Blount Commission refusing to discuss budget during tax increase
Wed 05/18/11 09:14 PM
To My Fellow Citizens,
MARYVILLE, TENN. -- Nearly ten percent of Blount county citizens are unemployed. Thirty percent of county real estate transactions involve a foreclosure. The Budget Committee has decided to impose a tax increase on our hard pressed citizens.
Now, the tax increase decision is in the hands of the County Commission.
But, your County Commission decided not to bother spending time on the county budget this month!
Read all about it at jimfolts.com.
Jim Folts
Blount County Commissioner - District 7
Agenda Committee 5/10/11
Commission refuses to even discuss budget
Most regular readers know the Budget Committee has not done the hard work necessary to cut the wasteful spending from the County budget. Worse, they have refused three offers to look at information developed by Citizens for Better Government, which shows the County is spending $9 million (23%) more than the average of the three Tennessee counties closest to Blount in population.
The full Commission has never even held a discussion of the new budget. At the Agenda Commission, I made a motion to put a discussion of the budget on the agenda for the Commission’s May 19 meeting. The idea was to get all 21 Commission members to understand the County budget problems and look at all available data to make smart cuts. For example, Sheriff Berrong is responsible for more than $5 million of the overspending, but was virtually unchallenged when he came before the Budget Committee. An open discussion of this, and other areas, of major wasteful spending could lead to ways to avoid a tax increase. Clearly, the Sheriff’s political cronies on the Commission did not want a discussion of this overspending, and voted against the motion. The motion was voted down 6 to 14. Only Commissioners Murrell, Lewis, Hasty, French, Carver and myself were interested in spending the time to examine the budget.
Click here to see your Commission inaction.
Commission refuses to look at a study of medical benefit costs
Last year, the County paid for a major study of the level and cost of medical benefits in our County and how they compared with other counties in Tennessee. The study concluded that Blount County employees are contributing far less ($0 for the employee and $100 for family coverage) to their medical benefit costs than employees of other Tennessee counties. The Commission Human Resources Committee, where 8 of 10 members are either county employees, or close relatives of county employees, refused to even hear a presentation of the study. Since medical benefit costs are a major budget item, I made a motion to have the study presented to the full Commission at the May 19 meeting. The motion was voted down 5 to 15. Only Commissioners Murrell, Hasty, Gamble, Carver and myself voted to listen to the presentation of the benefits study.
I am at a loss to explain why, apparently intelligent people, refuse to look at information which might be helpful in solving the County’s serious financial problems. Apparently, many Commissioners feel it is easier to impose a tax increase on the citizens, than to address the overspending of politically powerful officials.
Budget Committee avoids the hard work of cutting the budget and resorts to gimmicks
The Budget Committee, without even looking at the Citizens for Better Government information comparing Blount County spending with the three counties closest to us in population, decided on a budget that cut less than 5% from county spending. The CFBG study showed the Sheriff was spending more than 25% more than the average spending of the three other comparison counties, yet the Budget Committee let him off with just a 3% cut. This new budget requires a $2.40 tax rate. The Budget Committee announced a $2.15 tax rate. They used a series of budget gimmicks to show the lower tax rate. First, they used $2.6 million in one time grant money to pay on-going salaries. Next, they forced the Schools to dip into their rainy day fund for another $600,000. Finally, they took $1.6 million out of Debt Service Fund to pay on-going expenses. These moves virtually guarantee a tax rate of $2.50 in the following fiscal year, nearly a 25% increase from where we are today. It is sad that the Budget Committee would rather impose a major tax increase on the citizens, than cut the budget to the AVERAGE level of spending of the three Tennessee counties closest to us in population – Washington (Johnson City), Sullivan(Kingsport) and Sumner(Gallatin).
"I’ll burn your house down, set your dog on fire and there won’t be a member of your family left, do you understand me? I won’t hire it done, I will do it myself! Do you understand me?”
-Blount County sheriff James Berrong, United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, Nuchols v. Berrong, No. 04-5645, July 11, 2005
Blount sheriff Berrong on trial for murder of cop
Tennessee Auditors Arrive - 48 Blount Sheriff cars missing
"FYI - Anytime that you have conversation with any police officer, they have the technology on their person to record the audio of the conversation. Also, if you ever make the mistake of thinking that the sheriff is interested in what you have to say as a taxpayer, while you're sitting in his office you are video-taped and the conversation is being recorded. That's a fact not just an accusation. Too bad that Sheriff Jimbo couldn't find the tape of when he threatened the Nuchols girl. How convenient. Blount County Sheriff James L. "JIMBO" Berrong is nothing more than a common criminal. He has done his best to keep his party and his family in the money by harrassing those (women, female jouranlists, old men) who question he and his family's undehandedness. In the process of being the lead SOLDIER for the Lambert Hoard, he has just about broken every piece of ethics legislation ever passed in this state or county. He is a CROOK JUST LIKE HIS PREDECESSOR. $$ Chief Deputy Jeff French is a rotten apple that fell from the fruity-tree of the sheriff. I told ya'll before that the fruit that is manufactured from the Berrong/Lambert tree is rotten before it hits the ground. I grew up with some of them and they are a pretty sorry lot to say the least. No morals whatsoever. rapists, murderers, sheriffs on the take. you name it, it's represented in this Blount County family of crooks. What the hell good would that do? Do you honestly think that she wanted to be threatened by the sheriff? Things like burning her house down or setting her dog on fire? Yes, he has done it before. (there's you another accusation, skippy). SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS AND DOWN WITH THE LAMBERT HOARD!"
-RipOff Report: Blount County Sheriff's Office Assistant Chief Deputy Jeff French
RipOff Report: Blount County Mayor Jerry Cunningham and "pure un-adulterated evil" Lambert Hoard on PBA Board - BLOUNT COUNTY TN: THE CROOKEDEST LITTLE COUNTY IN THE SOUTH! DOWN WITH THE LAMBERT HOARD!
Blount County sheriff and deputies get $100,000 salaries - Police salaries are public information under the TN Open Records Act
Blount County Govt employees get $75-Million annual salaries EACH
Latest stats: Cops are 600% more likely to be arrested for murder than the average criminal.
