The recent column, “A well-aimed veto from Deal deserves applause (Tom Crawford, May 7),” ignored numerous benefits provided by the private probation industry in Georgia. Probation companies deliver a cost-effective and valuable service that enhances public safety, while supervising approximately 250,000 probationers and working with more than 600 municipal, state, probate and superior courts. The author attempts to suggest that a $2,000-a - year probation charge is typical, when in fact charges that high are rare and often related to electronic monitoring (which is not required for a large majority of misdemeanor probationers).