Oak Ridge Today

Council approves budget with no tax increase, more money for schools

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Note: This story was last updated at 12:15 a.m.

The Oak Ridge City Council approved a budget on Monday that does not include a property tax rate increase, but it does include more money for schools and it anticipates increases in the trash fee and water and sewer rates.

The budget passed in a 6-1 vote in the first of two readings this month. The second and final reading is Monday, June 13.

Council rejected one motion to lower the $2.52 property tax rate by 4.4 cents and another to take away the additional $538,048 requested by Oak Ridge Schools and put it into the capital fund instead.

The budget does not increase the property tax rate for the ninth year in a row. After five-year reappraisals last year, the rate is now set at $2.52 per $100 of assessed value.

As approved on first reading Monday, the budget includes a 3 percent pay adjustment that will move municipal employees along their pay scales, helping to separate those who have worked for the city for a while from those who have just started. The school budget, which was approved by the Oak Ridge Board of Education in May, also includes 3 percent salary increases. [Read more…]

WYSH: Roane Commission passes tax increase

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Roane County Courthouse

The Roane County Courthouse in Kingston is pictured above. (File photo)

 

Information from WYSH Radio

The Roane County Commission approved a property tax rate increase at its meeting Monday night by a vote of 8-6.

Property taxes will go up by about 30 cents per $100 of assessed value. The increase was needed to support the fiscal budget.

Commissioners approved the county’s budget back in July. Twenty-two cents of the tax increase will go toward the county schools. County Executive Ron Woody said commission members knew the schools needed the money.

Approval of the property tax comes after months of waiting for the state to finish its assessments after the state comptroller’s office took over for the Roane County Assessor’s Office.

BBB-TV owner Ron Berry was elected commission chairman on Monday, and Harriman’s Randy Ellis was elected to his fifth term as vice chairman.

School board to consider buying $1.36M worth of 1:1 computing devices

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Board of Education on Monday will consider buying $1.36 million worth of “one to one” computing devices for middle school students and teachers.

The purchase of the 1,636 devices would be through a $1.59 million, four-year CalFirst equipment lease that the school board will also consider on Monday.

The BOE will consider buying 1,520 student devices worth $1,223,600 from Personal Computer Systems, or PCS, in Louisville, Tennessee. The Lenovo 11E Yoga convertible laptops are worth $805 each and would be used by students in grades 5-8.

Teachers in grades 5-8 would get 116 devices worth $135,140 from PCS. Those devices, worth $1,165 each, would be Lenovo Yoga 12s. [Read more…]

County to consider budget, tax rate again on Aug. 13

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Anderson County Teachers at County Commission

Roughly three-quarters of those attending the budget deliberations at Anderson County Commission wore red—”Red for Public Ed”—on Monday, July 20, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Anderson County commissioners have called another special meeting—this one on Thursday, August 13—to consider the county budget and tax rate. At stake are pay raises for county employees and educators and more than $1 million in new money for schools in Anderson County, Clinton, and Oak Ridge.

County commissioners approved a budget supported by a 10-cent property tax rate increase during a regular meeting on Monday, July 20. Eight cents of that increase was meant to provide most of the money needed for 2 percent pay raises for teachers and staff in Anderson County Schools. Anderson County Schools expected to receive another $700,000 or so from the tax rate increase, while Oak Ridge Schools anticipated an extra $423,000 and Clinton City Schools were projected to get another $134,000.

The other two cents approved during the July 20 meeting was for 2 percent pay raises for Anderson County employees, with the exception of county commissioners and other elected officials.

But in a follow-up special meeting on Thursday, July 30, the Anderson County Commission rejected the tax increase when it came time to officially adopt the new tax rate for the fiscal year that began July 1. For now, county and school officials are continuing to operate under last year’s spending levels. [Read more…]

Opinion: Responding to Baughn, Hardy says Chamber a voice for business concerns

Posted at
By 22 Comments

Parker Hardy

Parker Hardy

By Parker Hardy

Note: This is a response to a July 9 column by Oak Ridge City Council member Trina Baughn.

Let me begin by expressing my dismay at the continued war of words fueled by “guest columns” such as Ms. Baughn’s. The practice can be divisive, driving wedges of conflict into community unity that is crucial to Oak Ridge’s future. At worst, it can be destructive, damaging the morale and reputations of  volunteers, elected and appointed officials, professional staff, local organizations, and community institutions engaged in moving our city in positive directions. I am concerned that it also may discourage residential and business prospects that are considering locating in our city.

The Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce is a voice for business concerns, and it is sad that a public official thinks there’s something wrong with such a traditional role and such a fundamental right. In our almost 70 years of existence, we have built a broad membership base, most of which are small businesses. We are proud that our diverse membership ranges from local “mom-and-pop” companies, to respected professionals, to major corporations in the community and the region. In fact, if your readers will visit our online membership directory, perhaps they will recognize and support the hundreds of companies, individuals, and organizations that are investing in Oak Ridge through support for chamber initiatives. Yes, we count not-for-profits, government contractors, and out-of-town companies among our members. I believe they deserve praise, not punishment, for supporting our mission to enhance Oak Ridge’s economic vitality and business climate, and to provide business, leadership, and advocacy opportunities for our members. [Read more…]

Council defers budget vote to Monday, June 15

Posted at
By 1 Comment

Warren Gooch

Warren Gooch

Note: This story was updated at 8:51 a.m.

It’s still not clear how property reappraisals in Roane County will affect the Oak Ridge property tax rate, so the City Council on Monday deferred a vote on the budget until Monday, June 15.

Council had been scheduled to consider the budget in the first of two readings on Monday (June 8). Council was expected to consider the budget on second and final reading on June 15.

But the five-year property reappraisals in Roane County are not yet complete, and it’s not clear when they will be. Officials said property assessments there are likely to go down as they have in Anderson County, where they’ve fallen 4 percent.

An overall drop in property values could require an increase in the tax rate because the revenues after the reappraisals have to remain the same as they were before. [Read more…]

Clinton Council OKs budget, 15.5-cent tax increase

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Clinton City Hall

Information from WYSH Radio

Note: This story was updated at 10:52 a.m. May 20.

The Clinton City Council voted on Monday to approve its budget for the fiscal year that begins on July 1 on first reading, and it includes a 15.5-cent property tax increase.

Last week, WYSH reported that a three- or four-cent tax increase would be necessary to pay for an increase in insurance costs and to pay for the salaries and benefits of four full-time firefighters. The costs associated with those firefighters were paid for by a FEMA grant for the past two years, but they became the responsibility of the city this year.

Following a late-week budget workshop, another seven cents was added to the proposed tax increase to pay for the city taking over all of the costs associated with school resource officers at the city’s three schools ($62,000), hiring a codes enforcement/police officer ($50,000), and to set aside $100,000 to start a street-paving fund aimed at preventing the city from having to borrow money for street improvement projects in the future. [Read more…]

Anderson mayor: Budget proposal holds spending steady, no tax increase

Posted at
By 1 Comment

Terry Frank

Terry Frank

The budget proposed by Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank for the next fiscal year would keep most county departments at current-year spending levels and it includes no tax increase, a press release said.

The proposed general fund budget was presented to the Anderson County Budget Committee on Tuesday afternoon, and it was unanimously approved at Thursday evening’s budget meeting, the Mayor’s Office said in the release.

The next fiscal year begins July 1.

The balanced $25,088,157 budget for the county’s general operating fund proposes maintaining a focus on stabilizing spending levels until “we have full economic recovery,” the press release said. [Read more…]

AC budget process under way

Posted at
By Leave a Comment

Information from WYSH Radio

As the budget process begins in earnest for the new fiscal year that begins on July 1, the Anderson County school system is seeking money to pay for employee raises, upgrades to school facilities, and to start a fund to pay for computer devices for each student beginning in the upcoming academic year.

The budget proposal recently approved by the Anderson County Board of Education is currently about $3.1 million out of balance, and in order to fully fund requests, it would require the equivalent of a 45-cent increase in the property tax rate.  Included in the request to the County Commission is roughly $2 million to fund 4 percent pay raises for all employees; $871,852 for capital projects like roof repairs and unfunded mandates from the state dealing with physical education and sports facilities; and $221,484 for textbooks.

The most ambitious request, though, is the creation of a reserve fund through the county government to set aside money to pay for computer devices for students similar to the reserve fund that has been set aside for industrial development. [Read more…]

2014 Election: School board candidates talk taxes, budgets, bus routes, Preschool

Posted at
By 2 Comments

Oak Ridge Board of Education Candidates 2014

Oak Ridge Board of Education candidates are, from right, Mike Mahathy, Laura McLean, Bob Eby, Andy Howe, Paige Marshall, and Jean Hiser. Not pictured are Laurie Paine and Aaron Wells.

 

Note: This story was last updated at 10:10 a.m. Nov. 3.

School board candidates at two forums this campaign season expressed optimism that school officials will be able to continue to provide school bus transportation to most students in the next school year, and several said they would support a property tax rate increase if it were deemed necessary.

Bob Eby, Oak Ridge Board of Education vice chair, cited delayed staff raises and textbook purchases as well as capital project needs. Eby helped lead moves this summer to restore bus transportation to preschool students and then other students after the area where bus service is not provided was temporarily expanded to 1.5 miles as part of cost-cutting measures in June.

In August, Karen Gagliano, Oak Ridge Schools director of business and support services, said the $500,000 in fund balance money used to restore transportation and the delayed purchase of textbooks, among other things, means the school system could start the Fiscal Year 2015 budget discussions with a $1.8 million deficit, before anything new is added.

“I will ask for a tax increase next year,” Eby said. “We’ve put (off) all we can put off.” [Read more…]

School board candidates field questions on technology, tax increases

Posted at
By 3 Comments

Oak Ridge Board of Education Forum

A. Paige Marshall, left, one of eight candidates for the Oak Ridge School Board, answers a question during the League of Women Voters’ Candidate Forum Wednesday night. To her right are candidates Mike Mahathy, Andrew Howe, Jean Hiser, and incumbent Bob Eby, with WUOT radio host Matt Shafer Powell, who posed the questions. (Photo by Rebecca D. Williams)

 

Fielding public school questions about technology, tax increases, and the teaching of science versus religion, eight candidates for the Oak Ridge School Board tried to distinguish themselves from one another Wednesday night at the League of Women Voters’ Candidate Forum held at the Oak Ridge High School Amphitheater, to a crowd of about 150.

Board candidates offered largely similar answers, with the greatest difference of opinion posed by Aaron Wells. He spoke against school tax increases and one-to-one technology in schools.

“The biggest impact on me growing up was when my teachers gave me one-to-one education,” Wells said. “How many hours a day are kids staring at a screen? It’s too many. We need to do more with less, because money’s tight. We’ve got to get back to the basics.”

Also participating in the forum were two candidates who are opposing incumbent Chuck Fleischmann, a Republican, for the District 3 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Mary M. Headrick, a Democrat, and Cassandra J. Mitchell, an Independent, answered questions. Fleischmann was not present.

Also, Tennessee House Representative for District 32, Kent Calfee, the Republican incumbent, and Joe Kneiser, his Democratic opponent, fielded questions about four referendum questions on the ballot Nov. 4.

Three seats on the five-member Oak Ridge Board of Education are open. Bob Eby is the only incumbent running for re-election. Other candidates include Jean Hiser, Andrew Howe, Mike Mahathy, A. Paige Marshall, Laura McLean, Laurie Paine, and Wells. [Read more…]

Letter: Anderson County Commission needs wake-up call

Posted at
By 4 Comments

Anderson County is a wonderful place to live and work. Our economy should easily out-perform Knox County’s. Yet, we consistently fail to do so—and our County Commission seems to be asleep. Between 2000 and 2010, Anderson County grew at only 41 percent of Knox County’s growth rate. That’s unacceptable.

Over the next decade, Anderson County taxpayers will pay close to $2 million in salary and medical/dental/retirement benefits for its county commissioners. The commission needs to get focused and get busy. Our economy was dealt a significant blow when the commission opted for an expensive jail expansion. Commissioners could have sought support from a newly-elected Republican governor for more time to resolve jail overcrowding through less-costly administrative means—but did not. Instead, they chose the jail expansion, ignoring its impact on our taxes and our economy.

The commissioners made a second error when they passed the jail expansion without dealing with the new jail’s increased operating costs. This mistake drove jail costs even higher and raised the real possibility of a second tax increase. Thankfully, a second increase was prevented by the efforts of Mayor Frank. [Read more…]