Tyler

By CASEY KNAUPP
Staff Writer

The Smith County Council of Judges approved the budget of the successful Alternative Incarceration Center program.

Judge Kerry Russell, of the 7th District Court, said the program has saved the county millions of dollars by keeping people out of jail.

The Alternative Incarceration Center (AIC), which began in December 2006, is an intensive supervision probation program for non-violent offenders designed to ease jail overcrowding.

The first year, it was budgeted for 100 people but increased last year to serve 200 people. Currently, 222 people are in the program, the judges said.

Gerald Hayden, director of the Community Supervision and Corrections Department which operates the program, told the judges that the 2009 budget of $788,436 budget is set to serve 200 people. He said the net savings to the county for the year would be $2.35 million.

When asked about having more than 200 people already in the program and the possibility of that number increasing, Hayden said, "We're going to do our best to cover that." He said if the situation gets critical and the budget won't cover the number of people in the program, he would come back to the judges. He said a budget for 300 people would have to be raised to about $1.1 million and would increase the county's savings to $3.6 million for one year.

The savings to the county is calculated by the number of people in the program that would cost $43 per day if they were housed in the Smith County Jail.

The judges approved the budget but said they would recommend to Smith County commissioners that they consider a budget increase to cover the costs of 300 people in the program.

The judges also approved the budget of the Smith County Auditor's Office and held their yearly evaluation of Auditor Ann Wilson.

The judges also approved a 5 percent increase in salary for all of the district court reporters.

District judges Cynthia Stevens Kent, Carole Clark and Jack Skeen Jr. attended the meeting, as well as county court-at-law judges Tom Dunn, Randall Rogers and Floyd Getz.