Peter, Paul, and a Sheriff Left Out

How Pendleton County Mastered the Art of Paying Itself While Public Safety Waits Outside

Let’s Talk Money
Pendleton County received $2.8 million in federal ARPA funds. That money was supposed to help the community recover from a crisis, protect essential workers, and strengthen public safety and infrastructure.

So where did the money go?
Payroll. Which freed up the real budget to do everything else. A $2.7 million firehouse. Half a million in land and trucks. Another two million for road department toys.

Meanwhile, local dispatch was quietly closed and handed off to State Police.
But they’ll say it proudly:

No new taxes
No debt
No problem

Creative Storytelling Disguised as Fiscal Responsibility
Let’s not pretend this is leadership. It is smoke and mirrors. It is borrowing Peter to pay Paul while Mary—your sheriff’s office—is left out in the cold.

The Sheriff’s Office Has Spoken
Recruitment is down. Retention is fragile. Wages have not kept up with inflation, risk, or respect. They have made their needs known.

So what did they get?
A whisper of an across the board payroll increase. It was mentioned at the Fiscal Court Caucus meeting. Enough to say something is happening. Not enough to keep anyone here.

This Was Not an Oversight
It was a choice.
A quiet, deliberate, and telling one.

The same officials who eagerly signed off on shiny buildings and long-term maintenance costs could not be bothered to fight for the people already protecting the county.

How the Trick Works
Step one: Use ARPA funds to pay salaries that were already budgeted.
Step two: Free up the general fund.
Step three: Spend the real money on firehouses, trucks, and pet projects.
Step four: Tell the public it is not politics. It is progress.

But Let’s Be Honest
The ones who kept the county running during the pandemic—officers, dispatchers, EMTs, frontline staff—did not get rewarded. They got rerouted.

It is like paying your mortgage with grandma’s inheritance, then bragging that you had money left over to build a pool.
The pool might be nice. But do not act like you earned it.

The Whisper Has Heard the Rumors
Big ideas. Creative funding. Just enough ambiguity to avoid real scrutiny.
And it all smells like clever bookkeeping now. But it will become future liability later. Wrapped in buzzwords like growth, revitalization, and investment.

But What Is It Really?
Avoidance. Obfuscation.
A slow decision to value concrete over character.

This Is Not the Exposé
This is the match.
The fuse has been lit.
And there will be more.

More names.
More breakdowns.
More accountability.

So Let Me Ask This
Why do the numbers always work for buildings and toys
But never for people?

And how many more fiscally responsible decisions will we applaud before realizing we have been handed a receipt for something we never asked for?

The Whisper Does Not Shout
We do not have to.
We just light the fuse
And let the truth do what it does best.

Final Question
Who benefits most from a firehouse no one asked for
In a county that still has not funded its frontline?

Whisper One Out