Anderson County will have its 5th Annual Memorial Day ceremony at 10 a.m. Monday at the Veterans Memorial in front of the Anderson County Courthouse in downtown Clinton.
Guest speakers include Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and Curtis Sexton, a retired U.S. Army colonel. [Read more…]
Terry Frank
CLINTON—For now, Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank has dropped her proposal to cut funding for the county law director, and she has worked with the budget director to put together a plan to hire 15 new jailers for a jail expansion that could open in November.
But it’s less than half the number of new jailers requested by Anderson County Sheriff Paul White for the 212-bed expansion of the Anderson County Detention Facility, which could be completed in November.
“They understand the budget constraints,” Frank said of the Sheriff’s Department. “In this tight economy, we’re doing the best we can.” [Read more…]
Anderson County Budget Director Chris Phillips, from left, County Mayor Terry Frank, and Deputy Budget Director Connie Aytes display the certificates received from Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada. (Submitted photo)
Anderson County announced this week that its Accounts and Budgets Office has received a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for the county’s comprehensive annual financial report, or CAFR.
The Certificate of Achievement has been awarded by the Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada. Anderson County is approaching the 20th consecutive year that it has received the award from GFOA, according to records, a press release said.
The release said the Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.
Note: This story was updated at 7:15 p.m.
CLINTON—Some Anderson County commissioners weren’t satisfied with the results they’ve seen—or haven’t seen—from a part-time fiscal analyst hired by the county mayor in December.
Some also weren’t happy about the amount paid to the analyst, Tom Shope, and a request to approve a budget change to pay him after the money has already been spent.
So, during a Monday meeting, they declined to transfer $22,740 from one budget code to another to allow Chris Phillips, Anderson County account and budgets director, to pay Shope from a part-time budget code. [Read more…]
Terry Frank
Information from WYSH Radio
After a lengthy meeting Thursday evening, the Anderson County Budget Committee recommended approval of a budget proposal that leaves property tax rates at their current levels.
The budget proposal will be the subject of a public hearing on May 30 and will be deliberated in June by the full County Commission. It will be up to commissioners to decide what to do about funding the Anderson County Sheriff Department’s request for hiring 34 new jailers at the soon-to-be-expanded Anderson County Jail and funding requests for new vehicles and equipment. [Read more…]
Terry Frank
Note: This story was last updated at 9:46 p.m.
Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank on Wednesday proposed cutting the property tax rate by 1.62 cents and reducing the county law director’s budget by 16.5 percent.
It would be a $52,069 decrease in the budget of Anderson County Law Director Jay Yeager, who said he would have to lay off one of his two staff members.
Frank proposed reducing the property tax rate by 1.62 cents through a restructuring of the Alternatives to Incarceration Program, a relatively new program that lost its director in March. [Read more…]
Terry Frank
Spending requests have exceeded expected revenues by more than $4 million, mostly because of a proposal to hire more jailers, and Anderson County officials will discuss the budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1 during a Monday evening workshop.
Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and Budget Director Chris Phillips have said they plan to present a balanced budget that does not raise taxes but still provides core services.
County officials have said projected revenues are down slightly, or about 98 percent of what they are in the current fiscal year. There has been a slight increase in property assessments, but sales and business tax revenues are projected to be down. [Read more…]
By Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank and Budget Director Chris Phillips
As Anderson County government begins the budget process for the 2013/2014 county budget, we wanted to share with the citizens, elected officials, county employees, and all interested parties some of the challenges and opportunities that we face in presenting our County Commission with a balanced, no-tax-increase budget while still providing core services.
Upon first request from all departments, the county’s general fund budget is out of balance by more than $4 million, expenditures over revenues.
Revenues are initially projected at 98 percent of our current year levels. Property assessments (growth) have a slight increase, while things like sales tax and business tax are projected to be down to some extent. While the county’s general fund is not heavily dependent upon federal revenue, budget woes at the federal level have caused concern about some of the revenues that we do receive. [Read more…]
The flags at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton have been lowered to half-staff and will remain so through sunset Saturday in honor and memory of the victims of Monday’s bombings at the Boston Marathon, a press release said.
Anderson County Veterans Service Officer Leon Jaquet lowered the flags late Tuesday morning after receiving notification from the Office of President Barack Obama, who issued a presidential proclamation ordering the lowering of U.S. flags at all public buildings and grounds as a mark of respect for the victims.
“Such acts of evil are always difficult to understand,” Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank said. “My prayers are with the victims, their families and those who so bravely responded to help.”
Note: This story was updated at 2:49 p.m.
CLINTON—After hours of discussion and five meetings, the Anderson County Commission has agreed to place four black granite signs inscribed with the national motto “In God We Trust” in gold letters above each of the four doors at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.
The signs would be paid for by donations. Commission agreed to accept contributions and donations in the Anderson County Budget Director’s Office.
It’s the third time the signs have been considered by the commission since February. They’ve also been considered twice by the Anderson County Operations Committee. Much of the debate among commissioners and residents has focused on the whether the signs should be posted at all—some opponents would like to keep a strict separation between church and state—and whether other mottos such as “E pluribus unum” and “Liberty and Justice for All” should also be included. [Read more…]
Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank speaks to the Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club. (Submitted photo)
Submitted
Anderson County Mayor Terry Frank recently spoke to the Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club.
The mayor shared some of her personal views and opinions on Anderson County and the challenges facing county leaders, such as housing, drugs, taxation, and an overcrowded jail. Frank said many of these challenges are similar for other communities across the state and country.
She also spoke about some of the positive aspects of Anderson County. Among those: being a diverse community in terms of people, terrain, history, and assets—from the small historical town of Oliver Springs to the manufacturing companies in Clinton, and a focus on the future with science and technology in Oak Ridge.
Mike Baker (Photo by D. Ray Smith)
Note: This story was updated March 31 to add a link to the judge’s letter.
Mike Baker, the director of Anderson County’s alternatives to jail program, was critical of the judiciary and the county mayor when he announced his resignation last week, saying he didn’t have their support.
This week, though, three Anderson County judges said Baker, whose last day is April 4, had made “no real attempt” to work with them. When Baker started his job about a year ago, they said, he lacked knowledge of Tennessee laws related to prisoner release programs, and he had no relevant experience in the state or Anderson County. [Read more…]
