By Allyson Dix
For Glasgow News 1
A disagreement over roughly $402,000 in jail revenue prompted a special-called meeting on Friday, Aug. 21, as Barren County officials questioned Jailer Aaron Shirley about comments he made earlier in the week regarding money he said had been “turned over” to the county.
Earlier in the week, Sheriff Kent Keen asked questions relating to his department’s employees not yet receiving their annual pay raises.
Jailer Aaron Shirley told the Barren County Fiscal Court that he had “turned over” $402,579.64 after Judge-Executive Jamie Bewley Byrd told the sheriff pay raises could have been given earlier if the county wasn’t transferring money from the general fund into the jail account.
Barren County Judge-Executive Jamie Bewley Byrd speaks during a special-called meeting Aug. 21 on the community’s perception of the statement made in the Aug. 17, 2026, fiscal court meeting. Allyson Dix/For Glasgow News 1
Byrd and the county treasurer, Amanda Steger, disputed Shirley’s statement on Tuesday implying that the county had not received that amount.
Shirley’s report noted about 15 items of revenue that he read to the court.
Glasgow News 1 obtained a copy of the report, which notes that two items “have not received yet.” Byrd said after the meeting that the numbers did not match the county’s accounting records.
On Friday, Byrd addressed Shirley in a special-called meeting of the jail committee prompted by the exchange. She wanted Shirley to agree that he had misstated the numbers.
“I went back and looked at your paper, and I just want to make sure we get this squared away before we start this meeting,” Byrd said. “Because I looked at the paper you were reading from, it says on two of the payments for August ‘have not yet been received,’ but you said in court in front of all those people to make it look like mass panic, like it had already come and we didn’t know where it was.”
“That was $95,000 that you were claiming we had received that said have not received yet,” Byrd added, rounding the amount.
“Correct. That’s what I said,” Shirley responded.
“No, you didn’t,” Byrd said. “You said in court that we had already received $400,000. That has caused mass confusion in the community, so confirm that.”
In a review of Tuesday’s fiscal court meeting, Shirley originally said, “…with the exception of July from state housing and state highway.”
Those were the two items listed on Shirley’s report having not been received, totaling $93,455.42, leaving an expected revenue after billing of $309,124.22, for June and July. Also written on the bottom of his report was a notation the jail had spent $331,553.00 from July 1 through Aug. 11 and that deputy wages for July had not been received as of 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 17.
“So, what are we showing that we turned in?” Shirley asked.
“I am saying on your paper that you were looking at the only amount based on even what you thought you had turned in was $292,000,” Byrd said. “What you did in court the other day made everything look as if it made us look like thieves up here.”
Magistrate Marty Kinslow said, “It was at least misleading.”
Shirley said that was not his intent.
“The intent is we did an appropriation that said we had spent $331,000,” Shirley said.
Byrd said the $331,000 amount did not include the jail’s payroll expenses that week and that the county showed Shirley “had only turned in $292,000.”
She also said the county transferred more than $200,000 to the jail account from the general fund in July.
“It should never have been said in court like that. Please admit that,” Byrd said, before Kinslow directed a question at Shirley, asking, “Yes or no?”
Shirley responded, “It probably shouldn’t have.”
Barren County Jailer Aaron Shirley, right, explains during a special-called jail committee meeting on Aug. 21, 2026, that he had no ill intent when he told the fiscal court that he had “turned over” roughly $402,000 in revenue to the county. Also pictured is Tiffany Taylor, the jail’s financial manager. Allyson Dix/For Glasgow News 1
The jailer said he has tried on multiple occasions over several months to obtain more accurate accounting documents because he is unaware of what the balance of the jail account is on any given day.
“When I say I turned over, this is how much money that we have [billed] to come to the county,” Shirley said.
Byrd said that doesn’t mean the money is in the account.
“Correct. I have no idea what’s in our bank account. We’ve asked for that, but we’ve never received it,” Shirley said, and added that he has been denied bank statements.
Treasurer Steger said bank statements “should not” leave the judge-executive’s office and they are kept locked in her office. She said Shirley could review the documents at any time.
Steger said she would give Shirley reports each month after the bank account is reconciled with a receipt showing all transactions.
“Anything that has come in and out, and you can compare how much has went in your bank account versus how much hasn’t,” Steger said.
When asked if the documents would tell him the account balance, Steger said it would not because the balance changes daily.
Kinslow said even with a budget, departments must work “within the parameters of the county as a whole.”
“How can I stay within the parameter of what’s in the account when I have no idea what’s in the account?” Shirley asked, later adding that if he knew the parameters, it would allow for easier budgeting for purchases.
Shirley explained that using the county’s monthly financial report is how the jail keeps track of what is available in the budget’s line items.
The discussion revealed that while the jail generally does the billing, payments are received through various ways. For example, Shirley hand delivers Monroe County’s payment, while Metcalfe County mails its payment to the county judge-executive’s office.
Byrd noted jails across Kentucky are dealing with financial strain.
This strain stems in part from increasing costs and a reduction in state inmates being housed at the local jail. She has previously told Glasgow News 1 that Barren County has lost around $600,000 in state jail funding in one year.
Steger was asked by Byrd to notify the jailer when deposits are made into the jail account to help the jail track the account’s cash flow.
Officials briefly continued discussing details of how to potentially move forward to resolve the issues, with Shirley stating, “It all comes back to communication at the end of the day.”
Barren County Treasurer Amanda Steger explains the county’s ledger during a special-called jail committee on Aug. 21, 2026. Allyson Dix/For Glasgow News 1
