BENTONVILLE — The Benton County Quorum Court edged closer to a decision on working with Washington County to administer a regional HIV clinic.
The Quorum Court approved a second reading of an ordinance establishing an interlocal agreement with Washington County setting up a board of directors to govern the Northwest Arkansas Regional HIV Clinic, formerly known as the Washington County HIV Clinic.
The Fayetteville clinic has been paid for by Benton and Washington counties and Washington Regional Medical Center for several years. The proposed interlocal agreement would formalize the arrangement and set up a board to oversee the clinic and pursue funding from other sources.
The ordinance approving the agreement between Benton and Washington counties on the clinic was recommended for approval last month by the Quorum Court’s Committee of 13 and sent on to the full Quorum Court for its consideration.
George Spence, the county’s attorney, told the justices of the peace at their December meeting state law requires ordinances be read three times at three separate meetings unless the body considering the ordinance votes to suspend the rules and read it more than once at a single meeting. Because a vote to suspend the rules requires approval by two-thirds of total membership of the governing body, Spence told the justices of the peace that suspending the rules at a Quorum Court meeting requires the votes of nine of the 13 justices of the peace. Three members of the Quorum Court were absent at the December meeting and when the motion was brought to a vote, only seven of the 10 justices of the peace present voted in favor of suspending the rules, leaving the ordinance on the Quorum Court’s agenda for its next meeting.
The justices of the peace discussed the proposal briefly Thursday, with some of the court’s new members asking questions about funding for the clinic and enlarging the scope of governmental involvement to include area cities. The court voted to approve the second reading by a vote of 13-0, placing the item on the agenda for the Quorum Court’s February meeting for what would be its third and final reading.
In its other business, the group approved the reappointment of Glenn Jones to the Benton County Historical Preservation Commission and authorized County Judge Bob Clinard to apply for a continuing grant for the county’s adult drug court.
***
At A Glance
HIV Clinic
Washington County now provides 38 percent of the money, Washington Regional Medical Center provides 36 percent and Benton County provides 16 percent for the Northwest Arkansas Regional HIV Clinic. The balance of the clinic’s funding is from other sources, such as insurance reimbursements and donations. Benton County’s share of the funding was $34,000 in 2010. Benton County residents account for 39 percent of the clinic’s case load.
Source: Staff Report