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Cletis Millsap

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Biographical Information:

HONORABLE CLETIS MILLSAP
COUNTY JUDGE , HOPKINS COUNTY

Cletis Millsap attended Sulphur Springs and Garland public schools. He graduated from Richland College and furthered his education at Texas A&M University-Commerce, Southern Methodist University and the LBJ School of Public Affairs, at the University of Texas – Austin . He has completed over 600 hours of continued Judicial Education with the Justice Court Training Center and Texas Judges Probate College . Judge Millsap was elected County Judge in 1998 and will be seeking re-election in 2006 for his third term serving the citizens of Hopkins County . He serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Commissioners Court , the governing body of Hopkins County . He lives on a forty acre farm in Southwest Hopkins County in the Shirley Community.

During Judge Cletis Millsap ’s tenure as County Judge, Hopkins County has competed a $1.5M Jail Expansion which was started in 1997, restoration of the jail roof project, restoration of the historic 1894 Hopkins County Courthouse at $4,398,181.20 with the assistance of a $3.7M grant from the Texas Legislature and administrated through Texas Historical Commission, established the Hopkins County Fire & Rescue Department with full time and volunteer firefighters to bring service to the entire county, established an Emergency Management Director, a Litter Abatement Officer, an Environmental Officer and successfully acquired funding for county road and bridge program improvements, as well as Federal and State funding for Interstate 30/Radio Road Overpass Project and the Texas Farm to Market Highway 69 Road and Bridge Project.

With assistance from the Texas Legislative Council, Judge Cletis Millsap helped to redistrict the Hopkins County Commissioners and Justices Precincts, saving $50,000 in legal and consulting fees. Working with the Commissioners Court , he was successful in instituting an employee payroll step program and job description plan for employee hiring and fair job advancement practices in employment for Hopkins County . Also with assistance from the Texas Legislature and the Governor’s Office on Texas County Government Affairs, Judge Millsap has worked to approve the passage of Texas Constitutional Amendments in order to improve the efficiency of County Government .

Judge Cletis Millsap is a member of County Judge & Commissioners Association of Texas, the United States National Counties Association, the Texas Association of Counties and serves on the County Employees Unemployment Compensation Trust Fund Committee, the Northeast Texas Council on Alcohol & Drug Abuse Board of Directors, lead CEO for the Northeast Texas Workforce Development Board and served on the Budget & Oversight Committee (2003-2005), Northeast Texas Rural Rail Transportation District Board of Directors, the Texas Regional Rail Vision Organization and serves as Co-Chair with Mayor of Mineola, TX and Mayor of Bossier City, LA, Ark-Tex Council of Governments Board of Directors and serves as Treasurer, TEX- 21 Transportation for Excellent for 21 st Century , Northeast Texas Opportunities, Inc. Board of Directors, National Rail Passengers Association, Texas Association Of Rail Passengers, Texas Eagle Marketing and Promotions Group for Amtrak-National Railroad Passenger Corporation and Northeast Texas Regional Mobility Council.

Judge Cletis Millsap is a member of the First Baptist Church , Kiwanis Club, Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Texas, Grand Royal and Select Master of Texas and Sulphur Springs Lodge No.221 of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of Texas. He has been involved in the community by serving as Past President for the Hopkins County Extension Council, Scouting, FFA and 4-H. He was a charter member of the Board of Directors of the Southwest Dairy Center , he served on the County Committee for the U. S. Department of Agriculture Farmers Home Administration and he has served as a Director for the Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce.

He was elected as City Councilman in Garland , TX (1977-1978) and served on the Board of Adjustments, he also served on other city commission boards from 1976-1979. He was elected and re-elected twice, serving 12 years as Justice of the Peace, Precinct 1, Hopkins County (1987-1998) and by resolution he was awarded Honorary President of the Justice of the Peace and Constable Association of Texas.

Telephone: 903-438-4006
Facsimile  : 903-438-4007
Email Address:  judge@hopkinscountytx.org
Hopkins County Website: www.hopkinscountytx.org

Mailing Address:       Post Office Box 288
Sulphur Springs, TX 75483

Physical Address:      Hopkins County Courthouse
118 Church Street
Sulphur Springs, TX 75482

DUTIES:

The Texas Constitution vests broad judicial and administrative powers in the position of County Judge, who presides over a five-member commissioner’s court, which has budgetary and administrative authority over county government operation.

The County Judge handles such widely varying matters as hearings for beer and wine license applications, hearing on admittance to state hospitals for the mentally ill and mentally retarded, juvenile work permits and temporary guardianships for special purposes. The Judge is also responsible for calling elections, posting election notices and for receiving and canvassing the election returns. The county judge may perform marriages.

A County Judge in Texas may have judicial responsibility for certain criminal, civil and probate matters - responsibility for these functions vary from county to county. In those counties in which the judge has judicial responsibilities, the judge has appellate jurisdiction over matters arising from the justice courts. The County Judge is also heading of civil defense and disaster relief, county welfare and in counties under 225,000 populations; the judge prepares the county budget along with the County Auditor or County Clerk.

Other duties to include:

• Sets the yearly property tax rate and approves the budget and employment level for the county;

• Sets commissioners and justice of the peace precinct boundaries;

• Call, conducts and certifies elections, including bond elections;

• Sets employment and benefit policy;

• Establishes long-range thoroughfare, open space, land use, financial and law enforcement/jail needs plans;

• Acquires property for rights-of-way or other uses determined to be in the public's best interest;

• Reviews and approve subdivision platting and wastewater treatment for rural areas;

• Provides rural ambulance services and subsidizes rural fire protection;

• Oversees the construction, maintenance and improvement of county roads and bridges;

• Appointed non-elected department heads and standing committees;

• Supervises and controls the county courthouse, county buildings and facilities;

• Adopts a county budget;

• Determines county tax rates;

• Fills vacancies in elective and appointive positions; and

• Has exclusive authority to authorize contracts in the name of the county

DEPARTMENT DESCRIPTION

The County Judge serves as the chief executive officer for the County, Budget Officer and head of the Commissioners' Court. The County Judge has judicial functions, which include hearing class A and B misdemeanor and appeals from lower courts, mental and chemical commitments, probating wills and guardianships. County Judge serves on the Juvenile Board. The Judge is elected to a four-year term.

DEPARTMENT OBJECTIVES

The broad objective of the County Judge's Office is to augment the efforts of other county officials to provide a responsive, accessible form of government for the citizens of Hopkins County which include involvement in the community, keep constituents informed, seek citizen input and government for citizens of Hopkins County.