Saline County committees to review floodplain coordinator changes, fire department funding, and budget amendments Nov. 2

The Saline County Quorum Court’s Public Works and Safety Committee and Finance Committee will meet on Monday, Nov. 2, 2026, to consider emergency ordinance updates for floodplain management, local fire department funding distributions, and county budget adjustments.

The public session is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. in Courtroom #3 at the Saline County Courthouse. Read more below.

Public Works and Safety Committee Agenda

The Public Works and Safety Committee will consider an emergency ordinance amending Saline County’s Flood Damage Prevention Code. Sponsored by Justice of the Peace CJ Engel (District 9), the measure would transfer Floodplain Administrator duties from the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Administrator to the Saline County Public Works and Grant Director position, effective Jan. 1, 2027. The shift comes due to the pending retirement of the current county Floodplain Coordinator.

The committee will also vote on a resolution adopting the Intergovernmental Cooperation Council’s recommendations for distributing Act 833 state funds to local fire departments. Sponsored by JP Rick Bellinger (District 6), the resolution apportions funding to 20 area municipal and rural fire departments—including Benton, Bryant, Bauxite, Haskell, East End, Salem, and Sardis—based on a point system developed by the Saline County Firefighters’ Association.

Finance Committee Agenda

Following the safety committee session, the Finance Committee will consider an appropriation ordinance to amend the 2026 county budget, sponsored by JP Engel. Key financial items include:

• County Road Fund: Appropriating $151,371 received from an insurance check into the Road Department budget for machinery and equipment capital outlay.
• Tax Assessor Budget Transfers: Reallocating $59,000 within County General Fund lines across the Tax Assessor’s office, Bryant branch, Equalization Board, and Assessor GIS Department budgets for maintenance and service contracts, part-time help, and equipment.

Finance Committee members are also scheduled to discuss setting an alternate meeting date for the December Quorum Court committee meetings due to scheduling conflicts with the annual Christmas Parade and Courthouse Lighting Ceremony.

 • Saline County Events List •.

 • Get MySaline’s free newsletter •