County to apply for immigration enforcement grant

SMITH COUNTY – The Smith County Commissioners Court voted 4-1 Tuesday to submit an application for the Sheriff Immigration Law Enforcement Grant. Our news partners at KETK report that Senate Bill 8, which instructed the Texas Comptroller to create a grant program to support sheriffs in counties with fewer than a million residents that take part in the 287(g) program, is the source of this grant. This grant is provided directly by the state. The $100,000 grant is available to Smith County, which has a population of over 200,000. If granted, the funds must be used within two years.

Commissioner for Precinct 4 Ralph Caraway Sr. voted against the application, but County Judge Neal Franklin, Commissioners Christina Drewry, J. Scott Jerod, and John Moore voted in favor of it during the commissioners’ court meeting on Tuesday.