Longtime Dallas County Medical Center administrator David Mantz announced last week that he is retiring as CEO and moving to a new advisory role. A letter announcing his retirement was provided at the Dallas County Quorum Court meeting on Tuesday (May 19).

The Dallas County Medical Center board of governors has named Trapper Denton as the new CEO. Denton is from Warren and has been serving as comptroller at the hospital since 2022.

Speaking to the court with his first report, Denton announced that Dr. Madison Lim, a general surgeon with Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff, has begun seeing patients every second Tuesday each month. Appointments can be made for pre-op and post-op patients. No surgeries will be performed locally.

“We are creating a new family room just inside the ER entrance,” said Denton. He showed 32 admissions, 1,254 clinic visits, 543 Nutt-Walley Clinic visits and 312 ER patients in the month of March.

The quorum court also recognized a 100-year old business in Fordyce at its meeting. County Judge Chris Stanfield presented a special award plaque to George Holt, owner and operator of Holt Builders Supply, located on West 4th Street in Fordyce.

The plaque honors the achievement of surpassing 100 years as a family-owned business serving Dallas County. Holt Builders Supply was founded by J.M. Holt and his sons, Richard Holt and Edward Holt, in 1925. Edward Holt is George Holt’s father.

With the budget review, Treasurer Louann Clayton provided a 2026 revenue report for January through May, which showed county general funds running lower than last year.

“Election years cost us more, and all our 2026 primary expenses are paid, but reimbursements for previous election costs remain outstanding, and jail housing receipts have been lower than usual, which will improve with the new Federal Marshals contract,” explained Clayton.

She showed current balances of $177,963.34 in county general funds and $228,103.81 in the county road account.

Dallas County has received an Arkansas Department of Agriculture Unpaved Road Grant of $50,248, which is planned to be used for the improvement of County Road #201.

For the sheriff’s department, Chief Deputy Major Brady Harmon told the court of a newly signed contract with the Federal Marshals for inmate housing. Daily fees are now $78.63 per prisoner, which is an increase of $12.37 per day.

Harmon reported $155,431.30 collected in April for housing, and 127 inmates held at this time, which includes 69 federal prisoners. He also announced that the first month’s reimbursement for prisoner transport expenses was about $8,000.

Ordinance #2026-08 was presented by Dallas County Clerk Dori Keeton to repeal Ordinance #2026-06, which had given an incorrect fund number for the receipt of reimbursement for transportation expenses of federal inmates, and to assign a correct fund of record.

Justice Robert Seale questioned why a recent new truck purchase was made from an out-of-state company, and Harmon responded that it was the lowest bid.