Grayson renews Cooke jail beds at $70 a day

GAINESVILLE, Texas — Grayson County has renewed its agreement for Cooke County to house Grayson inmates as needed, and the new contract raises the daily rate to $70 per inmate even as Grayson's jail expansion in Sherman nears completion. Grayson County Commissioners Court took up the renewal Oct. 5 as consent item 7.4, numbered 683/2026, KXII reported. The Grayson County Sheriff's Office asked the court to renew the interlocal agreement under which Cooke County provides housing and care for Grayson inmates incarcerated as needed. The contract attached to the Grayson agenda item runs from Oct. 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2027. It sets a rate of $70 per inmate per day for beds at the Cooke County Jail in Gainesville. The beds are as-needed and non-exclusive: Grayson decides whether to send inmates, and Cooke decides whether to accept them. Cooke bills Grayson monthly. Grayson remains responsible for medical costs beyond routine care, prescription drugs, a guard for any hospital stay longer than four hours, and non-emergency inmate transportation. Either county may end the agreement with 30 days' written notice. Unlike the 2022 version of the agreement, the new contract does not renew automatically. Both commissioners courts must approve any later one-year renewal, and payments depend on available current revenues. The 2022 contract set the daily rate at $55. The contract lists signature lines for Cooke County Judge John Roane and Grayson County Judge Bruce Dawsey, with Cooke County Sheriff Ray Sappington and Grayson County Sheriff Tony Bennie approving it as to substance. It takes effect on the last date both county judges sign it. Grayson has housed some inmates in other counties' jails for years because of crowding. Its expansion adds 166 beds, KXII reported in September. The sheriff's office said the new wing should open in November. Inmates will move there while older sections are remodeled with housing upgrades and new showers, work expected to wrap up by February. Lt. Jeremy Cox of the Grayson County Sheriff's Office told KXII the county plans to keep outside jail agreements in place for now. "We're maintaining that relationship into this new budget year, but once that jail is finally completed, and that remodel is complete, and staffing is up, and we can fully open that jail to its fullest capacity, then we will reevaluate the necessity of those relationships," Cox said.