Glasgow Daily Times, Glasgow, KY

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March 10, 2010

Magistrates told DTF grant offered to Edmonson

By GINA KINSLOW Glasgow Daily Times

EDMONTON — Metcalfe County magistrates were notified Tuesday morning that a federal grant offered to the Metcalfe Fiscal Court and the Edmonton City Council has now been offered to another county.

Metcalfe County along with the city of Edmonton had not taken action for four months after being initially offered the grant that would pay the salary and benefits for a task force detective for three years.

Jeff Scruggs with the Barren-Edmonson County Drug Task Force offered a $149,800 American Recovery and Reinvestment Grant to both government entities to provide them with an opportunity to join the task force with one detective for each government entities.

City and county officials have been in a quandary for nearly four months about whether to join the agency. Their biggest concern was how much it would cost to become a member of the agency.

Magistrates originally understood it was would cost the county $2,500 a year for three years to join the drug task force, and they voted to join the agency based on that information. But at their Feb. 9 meeting, Judge-Executive Greg Wilson said they were told it would cost $2,500 for the 2009-10 fiscal year and possibly $10,000 for subsequent years depending on whether the agency received additional grants. Magistrates, as well as city council members, then tabled action on the issue.

Since the tabling, Greg Vincent, county attorney for Edmonson County, questioned why the grant money wasn’t being offered to a member agency. Since that time, the drug task force board of directors voted to offer the grant money to Edmonson County.

At the magistrates’ Feb. 23 meeting discussion arose about the grant money being offered to Edmonson County.

Wilson said he called Scruggs and, “Jeff said they have offered that money to Edmonson County and that he was still not opposed to us getting in, but maybe there would be some more grant money that would come later. That’s where we’re at with the drug task force.”

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