Supervisors consolidate voting precincts

Published 7:00 am Tuesday, October 17, 2017

The Pearl River County Board of Supervisors met and discussed a series of topics during Monday’s meeting.

The Constables Association took the floor first to present a request for additional funds from the Board.

According to Pearl River County Constable Danny Joe Slade, the budget of $1,800 given to the Association is not enough because each county constable is responsible for their own vehicle, maintenance, gas and insurance.

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Slade also said that while it is a part-time paid position, none of the constables have received a paycheck in four months.

The Board agreed to look into the situation as soon as possible.

The Board also finalized voting precinct locations for the upcoming Picayune School District Board of Trustees election set for Nov. 7.

The Pearl River County Election Commission and the Board of Supervisors narrowed the list to 20 locations from an initial 32.

The biggest issue for both parties is that some of these locations have issues with bathrooms, parking or access to the building.

“If we have issues with current voting precincts, why not build designated voting precincts to use in the future?” District 2 Supervisor Donald Hart said.

District 1 Supervisor Malcolm Perry said that this is not a long-term decision but cutting the number of precincts from 32 to 20 locations is progress.

In other news, the Board:

— Authorized the purchase of a Livescan system, which helps law enforcement officials record fingerprints more accurately.

— Also approved the order of ammunition for local authorities. After approving the request, District 4 Supervisor Farron Moeller said, “They’re not only good guys, but they’re good guys with guns. They’re dedicated and they’re always teaching themselves; they’re awfully good.”

— Approved bus turnaround additions for the 2017-2018 school year for the Pearl River County and Poplarville school districts.

— Did not approve the Lamar County School request for GIS information.

The next Board meeting is scheduled for November 6 at 9 a.m.