By Kathy Thomson There are new faces in the Fandangle office starting this month, with Jamie Parsons taking over as office manager and Scarlett Yates heading up the marketing for the 2020 season.

By Melinda L.

By Kathy Thomson Text-to-9-1-1 is now available in Shackelford County, according to sheriff Ed Miller. “The project has been in the works for a while, and it is now up and running as of the first of the year,” said Miller.

By Kathy Thomson The city of Albany will receive a sales tax allotment of $48,901 from the state this February. The amount is down 4.05 percent from the $50,966 payment received in February of 2019. Payments to date for the 2020 year to the city of Albany are $86,045, down by 16.

By Melinda L. Lucas Shackelford County Hospital District administrator Jera Fairley was given a raise, and board members were updated about intensified “drug security” policies during the hospital board’s regular monthly meeting on Monday, Feb. 17.

by Kathy Thomson Tuesday, Feb. 18 was the first day of early voting for the March 3 primary election, with balloting taking place in the foyer on the first floor of the Shackelford County Courthouse. As of press time on Tuesday afternoon, 22 voters had cast ballots.

By Kathy Thomson The Albany Independent School District and the Shackelford County hospital district will both hold elections on May 2, as will the Moran city council.

By Melinda L. Lucas Albany city manager Billy Holson proposed a balanced budget of $2,936,850 at Monday’s regular meeting of the city council, and elected officials expect to approve the budget at a March 9 session following the required public hearing.

By Melinda L. Lucas Courthouse security was the main topic of discussion during Monday morning’s meeting of the Shackelford County commissioners and other elected officials.

By Kathy Thomson With only one day left to file for local offices, as of press time on Tuesday, there was still a shortage of candidates for several of the local boards. The only person to file for an office since press time last week is Shackelford County Hospital Board incumbent Chris Beard.