Dallas County has been dealing with a myriad of issues over the past several months.
The county auditor recently resigned amid ongoing failures to pay employees and contractors on time. The problem began in April following an update to the county’s financial management system, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.
County officials have also blamed dysfunctional software for Dallas County Jail reaching 97% capacity. Incarceration levels prompted officials to release inmates early. Furthermore, the Dallas County Juvenile Department is under state investigation over allegations of child neglect.
Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins acknowledged these debacles last week following his State of the County address.
“It’s very frustrating. You obviously deserve better as taxpayers of Dallas than that. So we’re going to work to get that fixed,” he said, according to The Dallas Morning News. “It’s a mess.”
Jenkins said his top priority is the surging jail population, but he also shifted blame to the state, claiming that it should accept more inmates from the county.
“Nothing else matters if we can’t keep you safe. So, with this jail situation, we’ve got to get that under control on a short-term priority,” he said, per NBC 5 DFW. “That’s a crisis we’ve got to address.”
Dallas County Sheriff Marian Brown said that the extra expenses for housing more inmates are costing taxpayers $16 million.
Jenkins claimed his next concern will be addressing Dallas County’s juvenile detention center, which has faced allegations of putting more than 100 juveniles in solitary confinement, sometimes without being fed or given medical care.
Both Jenkins and Commissioner Andrew Sommerman serve on the Dallas County Juvenile Board that oversees the detention center. He claimed he and Sommerman have attempted to institute reforms but have been “consistently outvoted” by the rest of the board.
“We will continue as a commissioners court to focus on getting anything that we can to help those kids,” he said, according to the DMN. “I’m hopeful that perhaps the state legislature can help us with the juvenile situation.”
Jenkins confirmed that Dallas County is searching for a new county auditor. He told the DMN that he is assisting in a “national search” to fill the role.
The U.S. Labor Department is also investigating the county over its failures to pay workers, as covered by The Dallas Express. Jenkins claimed that within the next two pay periods, employees would be fully paid.
However, independent consultant and former DART official David Leininger said it would take several months to correct invoices for contractors during an August 15 meeting of the Dallas County Commissioners Court.