News-Record.com

At their last meeting on Sept. 16, the County Commissioners decided to establish a committee to decide what should be done with their Inmate Welfare Fund.

This fund is a repository for the money collected from inmates when they pay for items from the jail store (called "the canteen" by Sheriff's Department officials), make collect calls and purchase other services.

The fund has been a source of conflict for the Sheriff, BJ Barnes, and some commissioners. Barnes has been using the money to pay for repairs and equipment that some commissioners, most notably Melvin "Skip" Alston, say doesn't relate to inmate welfare. Alston argues that those repairs, such as buying new paneling for the jail's elevators, should come from county tax dollars.

The new Inmate Welfare Fund committee is supposed to come up with a policy for using the money, presumably to avoid the frequent and prolonged fights over the fund that have become a regular feature at commissioner meetings this year.

The committee's first meeting will be Oct. 11 at 10 a.m. at the Old County Courthouse, 301 W. Market St. in Greensboro. The Sheriff will sit in on meetings but not be a voting member. The commissioners on the committee are Alston and Bruce Davis, both Democrats, and Republicans Linda Shaw, Mary Rakestraw and Billy Yow.