Supervisors sign off on inmate plan

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Lowndes County and the City of Columbus are back on the same page when it comes to housing city inmates in the county jail.

The Board of Supervisors signed off an agreement that would bring the city up-to-date on that tab and will get the ball rolling for a new inter-local agreement.

The city will pay just over $321,000 for housing inmates from March of 2025 to May 2026. That represents the $25.00 per inmate per day allowed by state law.

A committee made up of representatives from both local governments worked out the agreement after a joint meeting earlier this month.

District 4 Supervisor Jeff Smith says it’s a good example of what the two groups can accomplish when they communicate with each other.

“It’s important that the citizens of the City of Columbus and Lowndes County know that we are working together to serve them, and that when there’s times when situations occur that require that we sit down in the room and find common ground, we can do just that. That’s important.”

For its part, the Columbus City Council signed off on the agreement at a special meeting June 24th.