe Harbor uses the Children’s Advocacy Center model to coordinate responses from law enforcement and medical professionals to child victims of abuse, according to its website.
According to the agreement, the nonprofit must file a quarterly report to the county auditor’s office. The agreement will naturally end on March 31, 2024.
Jason Millsaps, the county’s director of emergency management, said the contract had taken some time to get sorted and was discussed in the open agenda due to the amount of money.
Overtime for border security funds extended to end of year
Commissioners unanimously approved an item to increase overtime for law enforcement agencies relating to driving while intoxicated, human trafficking and border security. A total of $75,000 was added to the budgets of the county jail, Constable Precinct 3, Constable Precinct 4 and Constable Precinct 5 from the District Attorney’s Office budget.
County Budget Officer Amanda Carter presented the item to commissioners. She said the reallocation would allow those agencies to continue work on several unspecified outstanding cases. The funds were set to expire July 13 and will now run through the end of the year.
Carter said Constable Precinct 1 still had $91,000 on hand, while Constable Precinct 2 “just didn’t make it this round.”
The item did not receive further discussion before approval.
