Craighead County ends 2016 with a surplus in its general fund; constables ask for radio help

Craighead County enjoyed robust sales tax growth in 2016, and if there are no more receipts turned in, the county will have a $310,345 surplus, Craighead County Treasurer Terry McNatt said.

Officials are still trying to determine what factors have led to the unprecedented tax base growth, but McNatt hinted at one factor during the Craighead County Financial Committee meeting Monday night.

“I’m glad more people are living in Craighead County,” he said.

The upward trend continued in January. The county collected $1.667 million in sales taxes last month, a 7.9% increase from January 2015, according to the county. The city of Jonesboro hauled in $1.488 million last month, a 6.19% increase. Both are all-time records for sales tax collection in January.

Sales tax growth has been experienced in other sector as well. Arkansas collects a ½ cent road improvement sales tax. The state keeps 70%, while counties and cities receive 15% each. In January, the county received $72,170, about $10,000 more than was projected.

“That’s a big number,” McNatt said.

The financial numbers in the county were not all positive. The county budgeted $891,615 for its general fund for January, but it spent more than $1.2 million. Craighead County Administrative Assistant Tony Thomas told Talk Business & Politics the county always has a lot of once a year expenses at the beginning of the year, such as insurance and contracts that have to be paid, and it always begins in a deficit.

“This is a totally typical pattern … sometimes we don’t start running in positive territory until October,” he said. “It’s nothing unusual.”

In other business, constables from around the county petitioned Quorum Court members to allow them to use emergency radios already owned by the county or buy them new ones. Constable Steve Floyd told Talk Business & Politics there are 13 constables in Craighead County, and none of them have emergency hand held radios. When a constable stops a car they can be in serious danger and the ability to communicate with the county’s dispatch system is vital, he said.

Several constables had hoped they could use some of the county’s Office of Emergency Management’s radios, but officials told them those radios have to remain with the OEM. Craighead County Sheriff Marty Boyd will allow the constables access to emergency channels if they get the right radios, and if the constables are certified to use them. Floyd thinks eight of the 13 constables are either certified or are in the training program.

Quorum Court members asked Thomas to look into possibly finding a grant to buy radios. The radios can cost up to $4,000 a piece. Floyd was not pleased with the decision.

“No, I’m not satisfied … they (OEM) have got more radios than they need,” he said. “We could be using them.”

Thomas said he understood the constables’ frustrations, and it was a legitimate safety issue. The county pays its constables $35 per month, and if they needed money for equipment it should have been raised last fall before the 2017 budget was formulated, he said.

The county may seek a grant through the Arkansas Department of Finance, he said. It handles federal block grants, including those that cover safety issues, he said. If the county gets a grant, it might only get two or three radios at best, he said. They might be doled on a first come basis, he said.