The Hays County Commissioners Court awarded funding to Emergency Services at its March 2 meeting and showed its appreciation to the department for the dispensing of vaccinations after the February winter storm. 
Commissioner Walt Smith commemorated Hays County Emergency Services Office Director Mike Jones and his staff for their quick work ethic after the winter storm halted the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. 
“I really appreciate as soon as we were back up and running after the storm, y’all were in there the very next day putting in the long hours that were needed under some pretty difficult circumstances,” Smith says. “I sincerely appreciate it, and other folks in my precinct 4 really did appreciate the work y’all did at Ranch Park. Having to change the location because of burst pipes at the high school and those kinds of things and working on your feet, we really do appreciate everything y’all do.”
Emergency Services was allocated $15,000 in funds from contingencies to pay for meals to feed volunteers running vaccine clinics and for medical products, such as band-aids, to be used after vaccinations. Countywide Operations Director Tammy Crumley says the average price for the meals ranges between $500 and $700, depending on the number of volunteers that day.
Vaccination volunteers tend to come to the vaccination site around 9 a.m. and stay until the afternoon, according to Jones. 
“We can’t give them any money; the least we can do is feed them and thank them for their effort,” Jones says.
He adds that as of March 2, a little over 25,000 people in Hays County have been vaccinated, and he anticipates the distribution of over 800 vaccines at Wimberley First Baptist Church on March 3. 
Jones says over 30,000 people registered for the vaccine are a part of Tier 1B and over 5,000 are Tier 1A.
Hays County Judge Ruben Becerra used $1,500 of the county judge’s available Community Program Fund to support the Indigenous Cultures Institute. The institute plans to educate citizens on native history and culture. The commissioners also accepted a $15,500 grant collected from donations for the Hays County Child Protective Board (HCCPB). The funds will go toward the remodeling of the HCCPB Rainbow Room.
According to this week’s county jail population and capacity report, which is sent weekly to Becerra from the Hays County Sheriff’s Office, there are currently 410 inmates; jail standards recommend holding 10% capacity open which will lower capacity to 368 inmates. The estimated cost for outsourcing inmates for the week of March 1 is $46,960.
The Hays County Commissioners Court meets every Tuesday at 9 a.m. For more information visit its website.