Editor

White County Sheriff Pat Garrett's request for two additional deputies for calendar year 2002 to use in his department's fight against drug trafficking in the county was shot down at Tuesday night's meeting of the quorum court's budget committee.

The meeting was held in the courtroom at the White County Courthouse.

The county's elected officials and representatives of the non-mandated programs the county helps fund were on hand to present their proposed budgets for next year.

Frugality was the order of business. County treasurer Waylon Heathscott asking on more than one occasion, "If we have to cut in your department, where do you want the cuts to come from?"

But most of the attention and most of the time were spent with Sheriff Garrett and Major Kyle Stokes explaining and defending their budget.

Acknowledging that he had brought the committee a budget "I truthfully wasn't ready" the first time, Garrett explained that the budget he brought to the court last night was the work of he and Stokes.

The proposed two extra deputies were going to be used in Garrett's drug program, and he explained to the budget committee, he and another officer are currently the only two people the department has working to combat drugs.

The deputies were cut though as were raises (step grades are permissible), and the sheriff was told to budget no increase for overtime in 2002. Regarding the possibility of the county facing an emergency that would require considerable overtime by the deputies, JP David Freppon said, "That's a bridge we'll have to cross when we get there."

Noting that he will be able to turn back $30,000-$35,000 from his budget this year, Garrett said, "I've cut every corner I know to cut."

The sheriff was conciliatory throughout most of the discussion promising to try his best to do as instructed by the committee, but he became edgy when committee chairman George "Bud" Osborn asked if he would refrain from using a $12,000 insurance settlement on a wrecked sheriff's department car to buy another car until 2002. "

You're talking apples to oranges," Garrett told Osborn, adding "I feel like it (the money) ought to be used to replace the car." Osborn told the sheriff and all present that "It's tough; we've never had problems like this in the last few years," expressing a genuine concern the county may have problems getting through the end of this year.

Both Osborn and Freppon assurred Garrett that the money could be reappropriated at the start of 2002 for another vehicle.

Expressing concern that the court might "forget about that", Garrett, when told that wouldn't be the case, said "You'all's word gotta be good for something."

The no raise policy will be in effect throughout the county employment rolls.

The committee will hold at least one and likely more meetings before bringing a budget to the entire court.