JP Coger's Washington County UPdate 6/7/26
- Beth Coger
- Jun 7
- 6 min read
THIS WEEK IN WASHINGTON COUNTY:
📅 Finance & Budget Committee meets Tuesday, June 9, 2026 • 6:00 PM - Read agenda HERE. This meeting will be live-streamed on the County’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/washcoar If you can, please attend.
Agenda Highlights:
Item 4: Treasurer’s Report - Bobby Hill
The General Fund ended May with $18.7 million on hand, while the Road Fund held $4.2 million and the Jail Operations & Maintenance Fund held $7.4 million. Property tax collections continue to exceed last year's pace, up approximately 7.9% through May.Â
However, General Fund expenditures through the first five months of 2026 have increased by $2.37 million compared to the same period last year, outpacing revenue growth of $1.03 million. As the county continues major capital projects and program expansions, it will be important to monitor whether spending growth remains sustainable.
Item 5: Employee Insurance Report - Charles Angel
Item 6: Comptroller’s Report - Paul Sherman
Item 7: Ordinance Accepting $81,000 Grant for Social Work Coordinator at Public Defender’s Office. I support accepting this $81,000 grant because it allows Washington County to add a Social Work Coordinator to the Public Defender's Office at no cost to local taxpayers. By helping connect clients with treatment, housing, employment, and other support services, the position has the potential to reduce recidivism, improve public safety, and make our criminal justice system more effective and efficient.Â
Item 10: Ordinance Appropriating $2M to Employee Insurance Fund. I also support this appropriation. Unlike many expenditures that are discretionary, employee health insurance is part of the compensation package we have promised to county employees. The Employee Insurance Fund has experienced significant claim costs and is projected to face additional large claims this year. Appropriating $2 million now is a proactive step that protects employees, strengthens the fund's financial stability, and helps avoid a much larger problem down the road. Our employees should not have to live with uncertainty about their insurance claims being paid.
Item 12: Ordinance Appropriating $506,469.12 to the CAP Budget. Read this report here for CAP 5/1/26 - 5/31/26. CAP stands for Community Alternative Program. It is operated by Returning Home. Last year the quorum court passed Ordinance 2025-58 which funded CAP for the period 5/1/26 to 4/30/27. This ordinance is on the agenda because the money was not spent in 2025 and this reappropriates it for 2026.  I voted against it then and I will vote against it now. CAP is not giving us sufficient return on investment compared to what other programs, such as pretrial services, will do. We’ve invested enough already in this program. Â
Item 13: Citizen’s Comments. A twelve-minute period with a three-minute limit for each individual to comment on items on the agenda or other items. There will also be a twelve minute public comment time before a vote on any ordinance or resolution.
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🔍 TRANSPARENCY CORNER ANDÂ
FOLLOW THE $MONEY$
ArVest Procurement Card Purchases May 2026Â - Total P-Card purchases $57,053.80 = a decrease of $13K from the prior month HERE.
Order 2026-058 - Automatic Window Shades Emergency Operations Center (EOC). $8,349.06 was originally paid from Fund 4802 which is the EOC Construction Fund. This document says that was an error, and it should have been paid from Fund 1000 General Fund. Fund 4802 had a balance of $6,149.52 as of 5/1/26.
Fund 3535 Community Rebuilding Initiative May 2026 Expenses -Read the CRI report for May 2026 HERE. This report does an excellent job explaining what activities are offered and why participants need services, but it provides very little information on whether those services are producing measurable outcomes that justify the program's cost. CRI is not pretrial service.
Emergency Disaster Declaration - I am late with this as it was for last week, but I am still sharing it. Washington County Judge Patrick Deakins signed this Emergency Disaster Declaration on 5/11/26 which, among other things, requested assistance from the Arkansas National Guard 61st Civil Support Team due to the Wal-Mart Shareholders Meeting 5/30/26 to 6/5/26.  I know the traffic was really bad last week.
Order 2026-062 - $308,025.94 for Dell Marketing equipment purchase for the IT Department. Â
WASHINGTON COUNTY MEETINGS FROM LAST WEEK:
The Planning and Zoning Board met 6/4/26 for what turned out to be a very short meeting. Watch the meeting HERE.
The Razorback Division Dump Site CUPÂ was the only controversial item and was tabled pending ADEQ guidance. The Planning Board clearly wanted clarification on how the operation should be classified before approving it. This issue will likely return in July and could generate additional discussion regarding environmental regulation, truck traffic, and whether the operation functions similarly to a landfill.
Overall Outcome
1 Conditional Use Permit approved
1 Conditional Use Permit tabled
4 Minor Subdivisions approved
Read Outline and Summary HERE
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The County Services Committee of the Washington County Quorum Court met 6/4/26. Watch the meeting HERE.
Read Full County Services Summary HERE
One of the most encouraging developments from the June 2 County Services Committee meeting was the thoughtful discussion regarding the creation of a Washington County pretrial services program. While there are certainly details that must be worked out, I appreciate that committee members, county officials, and members of the public engaged in a serious conversation about moving this idea forward. In my view, this discussion should serve as a catalyst for action, not another reason for delay.
The 2020 National Center for State Courts Criminal Justice Assessment Study specifically recommended that Washington County develop a "robust pretrial services program" as part of a broader strategy to address jail overcrowding and improve outcomes in the criminal justice system.
Unfortunately, six years later, that recommendation remains unfulfilled.
It is also important to understand what pretrial services are—and what they are not. The Community Rebuilding Initiative (CRI) is not a pretrial services program because participants remain incarcerated. The very essence of pretrial services is to identify appropriate individuals who can be safely released from jail on the least restrictive conditions possible while their cases are pending. Once released, pretrial services staff help individuals navigate the court process, connect them with treatment, housing, employment, transportation, and other resources, remind them of court dates, and assist them in meeting the conditions of their release. The goal is accountability, court appearance compliance, and public safety—without unnecessarily keeping people in jail simply because they are poor or lack support systems.
Washington County currently has hundreds of pretrial detainees in our jail, many of whom have not been convicted of a crime. A well-designed pretrial services program has the potential to reduce jail overcrowding, improve court appearance rates, connect people with needed services, and make more efficient use of taxpayer dollars. Most importantly, it would finally begin implementing one of the key recommendations from the 2020 Criminal Justice Assessment and move Washington County toward a more effective and evidence-based criminal justice system.
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đź“Š Washington County Jail Data Dashboard
⚖️ Detention Center Data
Snapshot Date:Â June 6, 2026
Individuals Incarcerated in WCDC: 701
Homeless/Unsheltered: Â 79Â Â
🔎 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
Here’s a list in alphabetical order to search for people.
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🧾 County Bid Postings (as of 06/05/26): Â
ACTIVE BIDS:Â Â
Bid 2026-13 - Posted 6/1/26 - High-Density Mobile Shelving System - Washington County Detention Center - Covid Mitigation Project - Bids due: 4:00 PM, June 22, 2026; Bids Opened: 6/23/26 at 9:00 AM. These shelves and other items were originally covered under the $20+M jail expansion funded by American Rescue Plan Act dollars; however, because of cuts and cost overruns, the sheriff asked for an additional $475,000 in his 2026 budget to cover omitted items.
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🧑‍💼Here are the Washington County Job Openings as of 06/6/26
For the first time in quite a while, the county's job openings list is surprisingly short. That's certainly encouraging, but it also raises some questions. Have the many positions that appeared on prior reports been filled? Were some removed from the hiring list? Or has something else changed? Filling vacancies is important for maintaining county services, and accurate staffing information is essential for responsible budgeting and oversight.Â
Full Time | Open Until Filled | $21.91 / HR | |
Full Time | Open Until Filled | 24.38 - 26.86/hr | |
Full Time | Open Until Filled | $76,606.40 - $84,448 | |
Full Time | Open Until Filled | $76,606.40 - $84,448 | |
Temporary | Open Until Filled | 14/Hr | |
Full Time | Open Until Filled | $18.61-$20.51 |
View and apply for job openings HERE. Please share this list! ___________________________________________________________
— Beth Coger
Justice of the Peace, District 9
Washington County Quorum Court
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