Sheriff Eyes Additional Vehicles

A planned change in a Detroit vehicle manufacturing plant prompted Benton County Sheriff Kelley Cradduck to approach the Quorum Court on Thursday about adding money for 10-13 new Chevrolet Tahoes to his budget for 2013.

Cradduck told the justices of the peace the plant where the vehicles are made will be closed next year while the manufacturer makes changes to the body style of the vehicles. Cradduck said it was uncertain when the new-style vehicles would be available but said he had been told the cost will increase more than is normal from one year to the next. He said a normal year-to-year increase is about 3 percent.

“We have been told the cost could be as much as 10 percent more,” Cradduck said. “We’ve been told it will be no less than 5 percent more.”

Cradduck said his office has no money in the 2013 budget for such a large expense. The county approved the purchase of 10 of the Tahoes earlier this year at

At A Glance

Other Business

The Benton County Quorum Court on Thursday unanimously approved:

w Amending the county’s employment and salary policy.

w Authorizing the Sheriff’s Office to charge a $10 fee for fingerprinting service.

w Appropriating $694 in grant money for a rain garden at the county’s Environmental Department.

w Appropriating $142,627 in grant money for software for the Sheriff’s Office.

w Appropriating $27,000 for a new truck and vehicle repairs for the Environmental Department.

w Appropriating $239,700 for fuel, equipment and vehicle for the Sheriff’s Office, Beaver Lake Patrol and the Benton County Jail.

w Appropriating $85,000 for cameras and other security equipment for the Benton County Courthouse.

Source: Staff Report

a cost of about $255,000. Cradduck said his office has been told current models can be bought, but there is an Aug. 28 deadline for placing the orders. He said he wants the justices of the peace to consider buying 10-13 of the vehicles now instead of waiting until next year and said he will provide them with more detailed information before their August meeting.

“I just wanted to make you aware of this,” Cradduck said. “This is an opportunity to save some money. We’ll put something together for you.”

The justices of the peace took no action Thursday on Cradduck’s request. During a later discussion about rescheduling the Quorum Court’s August meeting to accommodate an Association of Arkansas Counties meeting in Hot Springs the justices of the peace agreed to reschedule their meeting for 6 p.m. Aug. 20 so a decision can be made in advance of the deadline to buy the vehicles.

Also Thursday, County Judge Bob Clinard told the justices of the peace he plans to meet with representatives of the fire departments that provide rural ambulance service in the county within the next two weeks to work on a funding formula to reimburse the providers for their costs. The county has been working with eight fire departments — Bella Vista, Bentonville, Gravette, Pea Ridge, Northeast Benton County Fire Department, Rogers, Siloam Springs and Springdale — on how to cover the cost of rural ambulance service for the past four years. The county has reached funding agreements with six of the eight providers for 2014 — with Pea Ridge and NEBCO yet to be decided — and is working on a formula to cover the cost of the service in 2015 and beyond.

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