NATCHEZ &045; A motion that would divide county supervisors’ $30,000-a-year travel budget by five, giving each supervisor an equal amount to spend, failed 3-2 in Monday’s board meeting.

For the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, &uot;we’re already $7,000 over budget, Š some supervisors are spending three or four times the amount other supervisors are,&uot; Supervisor Henry Watts said in making the motion, which was also defeated last year.

Watts said supervisors, after spending $6,000 each, could still go to out-of-town meetings &045; but should be required to pay anything over the amount out of their own pockets.

Watts and Supervisor S.F. &uot;Spanky&uot; Felter voted for the motion, with supervisors Darryl Grennell, Sammy Cauthen and Thomas &uot;Boo&uot; Campbell voting against.

Grennell said dividing the travel budget among districts would violate the county’s unit form of government, in which government operations, from road maintenance to purchasing, are more centralized than in the old beat form of government. Adams County, along with most of the state’s other counties, adopted the unit form of government in 1989.

&uot;You can’t divide (the travel budget) by five,&uot; Campbell said. &uot;The people would have to vote to take us back to the beat system.&uot;

&uot;If I’m wrong,&uot; Watts said, &uot;let the Attorney General’s Office send me a letter.&uot;

Cauthen said the county benefits a great deal from such meetings. For example, he cited $200,000 in port funds that resulted from a transportation meeting he attended.

Grennell mentioned that an upcoming conference in which river dredging will be discussed will be useful for the county, since having a passable river channel is essential in landing industrial prospects.

Watts said he has no qualms with meetings that produce such results but added that many conferences don’t.

As far the $7,000 in travel spending over budget is concerned, Cauthen countered that &uot;apparently we didn’t appropriate enough&uot; for such expenses.