FARMINGTON – County commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to rebid the contract for substance-abuse and mental-health-counseling services provided through the jail.

Commissioners had accepted a proposal from Allied Resources for Correctional Health for $81,480 pending review by corrections officials. The Augusta company was the low bidder. Other bids were received from current provider Evergreen Behavioral Services of Farmington and Tri-County Mental Health Services of Auburn.

Upon review of Allied’s proposal, Franklin County jail Administrator Sandra Collins said the company did not meet some of the specifics outlined in the request for proposals.

One of the missing pieces was on-call crisis assessments, she said.

“ARCH doesn’t do on-call services because it is offered in the community,” Collins said.

It’s tough when a person in jail is acting out for staff to determine what services that person needs, she said.

Evergreen Behavioral Services does offer that service now and has on-call staff come in and do an assessment of the person while in jail, if needed, she said. The previous provider also offered the service, Collins said.

Some items not listed in ARCH’s contract would cost extra above the contract price, Collins said, such as $225 to $250 an hour for crisis assessments depending on the needed service with a minimum of two to three hours a session.

Evergreen staff handled eight crisis assessments at the jail in the last year with two people sent to a hospital and the others taken care on site, according to an Evergreen staff representative at the meeting.

Collins recommended that commissioners reject all bids and have the contract rebid.

Commissioners also extended Evergreen’s time frame to provide the service until Feb. 1 when a new contract is to be in effect. The agency’s contract ended Sept. 30 but has been extended on a monthly basis.

In other matters, the jail’s Assistant Administrator Carl Stinchfield informed commissioners that the jail’s sewage pump station had failed and needed to be repaired.

Stinchfield had included $7,000 in next year’s budget to get the system retrofitted and pumped after a pump failed this fall and deterioration was uncovered.

The cost may amount to more than the $7,000, Stinchfield said, because after the system failed it had to be pumped twice. He estimated the cost to be between $7,500 and $8,000.

Commissioners also approved Vicki Worth of Chesterville as a full-time dispatcher to fill a seat that became available when Aaron Gordon left.

The panel also heard an update on National Incident Management System compliance in the county that is connected to availability of federal funding that includes Homeland Security grants.

Stinchfield and Sheriff Dennis Pike reported that full-time staff is more than 70 percent in compliance with training.

County Emergency Management Agency Director Tim Hardy said he would like to see everyone in compliance by Christmas.

The next commissioner’s meeting will switch from a Tuesday to 9 a.m. Monday, Nov. 19, at the courthouse.