June 11, 2012 Hamblen County Budget Meeting with School Board

The Hamblen County Commission Budget Committee is composed of all 14 members of the full Commission. The Budget Committee has been meeting to go over the Hamblen County budget for the past several weeks. 

At its May 31 meeting, the Budget Committee voted on the Hamblen County Schools budget, recommending a 5.1% or $3,495,000 increase in school funding for FY 2013 year.  Despite the nearly $3.5 Million increase, the school system left that meeting upset because the nearly $3.5 Million increase is $272,000 shy of the increase that the school board wanted and expected.

After the May 31 committee vote on the school budget, Director of School Dale Lynch apparently met with County Mayor Bill Brittain and Finance Director Joey Barnard and appeared at the June 7 Hamblen Commission Budget Committee meeting (video above) to ask for another meeting/ work session with the Commission.

The joint meeting/work session will take place tonight at the Courthouse (Chancery Courtroom) at 6 PM.

April 3, 2009 My "April 1st" Blog Entry Was a Prank! Mayor David Purkey Still Thinks Taxpayers Shouldn't See the Proposed County Budget Online

I received several calls on April 1 and April 2 from people who had read my April 1 post and were excited to find out that County Mayor David Purkey was actually going to post the proposed county budget on the county website.

They were also pleased that my April 1 post reported that Mayor Purkey had actually decided that they--the citizens and taxpayers of Hamblen County--were smart enough to understand what a proposed budget is and that changes might take place during the budget process.

When I pointed out the date of the post (April 1) and the significance of that date (April Fools' Day pranks), one of them laughed and added that she definitely got pranked. Until we talked, she actually thought David Purkey had had a change of heart, had come out in the open, and had decided that the taxpayers pay enough to be able at least to see the proposed county budget online.

I had fun writing the April Fools' Day post, but, no, David doesn't want you to see the proposed budget, and yes, he still thinks little old taxpayers would just be "confused" by the big old budget and budget changes.

David, like 99% of politicians, just wants you to dutifully pay those sales taxes, pay those property taxes, pay those wheel taxes, pay those business taxes, pay those litigation taxes, and on and on and on.

Now that April 1st is over, I'll put a note at the end of that post to let everyone know that nothing has changed in County Mayor David Purkey's Office---

David still does NOT want taxpayers to see the county's proposed budget on the Hamblen County website.

David still thinks taxpayers couldn't possibly understand or handle seeing changes to the proposed budget during the budget process. They would be "confused."

David is still afraid of "someone sitting in a law office somewhere."

And I don't have a clue as to what David's assistant Amber Shelton does for David with those extra FIVE hours per month that she said she has to assist him.

The only thing that is clear at this point is that David will NOT ask her to use those hours to serve the public and post the proposed county budget on the county website.

April 1, 2009 Mayor Purkey Reverses Himself. He WILL Post the 2009-2010 Proposed County Budget On the County's Website

Wonderful and surprising news from the basement of the Hamblen County Courthouse!

In a press release today, County Mayor David Purkey states that he is going to make sure that the proposed Hamblen County budget for 2009-2010 is available for taxpayers to view on the Hamblen County website!

In the press release, Purkey apologizes for earlier remarks that posting the proposed budget and changes to the budget would "confuse" taxpayers. Purkey now admits that the taxpayers of Hamblen County are smart enough to understand budgets and changes that are made to budgets.

By way of explanation, Purkey states that Hamblen County taxpayers have personal budgets and have had to make often painful changes to their personal budgets during these exceptionally difficult economic times. He adds that these same taxpayers who are struggling with personal budgets should definitely be able to see the county's proposed budget and the spending plan that they will be asked/ordered to pay for!

In another gracious comment, Purkey admitted that he was wrong when he said at a public meeting on March 9 that one of the reasons he didn't want to put the budget online was because he didn't want "someone in a law office somewhere" looking at the budget. Thank you, David.

In a sidenote, Purkey adds that he is going to have his administrative assistant, Amber Shelton, assist with seeing that the proposed budget is posted on the website just as soon as it is available. David just remembered that several months ago --when the commission switched from folders to binders-- Amber pointed out that as a result of the switch she would have an extra FIVE hours every month to help the Mayor!

David has asked Amber to use the extra FIVE hours for May and the extra FIVE hours for June to help the Mayor post the proposed budget and updates on the county's website.

During the other ten months of the year, Amber will use that extra FIVE hours each month to keep the Mayor's office climate-controlled just in case he drops in.

[APRIL 3 UPDATE: The above entry was posted on April 1 and, unfortunately for the taxpayers of Hamblen County, was just an April 1 prank. See my April 3 post for more information]

March 29, 2009 Gov. Bredesen Puts Tennessee State Budget Online. County Mayor David Purkey Refuses To Put Hamblen County Budget Online!

Governor Bredesen's proposed 2009-2010 Tennessee state budget is up and available for anyone to view as reported in Tom Humphrey's blog.

Don't hold your breath, however, waiting for Hamblen County's budget to be posted on the Hamblen County website!

Governor Bredesen believes that the taxpayers and citizens of Tennessee should be able to see the proposed budget that he presents to the legislature.

County Mayor David Purkey believes that the taxpayers and citizens of Hamblen County should not see the proposed budget that he presents to the Hamblen County Commission.

Why won't Purkey put the proposed budget on the Hamblen County website? Well, he apparently has several different reasons---just pick one.

On March 20, the Tribune reported that Mayor Purkey says he doesn't have the staff to post the budget online and to update changes in revenue estimates. And he is really worried about those constantly changing numbers: "I just don't think it's a good idea to post constantly changing numbers. It's confusing to the public." David, is it really better to keep the public in the dark than to simply explain the changes as they come up?

Governor Bredesen apparently thinks that legislators and the people can understand the difference between a proposed budget and a final budget.

Mayor Purkey apparently thinks that only commissioners can understand the difference between a proposed budget and a final budget---everyone else would be confused.

As for Purkey's lack of "staff" to post the proposed budget. That's pure garbage. He can and does post anything he wants to post.

What he's really afraid of is that there are people who would not be confused, who understand the county budget, and who would be able to ask penetrating questions if the budget were readily available.

In the Tribune (March 20) budget article, Purkey was very careful to omit his other publicly stated reason for not putting the budget online. Back on March 9 at the Public Services Committee meeting, Purkey's said that he doesn't want to put the budget online because he doesn't want "someone sitting in a law office somewhere" looking at the budget and finding mistakes.

Now what attorney is he afraid of? David, can you be more specific?

Is the County Mayor so afraid of "someone sitting in a law office somewhere" that he chooses to deny ALL citizens of Hamblen County the ability and convenience of being able to view the proposed county budget--that those taxpayers fund--on the county website.

These citizens pay the property taxes, the (temporary!) wheel tax, the sales taxes, the business taxes, and all the other taxes that fund the county and school budgets, but the County Mayor won't let them see the proposed budget!

These citizens pay the County Mayor's salary AND benefits AND retirement AND the hefty car allowance that the Mayor requested just over two years ago, but he doesn't think that these citizens should see the proposed budget as they watch the process of arriving at a final budget. Amazing.

March 20, 2009 Mayor Purkey Doesn't Want the County's Proposed Budget on the County Website

It's still Sunshine Week in Tennessee, but there's a cloud of darkness over the county budget process courtesy of Mayor David Purkey. [This post has been picked up by Taxing Tennessee, a blog standing up for TAXPAYERS everywhere]

Sunshine and Transparency in the Budget Process: Mayor David Purkey just doesn't get it.

Making the County's Proposed Budget Easily Available TO THE TAXPAYER: Mayor David Purkey won't do it.

Last month, I asked the county commission to place the proposed county budget on the Hamblen County website when the budget process begins in April. Commissioner Phillips had it put in committee for consideration on March 9.

I began pushing for this when I was on commission. As a commissioner, I had the budget documents in front of me, but the citizens and taxpayers couldn't see anything and had no way of getting the same budget information unless they wanted to make a trip to the Courthouse and pay the Mayor's office $20 or so to get copies.

When my proposal to make the proposed budget available online was considered in committee, Mayor Purkey threw out a number of (meaningless) objections and then his real objection.

Purkey said one reason he couldn't put the proposed county budget on the county website is that he doesn't have a full-time technology person.

Well, when there is a bid for county work, he somehow manages to have bid documents put on the county website. And he has somehow managed to get the county's personnel manual, travel policy, and vehicle policy on the website.

You get the drift. He can figure out a way to put what he wants on the county website. But putting the proposed county budget on the website for the taxpayers to see during budget deliberations? He can't handle that. No way.

At the end of the committee meeting, Purkey revealed his own petty and personal reason for not placing the proposed county budget on the county website. He said that he didn't want to put budget information online where "someone sitting in a law office" could pull up budget documents and point out discrepancies or errors.

And who is that someone in a law office that he is so afraid of? Well, though it's been 2-1/2 years since I left office, David apparently still quakes at the idea of scrutiny and questions. In fact, he is apparently so afraid of me being able to view the budget documents and ask questions that he has decided that he'll deny all county residents and taxpayers the ability to see the county's proposed budget.

Interestingly, the County Clerk, Linda Wilder, doesn't have a full-time technology person, but she has figured out how to put the lengthy minutes of county commission meetings onto the website every month.

But long-time Mayor David Purkey can't figure out how to get the county's proposed budget onto the website once-a-year!!

Ironically, Purkey said that he would be able to put the final budget on the county website. I guess a proposed budget is a lot harder to put on the county website than a final budget. LOL!

Sort of reminds you of the federal government and the bailout...we won't let you see what we're working on while we're working on it, but we'll certainly let you know when it's all done and over with and we're ready to send you--the taxpayer--the bill!

February 21, 2009 Maybe, Just Maybe, the 2009-2010 Hamblen County Budget Will Be On-Line This Year

During the visitor's comments portion of the Hamblen County Commission meeting on February 19, 2009, I again asked that Hamblen County budget documents be made accessible to the public on the Hamblen County website.

I've been pushing for this from the time I served on commission in 2002-2006 and afterward. This time, there was a mini-breakthrough and a glimmer of sunshine.

Commissioner Nancy Phillips turned to Chairman Stancil Ford and stated she thought that the proposal was a good idea. She asked that the request be placed on the agenda for March committee meetings.

[While I was serving on Commission, Commissioner Phillips and I along with several others pushed to get a Hamblen Government website up and running. She and I also led the push for televising commission meetings. She has a track record of being a proponent of open government.]

After the meeting, Commissioner Tommy Massey came over and said that he, too, thinks this is a good idea. I asked him to please support this when it comes up in committee meetings.

Thank you, Commissioner Phillips, for getting this placed in committee for consideration. Thank you, Commissioner Massey, for expressing your support.

Sharing detailed information with taxpayers about how their taxes have been and are being spent should be a no-brainer. And making information like this available on the government website is a simple process of feeding papers into a scanner and then posting it.

It's time to open up and expand the local government-to-taxpayer information pipeline. As Larry says, when he's not working on cable repairs, Git 'r done!

August 3, 2005 A deficit budget in the making

The Hamblen County Commission meets tomorrow at 4:00 pm. The 7/1/05-6/30/06 budgets for Hamblen County General Government (General Fund), School Fund, Highway Fund, Garbage Fund, Debt Fund, and a few minor funds are on the agenda.

Most of the budgets have no serious problem. The only budget that is in the red, with a deficit of $760,000 is the county's general fund.

The current proposal is to give $3.1 million new dollars to the school system and to leave the county with a $760,000 deficit.

(The general fund deficit may end up being even higher because it appears that the Planning Commission plans to wait until after the budget is passed and then present commission with a request for an unspecified amount of additional money for an additional employee and perhaps other costs. Overcrowding in the jail is still "out there." What else could there be? I certainly hope that there isn't another hospital bail out or transportation emergency or super-fund site clean-up that we haven't been told about and that will be presented as an "emergency" with immediate action required.)

It appears that Commissioner Harville's plan to give the schools $300,000 of county trustee fees has hit a snag. Harville, whose son Stan is principal at Witt Elementary, decided on July 19th that $2.8 million new dollars was not enough of an increase for the schools, so he proposed giving the schools $300,000 more out of the county trustee's fees. On July 22nd, County Mayor David Purkey revised the county budget and showed the $300,000 as a "transfer payment" from the general fund to the school fund.

I tried to call Mayor Purkey yesterday and today, but he was either busy or gone. I wanted to share with him a letter that he provided to commission during the 2002 budget process--a letter from County Technical Assistance Services that seems to express the opinion that you can't do what the Mayor has shown-- transfer money from fund to fund.

I sent this letter to the county attorney for his review, and to Finance Director Epps today. With the letter, I noted that if the county wants to give another $300,000 to the schools while putting the general fund $300,000 deeper in debt, there are other ways to do this. For example, we can lower the general fund tax levy and increase the school tax levy or we can lower the general fund wheel tax revenue and add to the schools wheel tax revenue. Of course, we can just raise the school tax rate as well.

There will be a large number of school employees at the meeting tomorrow. They have been told to come and to protest the fact that county commission is only giving the school system $3.1 million new dollars instead of the full $4.1 million new dollars as requested. Some of these employees (cafeteria workers, bus drivers, custodians) have been told by the Board and by Director Lynch that they will not get a raise unless county commission provides more money.

Apparently, the school board is not spreading the millions of new dollars around to all employees and is blaming the county commission for the choices that the board has made in terms of who gets what and how much. As I've mentioned in previous blogs, the school board alone determines how the millions of new dollars will be spent. It can spread the millions out to all employees, or it can leave some employees out-- as it apparently has chosen to do.

Tomorrow, public address announcements will be made at the schools to rally the troops, memos will probably go out to school employees, and there will be a packed courthouse. During the hoop-la as the employed fight over more money and better benefits, will anyone think of the person who has no job or who works for minimum wage? Will anyone think of the people they know on a fixed income of $600/month? Will anyone think of the people they know who have no insurance? Will anyone think of the person who has no, or a meager, retirement? Will anyone think of the neighbor down the street who already faces a property tax increase due to the 2005 property reappraisal?

Will anyone think of the entire community and consider that maybe we should be thankful for what we have? Will anyone think of the general fund and how a $760,000+ draw down/deficit will affect it this year and the next? The big picture includes all citizens. Maybe it's time for moderation and even-handedness, instead of the "I want it all" attitude that we see too often at this time of year.

Yes, I taught school for 11 years. Yes, I loved to see a raise. Who doesn't? Maudie Briggs has said that our factories are gone and they're not coming back. Our trustee has pointed out that our revenues have flat-lined for now. It's a time of economic adjustment, and a lot of people are being hit hard. In the big picture, would it be so awful if some people took a smaller raise this year to ensure that their fellow employees are also able to receive a share of the pie? Would it be so awful if we balanced the general fund, gave the schools $2.5 million, and avoided the disaster that is being set up for next year?

We are rushing headlong toward a disaster during the next budget cycle if we go ahead and in our frustration pass what just about everyone knows is a bad budget. It's amazing to watch those who have preached long-range planning and those who have touted financial expertise express a willingness to wash their hands of it all at this point and just pass something, anything--even if it is bad for Hamblen County and a potential disaster for taxpayers next year.

Where's the concern about long-range, strategic planning in this budget? Where's the willingness to work for the taxpayers instead of throwing one's hands up in frustration? Instead of just mindlessly voting for a bad budget, who is going to put forth an alternative?