NATCHEZ — A collection agency has recovered more than $350,000 Adams County leaders may have all but given up on.

Bruce Brice, the owner of Receivable Solutions, said his company collected $225,000 in 2010 for the county in overdue justice court and sanitation fines and fees. The county has collected $134,000 this year January to May.

Since the company tacks on a 25 percent ad-on fee to each delinquent payment, Receivable Solutions has collected $68,000 in 2010 and $40,000 in ad-on fees. The service comes at no cost to the county.

District 5 Supervisor S.E. “Spanky” Felter asked Brice if his company could collect money the county’s former collection agency, Kinard and Associates, still owes the supervisors.

Felter said Kinard collected delinquent payments from residents but never returned them to the county. As a result, some residents were arrested for not paying fees even though they produced receipts proving they paid Kinard, Felter said.

“(Kinard) is more guilty (than those arrested). How are we not collecting it … Let’s find out what (Kinard) owes and finish it,” Felter said.

Felter said Kinard, which is based in Jackson, also served as the collection agency for Natchez Regional Medical Center. The company left town a few years ago, Felter said.

Brice said he recommended a lawyer be involved in collecting owed monies from Kinard, not his company.

Felter made a motion to authorize Board Attorney Bobby Cox to research what Kinard owes Adams County.

Clarifying Felter’s motion, Board President Darryl Grennell said the motion was to direct Cox to pursue a lawsuit against Kinard to recoup what is owed. The motion passed unanimously.

• The board voted to give $2,500 for a Fourth of July fireworks show to the Chamber of Commerce at the request of chamber member René Adams.

Adams said the chamber’s tourism council wants to raise $28,500 a year for fireworks for the Fourth of July as well as three shows near Christmas.

Approximately $14,000 would be spent on the Fourth of July show and just more than $4,000 would be spent on each Christmas shows, which would be Thanksgiving weekend during the lighting of the Christmas tree and two other Saturdays during the holidays, Adams said.

She said Christmas in Natchez has already raised funds independently for an ice skating rink in downtown Natchez for the winter holiday season.

Adams said Natchez Mayor Jake Middleton assured the council the city would help pay for the fireworks expenses, and Vidalia Mayor Hyram Copeland said Vidalia would match the amount the Natchez-Adams County contributes.

Adams did not request a specific amount of money for the fireworks.

Grennell made a motion to contribute $2,500 for the Fourth of July show, adding that the council could request money for the Christmas shows after October, when the 2011-2012 fiscal year begins.

Felter, who was the only supervisor to vote against Grennell’s motion, made another motion to rescind the supervisors’ vote to pay $2,500 and instead contribute $1,500. That motion died to lack of a second.

He said he thought the supervisors were paying $1,000 more than was fair, making it unnecessary for private funding to pay its fair share of the expense.

• The board questioned the hiring practice of a new bailiff.

Justice Court Clerk Audrey Bailey said the current justice court bailiff was moving to Houston, and she requested the board hire Deselle Davis.

The board unanimously approved hiring Bailey’s recommendation.

After Bailey left the meeting, during his supervisor report, Henry Watts questioned why the bailiff job was not advertised after Bailey exited the meeting.

Grennell said it is common for the board to hire whomever department heads recommend.

“The point is (department heads) are allowed autonomy within departments,” Grennell said.

District 3 Supervisor Thomas “Boo” Campbell said that he, like Watts, did not realize the bailiff position was vacant, but that it was too late to rescind the vote.

“What you’re asking is valid … But you should’ve brought it up while we were discussing it,” Campbell said.

• David Carter, a member of the Natchez-Adams Recreation Commission, said at the meeting the commission members were touring the county’s current recreation facilities Monday afternoon. Lazarus said he planned to attend, as well.