NATCHEZ — Much of the first public hearing to discuss the Adams County budget was occupied by Adams County Justice Court Judge Charlie Vess, as he outlined a myriad of problems facing the justice court.

Vess spoke at length on how he believed the justice court was unfairly treated in relation to the county’s other courts, the county’s dependence on the court’s fining power to support the county budget, the difficulty in collecting fines and the cramped quarters in his courtroom.

Vess told the supervisors he felt the justice court was the “kicking boy of the county.”

While the supervisors did acknowledge Vess’ complaints, the justice court’s inability to collect fines, approximately $40,000, earned the court a spot in the county’s revenues shortages list.

Adams County Supervisors’ President Henry Watts said he would make time to meet with Vess to discuss his concerns within the court and explore ways to better collect unpaid fines within the court system.

“It’s a cycle most of us are unhappy with,” Watts said.

Watts said if he were a judge, he would put more people in jail for failure to pay fines.

After Vess’ address to the board, only two county residents addressed the board with comments on the coming year’s budget.

While the budget will be subject to one more public hearing before the board votes to approve in on Sept. 15, current projections indicate the county will operate with a budget of approximately $26.2 million.

Of that money, approximately $13.6 million is derived from ad valorem taxes, $10.7 million comes from other revenues and $1.8 million comes from the county’s current cash balance.

The next opportunity county residents will have to discuss the budget in a public forum will be 9 a.m. Sept. 15 at the supervisors’ office on State Street.