In This Issue Features


Classy Clerk ... 22


SUMMER 2011


Coroners Seek In-State Training ..........................................................................18-19 County Official Profile: Phyllis Villines ................................................................22-23 Communication Drives Good Budget Process..................................................24-25 Counties Cope With Storms, Flooding ...............................................................28-33 Reduce Accidents in Your County .......................................................................56-57


Inside Look


AAC Board Profiles: Sherry Bell, Joe Gillenwater ...................................................15 Meet Our Scholarship Winners .................................................................................17 AAC Convention Preview ............................................................................................20 ACE Program Continuing Education .........................................................................26


ACE Program ... 26 Departments Storm Woes ... 28


Calendar of Events .........................................................................................................6 From the Director’s Desk ..............................................................................................7 President’s Perspective ................................................................................................9 Legislative Tangents ....................................................................................................10 From the Governor .......................................................................................................11 Frequently Asked Questions ......................................................................................12 Attorney General Opinions .........................................................................................13 County Law Update ......................................................................................................14 Research Corner / Coroner Training .........................................................................18 County News .................................................................................................................34


Safety First... 56


NACo News ....................................................................................................................59 Advertiser Resource Index .........................................................................................62


Cover Shot:


efferson County was created by the Territorial Legisla- ture on November 2, 1829, from parts of Arkansas and Pulaski counties and was named for Thomas Jeffer- son, U.S. President. Pine Bluff is the County Seat. Jefferson County’s new courthouse was constructed on the spot where its predecessor, built in 1838, had stood until destroyed by a fire in 1976. The 1838 courthouse is the only courthouse known to have caused a river to be changed. Dur- ing the 1908 flood of the Arkansas River, the Judges’ cham- bers, jury room, part of the courtroom, and the Sheriff’s and Assessor’s offices were purposely torn off and dumped into the river to keep the rest of the building from caving into the river. After the flood, the course of the river was changed to save the courthouse, and now channel Lake Pine Bluff. The landscape of the western third is pine-covered, rolling


J JEFFERSON COUNTY, ARKANSAS


hills, and the eastern two-thirds is rich, fertile Delta farmland. Jefferson County is known for the fertile quality of its soil and has always been one of the leading cotton producers in the state. Its economic development is strongly tied to railroads and the Arkansas River. The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and two units of the state prison system makes state government a heavy contributor to the economy. Jefferson County has an updated county jail and juvenile detention center. Pine Bluff is the state’s fourth largest city where a number of historically important homes can be found. There are two museums, the Arkansas Railroad Museum and the Pine Bluff-Jefferson County Museum. Hunting and fishing both attract visitors from all around the country.


(AAC Photo / Randy Kemp)


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