This interview was recorded Wednesday, Sept. 1, at the Henderson County Courthouse Annex.

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This week, Judge Wade McKinney provides a COVID-19 update and talks about the start of redistricting.

I. COVID Numbers (:50)

COVID-19 hospitalizations in Henderson County's region (TSA-G) keep going up, with 776 COVID-19 patients hospitalized at the time of this interview. The region sets a new record for the most hospitalized nearly every day.

** Texas separates the state into 22 regions called Trauma Service Areas, or TSAs, for hospital data. Henderson County's region is designated TSA-G and includes Tyler/Longview. TSA-G includes about 960,000 people.

Locally, the Athens hospital has been averaging between 50 and 60 COVID-19 patients.

Additionally, the number of COVID-19 fatalities is rising with Henderson County seeing at least one death in six of the last seven days. According to the Department of State Health Services (DSHS), there were 16 COVID-19 deaths in Henderson County in August.

There is some good news, according to Judge McKinney, who tracks the statistics daily. He said the increase in cases seems to be slowing.

"That's what had us so concerned in the beginning during this spike, was that rate of increase was so drastic," he said.

But now that rate of increase is slowing.

"When you see a slowing of that increase, it gives you some indication that maybe a plateau is coming," Judge McKinney said.

The number of people getting vaccinated also continues to climb, according to the Judge.

"Over the last five weeks, we have averaged at or above 1,000 doses a week being administered," he said.

During the interview, Judge McKinney also talked about Commissioners Court approving a plan that would provide payments from American Rescue Plan Act funds to flow from the County, through the Hospital Authority, to UT Health East Texas - Athens. You can read more about that program below.

IV. Redistricting (26:20)

Henderson County has a new population, according to the 2020 Census. Judge McKinney said that number is 82,150.

He said the new numbers do show that Henderson County will have to redraw county precincts to balance the population.

"We should have our initial documents in the next week to 10 days, which will set the stage for us to start the redistricting process," Judge McKinney said.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Sept. 1, at the Henderson County Justice Center.

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This week, Sheriff Botie Hillhouse talks about extending the ban on visitation 14 days, K-9 Valco's first arrest, and Labor Day weekend.

I. Stats (:37)

There are currently 431 inmates in the jail with 105 of those being contract, out-of-county inmates.

II. Visitation (1:10)

While the number of inmates with COVID-19 has come down, there are still six inmates positive and two dorms on quarantine. Because of that, the current ban on in-person visitation has been extended 14 days.

"Visitation is still closed for a couple more weeks," Sheriff Hillhouse said. "Hopefully, with that being done, we can get the virus out of the jail and open it back up where folks can come see their loved ones."

Phone and video visitation are ongoing.

III. Valco's Arrest (3:16)

Friday, Aug. 27, a criminal trespass arrest turned into a chase when the suspect ran away from custody. The suspect entered a house and hid from officers.

Deputy Meagan Hogan and K-9 Valco were called and entered the house. Valco alerted on a closet where the suspect was found.

"He's only been here a couple of months, but he got his first arrest," said Sheriff Hillhouse. "It worked exactly how it is supposed to."

IV. Labor Day Weekend (5:44)

Monday, Sept. 6, is Labor Day and that means the Sheriff's Office is getting ready for extra visitors to the county, particularly to the lake areas.

"Labor Day weekend is usually a very busy weekend for us," Sheriff Hillhouse said.

Sheriff Hillhouse said the Sheriff's Office will have boats out on Lake Palestine and Cedar Creek Lake this weekend, and will have extra deputies patrolling the roads.

"If you need some help, we'll be out there," he said, "but we'll also be out there looking for violations of the law and trying to keep everybody safe."

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 25, at the Henderson County Justice Center.

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In this week's episode, Henderson County Sheriff Botie Hillhouse talks about COVID-19 in the jail, a shooting that turned into a murder, and multiple drug arrests.

I. Stats (1:40)

There are currently 424 in the jail with 102 of those being out-of-county inmates.

II. COVID-19 (2:52)

Cases of COVID-19 in the jail have gone down, according to Sheriff Hillhouse.

"We're down to one inmate that has tested positive right now and then nine other inmates in quarantine," he said. "I do have three detention officers that are out with it and seven or eight other employees out with it."

There were about 40 inmates who were positive for COVID-19 when visitation in the jail was stopped.

"This is just proof that if we can quarantine and lock people down we can try and get control over it," he said.

Sheriff Hillhouse said he is going to ask for an extension to the original 30-day visitation shutdown to protect the inmates.

III. Shooting (5:12)

Sheriff Hillhouse discussed a shooting last week that ended in a man's death.

Wednesday, Aug. 18, Huey Edward Nichols, 85, was charged with Murder and is in the Henderson County Jail.

According to Sheriff Hillhouse, Nichols said he felt threatened so he fired a single round from a 38-caliber revolver through his screen door, striking the victim in the upper abdomen. The victim died the next morning.

According to Sheriff's Investigator Daniel Wright, the victim went to the home in the 14000 block of VZCR 4811 to check on the welfare of the suspect, which is in Henderson County. There were no signs of forced entry or a struggle, though the suspect said he was threatened.

The family of the victim said they regularly drop by unannounced to check on the status of the neighbor.

The case will be taken to the grand jury and will move forward from there.

IV. Narcotics Arrests (7:59)

Deputy Jonathan Barrios has been busy! The Deputy has racked up a series of narcotics arrests recently.

"Just this last week he's made five narcotics arrests from Gun Barrel City to the City of Athens," said Sheriff Hillhouse. "He's just working hard."

"It's getting that stuff off the street and that's the main goal," he said.

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This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 18, at the Henderson County Courthouse Annex.

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This week, Judge Wade McKinney talked with Michael V. Hannigan about Census data and its impact on county redistricting. He also gives a COVID-19 update.

I. Census Data (1:00)

Data from last year's Census count is starting to trickle out, but slowly.

"We are still waiting for the complete data to come in from the U.S. Census," Judge McKinney said.

That data is important because it is used to redraw the county's precincts every 10 years, a process that is now due. However, the delay in releasing the information has the redistricting process running up against next year's election cycle.

Judge McKinney said the data was delayed in 2010 as well and at that time primary elections were moved back to allow more time for redistricting. It would take the State Legislature to move the primaries, he said.

The Judge said the improvements in software should help the County accelerate the actual drawing of the new maps. He said the time period for public input on redistricting would stay the same, however.

The County has retained the firm of Allison, Bass & Associates to help with the redistricting process. According to Judge McKinney, the law firm has worked on the County's redistricting efforts for the past 30 years.

"We're in good, capable hands," he said.

II. COVID-19 Update (11:18)

COVID-19 hospitalizations in Henderson County's region (TSA-G) were at  551 at the time of this podcast. Hospitalizations continue to go up, otherwise, there has been no substantial change in the COVID-19 situation in the county since last week.

Judge McKinney said the local hospital is as full as it was in January during the height of the pandemic.

Last week, the judge provided a more complete COVID-19 update which you can hear/read below.

The Judge did say that vaccinations are trending in a positive direction, with more than 1,000 doses being given in the county each of the past three weeks.

"From all indications, the vaccine helps prevent the serious illness and severe hospitalization," he said.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 18, at the Henderson County Justice Center.

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This week, Sheriff Botie Hillhouse has a reminder about the importance of public tips. In this week's episode:

I. Stats (:49)

This week, there are 426 in the jail including 102 out-of-county inmates. The past few weeks, the jail has been averaging over 400 inmates.

The Sheriff also talks about the importance of the out-of-county inmate contracts, which are on pace to bring in more than $1 million.

"We've got a $13 million budget between law enforcement and the jail operations here, so we're about one-third of the county budget," he said.

II. COVID (3:04)

COVID-19 cases in the jail have gone down.

"It's getting a little better," Sheriff Hillhouse said.

Visitation at the jail has been shut down for the past three weeks as the Sheriff's Office worked to slow the spread of COVID-19. Sheriff Hillhouse said the jail is down to seven positive cases and there are 64 inmates quarantined. That is substantially less than when the outbreak started.

"Our numbers are going down," he said, "which makes us feel better to know that closing visitation and locking everything down like we had earlier works."

III. Public Tips (4:51)

Tips from the public led to the arrest of two men Tuesday, according to Sheriff Hillhouse. You can read about those arrests here.

Sheriff Hillhouse said this was a great example of how important tips are for the Sheriff's Office.

"We listen to you and if you have any information please notify us," he said, "because we can take those tips and turn them into cases and get some of these folks off the street and get some drugs off the street also."

"We take your tips very seriously," he said.

If you have a tip:

* Call the Sheriff's Office at 903-675-5128.

* Call Crimestoppers at 1-800-545-TIPS.

* Contact the Sheriff through the Facebook page.

IV. Cops and Kids Picnic (8:11)

The Sheriff along with members of the Sheriff's Office were at Faith Fellowship Church Saturday afternoon for the first Cops and Kids Picnic. The event was a success and Sheriff Hillhouse said he is looking forward to next year.

"It turned out great," he said. "We had lots of kids, and lots of parents, interacting with the deputies. We just had a really good time."

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 11, at the Henderson County Justice Center.

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I. Stats (:49)

There are 428 inmates currently in the Jail with 107 of those being out-of-county contract inmates.

II. Radios Online (1:21)

The new communications system is up and running with deputies using handheld radios. The equipment for patrol cars still needs to be installed.

"The portable radios are better than the system we were working on," Sheriff Hillhouse said. "It's working great. We're all excited, you can actually hear."

Sheriff Hillhouse gave a demonstration of the new radios during the podcast.

"It's like they're sitting in the room with you," he said.

III. Visitation Shutdown (7:07)

Visitation in the Jail has been suspended for 30 days because of a COVID outbreak within the inmate population.

"We've been struggling there for a few weeks," Sheriff Hillhouse said.

The Sheriff said the situation is getting better, but nearly 25 percent of the inmate population is still on quarantine for infection or first-hand contact. In addition, there are 15 employees of the Sheriff's Office infected or with first-hand contact.

IV. Academies (10:58)

Students of the Jail Academy conducted by the Sheriff's Office graduated last week. This week, it was students sponsored by the Sheriff's Office who graduated from the Police Academy.

"I'm excited to help these young officers further their career," Sheriff Hillhouse said.

The two graduations highlight the process outlined by the Sheriff in a recent podcast.

Those starting out in law enforcement can work under a temporary jailer's license for a year. During that year, the Sheriff's Office will send you to school to get a permanent jailer's license. If you want to become a peace officer, there are opportunities for the Sheriff's Office to send jailers through the police academy.

If you are interested, visit the Sheriff's Office to pick up an application or call the office at 903-675-5128 to get an application emailed to you.

V. Cops and Kids Picnic

The Cops and Kids Picnic will be 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 14, at Faith Fellowship Church. There will be hot dogs and drinks, door prizes, and the Sheriff's Office will be there with patrol cars, K-9 units, and the armored vehicle.

"It is going to be a lot of fun," said Sheriff Hillhouse. "I always enjoy doing events like this."

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

The following interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 11, at the Henderson County Courthouse Annex.

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This week's County Report with Judge Wade McKinney focuses on COVID-19.

I. Current Stats (:38)

As of this recording, there were 438 COVID-19 patients hospitalized in TSA-G. Henderson County is part of Trauma Service Area G (TSA-G), which serves Tyler/Longview and includes about 960,000 people.

Hospitalizations in the region have increased by 158 patients in the past six days. Prior to this, the fastest increase in hospitalizations in our region was a 141-patient jump in the 14 days from Dec. 24 to Jan. 7.

"When you look at the accelerated rate of hospitalizations across the region, it is arguably worse in that aspect than it ever has been," said Judge McKinney.

In addition to the COVID-19 surge, hospitals are also dealing with staffing shortages and an increase in non-COVID illnesses.

II. Emergency Management Committee (9:30)

The Henderson County Emergency Management Committee has been meeting weekly about COVID-19 issues. These meetings have at times included representatives from UT Health East Texas and State Rep. Keith Bell's office.

Judge McKinney said there is very little the County can do in direct response to the current surge.

"The Governor's Executive Order ties the hands of any local government or official from imposing restrictions of any type to help meet the needs of the pandemic," said Judge McKinney.

The Judge said the County can help by working with UT Health East Texas regarding personnel retention.

"To be sure that our hospital system here stays very strong," he said.

The County has also started working with the Hospital Authority Board to make sure there's a system in place for the County to be able to send some of the federal ARPA money to the hospital for personnel.

In addition, Fire Marshal Shane Renberg has been in contact with local VFDs to ensure they have access to masks and gloves.

III. Governor's Actions (16:30)

Gov. Greg Abbott did announce a series of actions this week aimed at COVID-19.

* Using staffing agencies to find out-of-state medical personnel to help hospitals

* Asking hospitals to voluntarily postpone elective medical procedures

* Opening more antibody treatment centers

* Increasing vaccine availability

IV. Vaccinations (21:04)

While the idea of COVID-19 vaccinations has become controversial, political and medical leaders around the state are urging Texans to get the vaccine.

During a NET Health press conference on Monday, officials from both UT Health East Texas and Christus Mother Francis both said that 95 percent of the COVID-19 patients in their hospitals were unvaccinated.

Here in Henderson County, there has been a jump in the number of people getting vaccinated with more than two thousand getting their shot in the past two weeks. That's at the highest level since March.

Judge McKinney said that vaccinations have become readily available. By far the favorite vaccination source in Henderson County is the local pharmacy.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded Wednesday, Aug. 4, at the Henderson County Courthouse Annex.

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FEMA is updating its National Flood Insurance Program pricing for the first time in 50 years, "so policyholders can make more informed decisions on the purchase of adequate insurance and on mitigation actions to protect against the perils of flooding."

To explain what that means, we talk with Henderson County Floodplain Administrator Joy Kimbrough (pictured above).

The new plan, called Risk Rating 2.0, goes into effect for new and renewing policies on Oct. 1, 2021 and for everybody by April 1, 2022.

"It's a plan that is set up to be a more equitable pricing structure for those who are required to have flood insurance or for those who want to have flood insurance," Mrs. Kimbrough said.

Mrs. Kimbrough said up to 80 percent of homeowners with flood insurance. That could have a huge impact on Henderson County.

"Henderson County is basically a basin," she said. "We have the Trinity River on our western boundary, Lake Athens right in the center, which is mostly a spring-fed lake, and the Neches River on the eastern boundary of our county. And the Kickapoo watershed that runs practically through the center of the county from almost Chandler to the other side of Murchison."

"So we have many areas of our county that are not located in flood plains that flood," Mrs. Kimbrough said, "and that's one of the biggest takeaways from all of this, is just because you're not in a flood plain doesn't mean you're not going to flood."

According to a FEMA press release, "The new methodology allows FEMA to equitably distribute premiums across all policyholders based on the value of their home and the unique flood risk of their property. Currently, many policyholders with lower-value homes are paying more than they should and policy-holders with higher-value homes are paying less than they should."

Mrs. Kimbrough advised Henderson County residents to make sure they understand this new pricing structure by talking to their insurance agents or researching the new Risk Rating 2.0 plan online.

"One of the most important things is to find out your risk," she said.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

This interview was recorded at the Henderson County Courthouse Annex on Wednesday, Aug. 4.

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Henderson County Judge Wade McKinney opens up this week's podcast with a discussion about the Certified Property Value for the county before moving on to the latest COVID update.

I. Certified Property Value (1:00)

(Early in the podcast, Michael V. Hannigan says Certified Tax Rate when he means Certified Property Value. This discussion is about property value.)

The Certified Property Value was delivered by the Appraisal District to the county last week. According to the report, the market value of Henderson County property is $11.1 billion and the taxable value is about $8 billion.

The value of the property in the county has increased since last year and Judge McKinney talks about three reasons that may happen:

-- More people wanting to move to Henderson County, driving up the cost of housing.

-- People converting exempt property -- such as land used for agriculture -- into taxable property, like housing.

-- Pressure from Austin to increase values.

The property value is important because it is one-half of the equation determining property taxes. The other half is the tax rate.

The county is currently going through the budget process, which Judge McKinney describes.

"We run through, line by line," he said. "There are about 7,000 lines in the county budget and we touch each one of those."

In the coming weeks, Commissioners Court will work to set the tax rate for 2022. Those meetings will be announced on the county website at www.henderson-county.com.

II. COVID Update (22:53)

As of the time of this recording, there were 280 hospitalized COVID patients in the Trauma Services Area (TSA) that includes Henderson County. The rate at which hospitalizations are increasing is as fast — or faster — than at any time during the pandemic.

- Reminder: Texas is separated into 22 regions called Trauma Service Areas, or TSAs, for hospital data. Henderson County's region is designated TSA-G and includes Tyler/Longview. TSA-G includes about 960,000 people.

As hospitalizations increase, staffing has become a problem for hospitals in the region.

"Staffing today is much more difficult to get," County Judge McKinney said. "Your rural areas are really feeling that stress."

Judge McKinney said he is hearing from the medical community that the majority of those being hospitalized are unvaccinated.

The good news is that vaccinations in Henderson County are increasing.

Judge McKinney also discusses the recent executive order from Gov. Greg Abbott and the fact that the county really can't do much in response to the COVID increase.

"The last order was a real cleanup of all the previous ones," he said. "Local government, and any form of local government, is barred from taking any of the previous options that were available, being a mask or vaccination or those type of things."

NEWSLETTER:

 Get updates from the Sheriff’s Office, Commissioners Court, the District Attorney, County Attorney, and all departments from your Henderson County Government.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com

In this week's County Report, Henderson County Judge Wade McKinney talks about the border dispute with Kaufman County, COVID-19 vaccinations, and ARPA with Michael V. Hannigan.

I. Border Dispute (1:13)

Kaufman County brought its problem with the border between it and Henderson County to the public again this week, this time with a Facebook post.

Kaufman County believes a small area near Kemp known as "the notch" should be in Henderson County, even though it has been in Kaufman County for decades. Judge McKinney said it has been there since the 1890s.

The Kaufman County post says the General Land Office (GLO) has "clarified" the issue and that, "Residents in the area in question, which is approximately six miles long and 1,200 ft. south of the original Kaufman County line, can now call Henderson County their county of residence."

But in today's podcast, Judge McKinney explains that the GLO has had no communication with Henderson County and that the current GLO online map still shows the notch.

Judge McKinney also reiterated Henderson County's position, which is that there is a way to dispute a boundary in Texas law and Kaufman County hasn't followed the law.

"The proper method that is recognized to be lawful is in Chapter 72 of the Local Government Code," he said, "and that is what really lies at the issue of this. When you have an issue you must follow the lawful methods to bring resolution."

"The method they have chosen to proceed is not the lawful method," he said.

According to Judge McKinney, the first step would include Kaufman County calling for a survey, but that hasn't happened.

"Until Chapter 72 is followed there's nothing we can really do," he said.

II. COVID Update ( 9:08)

Henderson County is experiencing an increase in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

"We are really beginning to see it locally," said Judge McKinney. "We've had an increase in the returns of positive tests, pretty substantial over the past couple of days, back up to where we were several months ago."

He said the increase is due to the Delta variant being more prevalent in the county now.

At the same time, there has also been an increase in the number of people getting vaccinated. The numbers went from an average of 421 earlier in the month to more than 750 last week.

In talking about these statistics, Judge McKinney praised the improvements in communications between local government and the medical community, saying things are much better now than they were a year ago.

While there are more cases, there also seem to be fewer deaths, according to medical officials.

"That's going back to the vaccinations that have taken place in the county," Judge McKinney said.

"The vaccine is the key factor now versus before," he said, "that is causing for lower morbidity rates, protecting those who are most susceptible and most at risk."

While the vaccine seems to be working, there is still a hesitancy to get the vaccine in our region.

III. ARPA Update (24:20)

Last week, Judge McKinney explained how Henderson County is set to receive $16 million in federal funds as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). These funds are "to respond to the Covid-19 public health emergency and its economic impacts."

Henderson County has now put out Request for Qualifications (RFQs) for grant coordinators to help administer the ARPA funds.

"Hopefully we'll have some good candidates come in that the court can choose from," Judge McKinney said.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hendersoncountytexas.substack.com