FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Washington County is making changes to its jail expansion plan.

The jail has been given a budget of more than $19 million. During the Washington County Quorum Court meeting on April 20, the county found that bids for the expansion were higher than the budgeted amount.

Some things are planned to be cut from the plan like the proposed 96-bed housing unit. Sheriff Jay Cantrell says the expansion is needed with the jail seeing more intake.

“As our numbers go down, when they start easing back up, they go up a little bit higher,” Cantrell said. “They might come down, but they go back a little bit higher than that. So we’re not seeing anything in our radar that’s going to make us think that the numbers are going down.”

Cantrell says the next steps will be to have contractors look at the plan again without the 96-bed proposal. He says he hopes to have bids in place to start construction soon.