NATCHEZ — Chatty Cathys are about to have to pay up, literally.

That is, at least, if they’re doing their chatting on a county-issued cell phone.

For the first time since Adams County started issuing cell phones to employees 18 years ago, the county now has a policy governing the use of the phones. The Adams County Board of Supervisors adopted the new policy Monday.

Supervisors President Darryl Grennell said County Administrator Joe Murray approached the supervisors about instating the policy, which states that county cell phones are not to be used for personal purposes except in emergency situations.

“There does not need to be any personal use of the county cell phone,” Murray said. “This policy helps ensure that the county cell phone is used for legitimate county business.”

The new policy dictates that department heads will periodically review cell phone bills, and any personal calls will have to be reimbursed by the employee to whom a phone was issued at a rate of 10 cents per minute. Reimbursement will have to be made within 10 days of the call, and employees will also have to pay for any roaming, long distance or information assistance charges accrued during personal calls.

Grennell said he believes the Internal Revenue Service will eventually require such a policy to be in place in all governments, and that Adams County is simply putting the new policy in place ahead of a mandate.

Cell phone use by some government employees is appropriate, Grennell said.

“Our maintenance guy, Johnny Williams, he definitely needs a cell phone because he is constantly getting calls,” Grennell said. “He is not sitting in an office all day, he is out in the county working.”

The road department, likewise, might need to use cell phones in parts of the county where the radio system cannot reach, he said.

Just who needs those phones, however, is going to be determined, Murray said.

The county is currently in the process of gathering information on who has a county-issued cell phone, and department heads are going to explain why a given employee needs the phone.

“They are going to make a case for why they have a cell phone,” Murray said. “They will sign off on it, and I will sign off on it myself.”

The county paid $40,221.28 for the 12-month period of May 2010 to May 2011. The previous year, that bill was $42,710.16, including 68,520 minutes talked by one county employee.

Misuse of the phones — which the policy defines as failure to reimburse the county for personal calls, making threatening or harassing calls, making excessive personal calls or making calls to inappropriate phone hotlines — will subject the employee to disciplinary action.

The new policy also instructs county employees to keep personal calls on their own cell phones to a minimum. It also bars employees from using county or personal cell phones while driving or operating county-owned equipment.