THOMASVILLE- The Thomas County Board of Commissioners met on Tuesday evening, where they unanimously approved a $13,000 matching requirement for the Thomas County Accountability Court to continue its offerings in FY 2024.

Program Director Jennifer Fabbri spoke to the board on the importance of their contribution and how it would be utilized in the upcoming fiscal year.

“Our programs are primarily grant funded,” Fabbri explained. “We get grants given to us by the Council of Accountability Court Judges (CACJ), which is our governing body by the state.”

Fabbri said she was happy to report that all the programs in the Southern Judicial Circuit were approved for another round of grants as written, without any major cuts that other circuits faced.

Fabbri provided a handout to the commissioners that detailed what the state grant supplied.

The state grant provides $82,557.64 to the Thomas County Accountability Court.

The state pays $6,189.70 as part of the coordinator’s salary and $4,766.36 for in-state training and travel, along with conferences coordinators are required to attend. The state additionally pays $3,521.58 for the drug testing of individuals enrolled in Accountability Court.

Most of the grant goes toward the contract of the case manager, who is paid $31,500 for their services, the surveillance officer, who is paid $6,000 for their services, and the treatment provider, who is paid $28,180 for their services.

The county’s match requirement would help with the coordinator’s salary, providing $9,540 for a total salary of $15,729.70. The County would also match the price of drug testing, providing $3,495.42 for a total cost of $7,017 for drug testing over the fiscal year.

Fabbri assured the commissioners that the match was going to good use, as the Accountability Court had grown exponentially in its first year of operation.

The court currently has 28 active participants.

“To put that in perspective, Lowndes County, who has both a substance abuse and mental health track, have only 22 participants,” Fabbri said. “I’m super proud of the program over here and how fast it is growing.”

Fabbri told the commissioners the first class of Thomas County Accountability Court participants will graduate some students in a ceremony set for early fall.

“We are about a two-year average program, so these people have put in a lot of hard work into their recovery and I’m super proud of them,” Fabbri said.

Fabbri believes this graduation ceremony will only drive up the numbers of individuals who want to participate, projecting a growth of up to 35 participants.

Individuals who choose to participate in the coming fiscal year are guaranteed the best practices, as the CACJ Standards and Certification Committee fully certified the Thomas County Accountability Court for their adherence to standards and practices this past year. Additionally, Fabbri was named the Star Coordinator for the State of Georgia for her work with participants.

Upon the completion of her presentation for matching funds, Fabbri accepted questions from the Commissioners.

Commissioner Mark NeSmith asked Fabbri to elaborate on the mental health track she mentioned earlier that Lowndes County offered.

Fabbri explained the mental health track is currently the only option available here in Thomas County and was deemed necessary after Southwestern State Hospital closed.

“The jail was having a lot of issues with inmates who had mental health issues,” she said. “Obviously, the jail is not a mental hospital, so Judge Prine headed up the effort of getting a grant for Mental Health Treatment Court.”

While participants do often have substance abuse issues, the primary focus is mental health.

NeSmith then turned his attention to Judge James Prine, who was in attendance, asking him if he thought the Accountability Court was doing good work in Thomas County.

“I’ve had the ability to see them when they are in court enter their guilty plea, and it’s really amazing to see their transformation as they go through this,” Prine said. “We have several participants who have jobs and are making money and receiving promotions.”

Prine acknowledged that there are a few who mess up from time to time, but stated, “everyone is human.”

“I’ve seen great improvement, though and I’m very hopeful,” Prine said.

NeSmith thanked Prine for his time and said he was thrilled this was an offering in the Thomas County Community.

With all questions answered, Board Chairman Zippy Vonier accepted a motion to approve the matching of funds.

NeSmith made the motion with Commissioner Wiley Grady offering a second. The motion was passed with Thomas County Accountability Court receiving the matched funds they needed to continue in FY 2024.