NewsWest 9
REAGAN COUNTY - It looks like the Reagan County Jail will soon be closing its doors and this time, budget cuts are being blamed.
The current 48 inmates at the Reagan County Jail, and those to come, will be booked and processed there but then transferred to the Upton County Jail starting on October first.
County Commissioners decided on Monday that the jail is just costing too much to operate.
The current's department cost is around $600,000 a year.
By cutting the jail, it could save the county $400,000.
With the oil boom population increasing in Reagan County and the Sheriff says so is crime.
He says he needs all the manpower he can get to patrol the County.
"It could potentially cause some problems of keeping the deputies in the county. Instead of moving inmates back and forth where we have a jail available to us that we could use. I feel like we need to find a common ground and compromise and keep it operational," Reagan County Sheriff, Jeff Garner, said.
Another concern the Sheriff has is cutting back on staff.
He says they already cut positions last year to balance the budget.
