JP Coger's Washington County Newsletter 3/8/26
- Beth Coger
- 25 minutes ago
- 4 min read
📅 Week of: March 8, 2026 📍 Washington County, Arkansas
🗳️ Thank You to Voters
✨ 2,190 Votes of Confidence
Although I was unopposed in this year’s primary election, 2,190 voters took the time to cast their vote for my continued service as your Justice of the Peace.
I am deeply grateful for your support and trust. It is an honor to serve Washington County, and I remain committed to transparency, accountability, and thoughtful leadership on behalf of our community.
— Beth Coger, JP District 9
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🏛️ Community & Civic Engagement
🗳️ Republican Primary Runoff
Election Date: March 31, 2026 (Early Voting Information Below)
Secretary of State: • Senator Kim Hammer • Bryan Norris
Washington County Judge: • Patrick Deakins • Tim Shepard
✔️ Who Can Vote in the Runoff
Eligible voters include those who:
• Voted a Republican ballot on March 3 • Voted a nonpartisan ballot on March 3 • Did not vote in the March 3 election
📍 Early Voting
Washington County Clerk’s Office 280 N College Ave, Suite 300 Fayetteville, AR
Dates: March 24 – March 30 Hours: 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM (No voting Saturday, March 28)
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🟠 Finance & Budget Committee meets Tuesday, March 10, 2026 — 6:00 PM 📍 Read the agenda HERE.
Livestream/Meeting Link: https://www.youtube.com/user/washcoar
What to Expect:
▫️Treasurer’s Report - Bobby Hill
Treasurer’s Fund Summary
Fund | Beginning Balance | Revenue | Expenditures | Net Change | Ending Balance |
General Fund | $18,010,342.22 | $4,553,967.77 | $4,961,436.89 | −$407,469.12 | $17,602,873.10 |
General Reserve Fund | $15,003,664.54 | $49,447.61 | $988.95 | +$48,458.66 | $15,052,123.20 |
ARPA Revenue Replacement | $3,888,595.58 | $15,198.15 | $615,006.46 | −$599,808.31 | $3,288,787.27 |
Jail Maintenance & Operations | $7,404,471.65 | $2,239,054.58 | $1,914,578.63 | +$324,475.95 | $7,728,947.60 |
American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) | $3,212,799.03 | $11,774.07 | $298,509.61 | −$286,735.54 | $2,926,063.49 |
Law Library Fund | $328,985.65 | $2,301.70 | $331,287.35 | −$328,985.65 | $0.00 |
▫️ Employee Insurance Report - Charles Angel
Purpose: Correct a 2025 oversight and ensure employees receive the STEP adjustment approved by the Quorum Court.
Total Compensation: 📊 $19,434.04
Affected Employees • Public Defender’s Office • Prosecuting Attorney’s Office
Budget Impact • Public Defender costs covered within existing budget • $4,199.67 appropriated from General Fund reserves
✔️ Ensures consistency with the county STEP compensation plan.
🟠 Washington County Election Commission meets at 9:00 AM 3/12/26 and at 5:30 PM on 3/13/26 at 2721 S Brink Drive, Fayetteville, Arkansas.
✔️Information on March 12, 2026 meeting (Agenda)
✔️Information on March 13, 2026 meeting (Agenda)
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WASHINGTON COUNTY MEETINGS FROM LAST WEEK:
County Services meeting 3/2/26. Watch the meeting HERE.
✔️ Read a time-stamped summary of the meeting HERE.
✔️ Committee Action: The committee voted to postpone the Industrial Development Authority ordinance indefinitely, effectively ending the proposal unless it is reintroduced in the future.
🔎 Why This Matters: The ordinance would have created a separate authority with the power to issue bonds and negotiate economic development incentives. By postponing the proposal indefinitely, those decisions remain with the Quorum Court, where they are subject to public debate and oversight by elected officials.
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🏛️ Transparency Corner: Public Records
📌 Brief in Support of Motion for Summary Judgment Boggan v. Deakins
📌 Plaintiff’s Response to Motion to Dismiss Boggan v. Deakins
📌 Motion to DismissW/OPrejudiceCamBaker Boggan v. Deakins
📌 Motion to DismissW/OPrejudiceAmyDriver Boggan v. Deakins
📌 Motion to Remove Improper Defendant Driver Boggan v. Deakins
💵 Follow the Money
💵 Bond Financing Snapshot
Ozarks Electric / OzarksGo Industrial Development Bonds
🔷 Total Bonds Authorized: $525,000,000
Breakdown of County Orders:
WC Order No. 2026-01 - Authorizing sale of The Bonds for OzarksGo, LLC/Ozarks Electric Cooperative or its affiliates (collectively, the “Company”) - Aggregate principal amount $40,000,000
WC Order No. 2026-02 - Authorizing sale of The Bonds for Company - Aggregate principal amount $350,000,000
WC Order No. 2026-03 - Authorizing sale of The Bonds for Company - Aggregate principal amount $70,000,000
WC Order No. 2026-04 - Authorizing sale of The Bonds for Company - Aggregate principal amount $65,000,000
📌 Background The Washington County Quorum Court approved Resolution 2025-04 (Nov. 20, 2025) authorizing issuance of revenue bonds for the project in the amount of:
“...$400,000,000, or such greater or lesser amount as requested by the Company….”
The subsequent orders bring the total Revenue Bonds to $525 million.
⚖️ What This Means These are industrial development revenue bonds, typically repaid through project revenues rather than county tax dollars, but they are often tied to significant economic development incentives - and this one was tied to a major tax break for Ozark. See Ozark’s presentation HERE. See Page 18 for details on the tax abatement - as presented to the Quorum Court.
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📊 Washington County Jail Data Dashboard
Transparency through data
Snapshot Date: March 7, 2026
Total Jail Population | 710 | Current incarcerated population |
Pretrial Detainees | 402 | Awaiting trial or case resolution |
Federal Detainees | 85 | Held under federal contracts |
State 309 Program | 35 | Arkansas Department of Corrections inmates |
Listed as Homeless / Unsheltered | 79 | ≈ 11% of jail population |
Sleeping on Floor | 169 | Indicates overcrowding pressure |
📈 3-Day Activity Snapshot
(March 5 – March 7, 2026)
New Bookings | 104 |
Releases | 62 |
🚨 Key Indicators to Watch
These numbers help track pressure on the detention system.
• Floor sleepers: indicator of overcrowding
• Pretrial population: shows reliance on detention before trial
• Homeless population: intersection of housing and justice systems
• Federal beds: impact of federal contracts on jail capacity (It's ridiculous that we rent jail beds to the federal government when we have 169 people sleeping on the floor)
🔎 Public Data Resources
Detailed reports are available here:
Detainee Charge Report:https://www.washingtoncountyar.gov/government/departments-f-z/sheriff/detention-information/detainee-charge-report
You can check the “Calls for Service” board here.
Here’s a list in alphabetical order to search for people.
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🧾 County Bid Postings (as of 03/8/26):
ACTIVE BIDS:
Bid 2026- 08 RFP for Drug Testing - Circuit Court Div. 4. Bid posted 2/19/26; Questions Due: 3/2/26 @ 2:00 PM; Bids Due 3/9/26 at 4:00 PM; Bids Opened: 3/10/26
COMPLETED BIDS:
Bid 2026-07 Quarry Blasting Services. Tabulation Sheet HERE Sign-in Sheet HERE.
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🧑💼Here are the Washington County Job Openings as of 3/8/26
Includes, but not limited to, “Road Department - Road & Bridge Maintenance Supervisor” Salary/Pay Rate: $63,856.00 - $70,387.20.
There are other good job opportunities available - check them out and share!