July 18, 2012 McGuffin Thanks the Five Councilmembers Who Rejected Twenty-One Other People and Then Promptly Attacks Mayor

George McGuffin was re-appointed to the Morristown Utility Commission at yesterday's council meeting. No surprise there.

Afterwards, McGuffin strode to the podium to thank the five councilmembers who serially rejected twenty-one other candidates for the MUC post over the past year and who even changed state law to pave the way for McGuffin's re-appointment.  

[Ironically, the law that was changed for McGuff was an appointment process that MUC proposed and brought to the council in 2001. After the 2001 appointment process and other MUC changes were put on a referendum for a vote OF THE PEOPLE, MUC paid for signs and political ads in the local "news"paper supporting the MUC referendum question and asking voters to Vote FOR Private Act 2 which was the MUC Referendum Question.]

In his "acceptance speech," McGuffin bragged on MUC and then directed some very personal remarks to Mayor Danny Thomas who, McGuffin said, should be "ashamed" of changing his cable and internet from MUS FiberNet to a competitor. [With the vitriol shown by MUC toward the Mayor, it was probably prudent of the Mayor to move his personal email and internet from MUC to another provider.]

Sons Frank McGuffin and Patrick McGuffin, councilmember Bob Garrett, and fellow MUC Commissioner Lynn Elkins joined in a round of applause for McGuff's remarks.

Despite McGuff's personal remarks, Thomas made no comment. In fact, Thomas (in suit and tie) went to McGuffin to shake hands after the meeting adjourned. McGuffin (in the red shirt) barely shook hands before jerking his hand back and walking off to hug Kay Senter--one of the Five.

July 18, 2012 McGuffin "Officially" Returns to MUC 5-2.

After getting five councilmembers, State Rep. Don Miller, and State Sen. Steve Southerland to serially reject twenty-one other people and to change state law for him, George McGuffin was re-appointed to the Morristown Utility Commission (MUC) in a 5-2 vote yesterday.

Paul LeBel made the motion. Kay Senter seconded it. Voting for McGuffin were LeBel, Senter, Garrett, Bivens, and Jinks. Voting against were Mayor Danny Thomas and Gene Brooks.

The law that was changed for McGuffin  in 2012 was an appointment process that had been approved and put in place by the vote of the people in a 2001 referendum election.

Just prior to yesterday's vote, Councilman Gene Brooks asked City/MUC Attorney Dick Jessee about the legality of political ads and signs that MUC paid for during the 2001 referendum telling Morristown residents to Vote "FOR" the MUC Private Act. Jessee repeated that MUC could provide "information" about a referendum but hesitated to answer Brooks' specific question about whether MUC could go beyond information to telling people to VOTE FOR the MUC referendum question.

July 16, 2012 MUC Board Meets Today (VIDEO ADDED) To Select George McGuffin and Two Throw Away Nominees

The Morristown Utility Commission Board meets this morning at 8:00 AM to select its twenty-second list of three nominees for the MUC seat held by MUC Chairman George McGuffin.

The MUC Board is composed of George McGuffin, who has been on the Board for over 34 years, Harold Nichols, Gene Jolley, Lynn Elkins, and Max Biery. UPDATE: Only Harold Nichols, Lynn Elkins, and Max Biery showed up for the meeting.

Unless George McGuffin voluntarily steps aside after a year of fighting to stay on the Board and after state law was changed to ensure that he could continue at the helm of MUC, the list will be headed by George McGuffin with two throw-away names included simply because the list has to have two other people on it.

UPDATE: It's McGuffin, and the two throw away names are Jay Smith and Lloyd Etter.

Under the new McGuffin Law that applies only to Morristown and overturns the vote of the people in the 2001 referendum, this list will go directly to the city council tomorrow and the five councilmembers who created gridlock for the past year by blocking approval of 21 previous people will finally get to "officially" put George McGuffin back on the MUC throne.

The councilmembers who voted to change state law for McGuffin are Paul LeBel, Kay Senter, Bob Garrett, Claude Jinks, and Chris Bivens with a big assist from Sen. Steve Southerland and Rep. Don Miller who ushered the McGuffin Law through the state legislature and kept a tight lid on it all by refusing to let the people vote on the McGuffin Law in a referendum.

The seven don't want any pesky people voting again--why, that might open everything up to everyday people. They don't want that.

The list of 21 rejectees is here.

July 10, 2012 Helen Ross McNabb Center Requests $148,000 from MUC for New Building

Helen Ross McNabb Center (HRM), a community mental health organization offering mental health, substance abuse, and social services, is asking the Morristown Utility Commission to provide $148,000 of funding toward lighting at a new building to be built by HRM.

If the request is granted, the money would come from MUC's "round-up" program where actual MUC bills are "rounded-up" to the next dollar and the money collected above the actual billing is put into a fund from which commissioners donate funds for qualified and approved community projects. 

[Your MUC bill is automatically rounded-up unless you opt out and ask to be billed only for the actual amount.]

Mike Fishman spoke to MUC Commissioners on June 28 to start the discussion:

Denise Terry Stapleton spoke of her involvement with HRM:



Helen Ross McNabb's Houston Smelcer spoke:

MUC Commissioner Lynn Elkins: "Addiction and mental illness is epidemic...Our workforce is going to suffer. Why provide services for surrounding counties?...If it weren't for the surrounding counties, we wouldn't have enough people to operate our plants now."

MUC took the request under advisement.

July 4, 2012 21st Morristown Leader Rejected as Not Good Enough by LeBel Five

Tom Strate, longtime Morristown resident, businessman, and insurance agent, was nominated to the Morristown Utility Commission by Mayor Thomas on Tuesday. His nomination was quickly rejected in a 5-2 vote.  Strate thus joins the 20 other people who are not good enough to sit on the MUC Board. See the full list of 21 rejectees at the end of this post.

Two councilmembers supported Strate (Mayor Thomas and Gene Brooks). Five councilmembers (Paul LeBel, Bob Garrett, Kay Senter, Claude Jinks, and Chris Bivens) voted to reject Strate.

The Morristown Utility Commission, made up of Harold Nichols, Gene Jolley, Max Biery, Lynn Elkins, and Chairman George McGuffin, sent Strate's name along with two others (George McGuffin and Jay Smith) to the Mayor last week. The Mayor made his nomination of Strate from the MUC-provided list.

The last three of the 21 rejections have taken place after the new McGuffin law that was ushered through the state legislature by Sen. Steve Southerland Rep. Don Miller and ratified by five councilmembers on May 1st with LeBel, Senter, Bivens, Garrett, Jinks, Southerland, and Miller refusing to allow the people to have their voice heard on the issue in a $250 referendum.

Under the McGuffin Law a/k/a McGuffin Appointment Process, MUC will submit its next list of three nominees directly to the council.  The councilmembers who pushed to change state law for one person are positively giddy at the prospect of being able to take the next three-person MUC list, immediately throw away two of those names and then nominate that one special person, George McGuffin, at long last. 

It has been noted that the current appointment process was put in place BY THE PEOPLE (72%) as part of the 2001 MUC Referendum Question. The five councilmembers pushing the McGuffin Law were asked to have a referendum on any proposed change to the 2001 voter-approved appointment process.   They refused. 

Sen. Steve Southerland was asked to provide for a referendum and let the people vote. He refused.

Rep. Don Miller was asked to let the people decide. To quote Don Miller's one-word response to requests from citizens and state legislators to let the people of his district vote on this issue: "NO."

TWENTY-ONE REJECTEES
In 2011 and 2012, not one of the following nominees to sit on the MUC Board could get the approval of a majority of the full council.

Mike Minnich
Glenn Thompson
Carroll Fowler
Wally Long
John Allen
Mike Davidson
Bruce Sluder
Jerry Isaacs
Gene Lynch
Steve Henrikson
David Wild
Steve Isaacs
Chris Horne
Joel Hice
Jo Ervin
John Hodge
C.L. "Buddy" Jones, III
Randy Harville
Terry Brimer
Peter Cantwell
Tom Strate

July 4, 2012 How Did Our Founders Celebrate Independence?

  

Firm Reliance Reuniting Americans With Their True Heritage July 4, 2012                                                                                                                                                  On the evening of July 2, 1776, after the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail expressing the significance of that day. In his letter he wrote about how future generations should celebrate with parades, shows, games, guns, bonfires and fireworks. For the most part, Americans have taken heed to Adams' call to celebrate that day. However, America has forgotten the most significant act of honoring this great occasion. First and foremost, Adams wrote, "It ought to be commemorated as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty." Our Founding Fathers believed that God was delivering us from the tyrannical hand of the British government, just as He had delivered the children of Israel from the bondage of Egypt. Evidence of this strongly held belief can be found in the first proposed seal of the United States. The seal was designed by the same committee that drafted the Declaration, which included Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and John Adams. The seal had the image of "Pharaoh sitting in a chariot, a crown on his head and a sword in his hand, passing through the divided waters of the Red Sea in pursuit of the Israelites: Rays from a pillar of fire in the Cloud, expressive of the Divine presence and command, beaming on Moses who stands on the shore and extending his hand over the sea causes it to overwhelm Pharaoh." As long as Israel honored God for delivering them from Egypt, his hand of protection was upon them. But when they turned their back to him is when they faced tribulation and judgment. This is why our Founders felt that the most important thing for us to do in celebration of our deliverance from tyranny is to give "solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty." On July 4, 1787 the delegates to the Constitutional Convention recessed their proceedings to celebrate the "Day of Deliverance." There were many opportunities to celebrate with games, parades and parties, but instead, under the leadership of George Washington, the delegates assembled at the Reformed Calvinistic Church in Philadelphia to worship and pray. Reverend William Rogers delivered a sermon about trusting in the wisdom of God to establish a "free and vigorous government." This Independence Day, share this story with others, and be sure to pray for our nation and honor God for his deliverance and for the strong faith and dedication of our Founding Fathers. Georgia State Senator Barry Loudermilk

July 3, 2012 MUC Selects One Nominee for the McGuffin Seat (and Two Toss-Aways)

George McGuffin, chairman of the MUC Board of Commissioners presided over the monthly MUC meeing last Thursday, June 28, at 8 AM.  Other MUC commissioners in attendance were Harold Nichols, Lynn Elkins, Gene Jolley, and Max Biery.

One of the first items on the agenda was a vote on three names to submit to Mayor Danny Thomas for his selection of one name to submit to the council for the MUC seat currently held by George McGuffin.

The MUC Commissioners approved a three-name list consisting of George McGuffin, Jay Smith, and Tom Strate.

Actually, let's face it. This is really a one-name list (George McGuffin) with two toss-aways (Jay Smith and Tom Strate) thrown in simply because MUC is required to submit three names.

Keeping George on the Board is the name of the game, and it is a very important game.

So important that 20 people--selected by the MUC Board--have already been rejected by what is now a five-member council coalition determined to keep anyone else from sitting in the "McGuffin seat."

So important that these same five councilmembers got Sen. Steve Southerland and Rep. Don Miller to sponsor a bill to change state law to overturn a part--the MUC appointment process--of the 2001 MUC Referendum so that the MUC appointment comes directly to council for a direct vote after rejection of three mayoral nominees.

So important that these five councilmembers (Paul LeBel, Bob Garrett, Kay Senter, Claude Jinks, and Chris Bivens) were afraid and refused to allow the people to vote in a new referendum in 2012 on whether there would be a change to the appointment process that the people had put in place BY THE PEOPLE--at the urging of MUC--in the 2001 MUC referendum. 

So important that Rep. Miller, who was asked by fellow legislators and several of his constituents to let the people vote in a referendum on approval or rejection of the McGuffin Law, repeatedly said "no" to letting the people vote. 

Miller wants the people to vote for him for state representative, BUT he doesn't want to let the people vote in a referendum on the MUC Act as they were allowed to do in 2001.

July 2, 2012 City Finance Committee Meeting on June 21

The Finance Committee of the City of Morristown met on June 21 for 10 minutes to get three handouts from longtime City Auditor Tom Jones of Craine, Thompson & Jones.

Just after the halfway point, Jones asks for the Council/Finance Committee to explain how it exercises financial "oversight." Bob Garrett says he has already answered: "Tony (Cox) takes care of it."

June 26, 2012 Hamblen County Commission Approves Revised School Budget, All County Budgets, Tax Rate, and Non-Profit Funding

After extended back-and-forth between the Hamblen County Commission and the Hamblen County School System, the School Board went back to the drawing board, revised its budget, and presented a new budget document to the Hamblen County Budget Committee at 4:30 on June 21, 2012.  [See video below]

A few commissioners still had questions about the estimates, costs, and square footage of the next West High building program. In addition, several commissioners have expressed concern in earlier meetings about the school system taking "leftover" money from construction projects and then spending that money on other projects as it wishes. It appears likely that the school board's handling of yet another school construction project will come under close scrutiny as bids are taken for new West High projects and work begins.

The Hamblen County Commission then met in regular session at 5:00 PM (video below) and approved the school budget, the county budget, the county tax rate, and funding for numerous non-profits.

June 24 Witt Sewer Lawsuit Ends With City Paying Attorney Fees and Fines Reduced Through Negotiations

The Witt Sewer Lawsuit appears to be at an end. 

Last year, Federal District Judge Ronnie Greer ruled in favor of the Witt residents, ordering the City to repair the Witt sewer line, make monetary payments to two Witt residents, pay attorney fees of the Witt residents' attorney Gary Davis, and pay fines for violations of the Clean Water Act. Click here and here.

The City appealed to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals but later entered into negotiations with the Witt residents--negotiations that recently resulted in an agreed settlement with a reduction of the attorney fees and fine.

In the video (above) City Administrator Tony Cox reports that Federal District Judge Ronnie Greer approved the negotiated settlement of the attorney fees that will be paid by the City to the Witt residents' attorney and approved a reduced fine to be paid to the US Treasury for the City's violations of the Clean Water Act.

The City will finish the repair work on the Witt sewer line and will also make the monetary payment to two of the Witt residents.

June 23, 2012 Freedom Energy Diesel Asks for Time To Go Overseas for Financing (video); City Grants One-Year Extension (video)

Above: Video of the City Council June 19 vote to give Freedom Energy Diesel (FED) another year to start construction on its coal gasification plant in the East Tennessee Progress Center.

Background. Just over a year ago, the Industrial Development Board of Morristown and Freedom Energy Diesel (FED) announced that FED would build a coal gasification plant in the East Tennessee Progress Center. The projected cost of the plant and equipment was over $400 Million dollars.

At that time, the IDB asked the City to move quickly to sell 116 acres to D4 Capital, the parent company of FED, so construction could begin according to FED's "aggressive" schedule.

The City sold 116 acres to D4 Capital in June 2011 at a deeply discounted rate with a provision that if actual construction on the Freedom Energy building had not begun by June 27, 2012, the land would be deeded back to the City at no cost to the City.

As the June 27, 2012, deadline approached and with no construction on the building taking place, FED representative David Wild met with the IDB on June 5, 2012, to ask the IDB to ask the City to give FED another year to get its financing in place and start construction. At that time, FED informed the IDB that it was working on securing overseas financing for the project.

Below: Video of the June 5 IDB meeting at which Freedom Energy asked the IDB to recommend that the City give FED another year to start construction. FED also stated that it would be going overseas to seek financing. 

June 22, 2012 Developer Pulls Masengill Springs Development from City Agenda

The Masengill Springs Development and Rezoning was pulled from the City Council agendas at the beginning of the June 19th meeting.  Developers Don Bunch and Mike Bunch are proposing moving the current Food City on West AJ Hwy across the street along with other development in the area of the old tobacco warehouse.

The proposal met with considerable opposition form residents in the North Economy Road area at a previous Planning Commission meeting where the development was sent on to city council on a 4-2 vote with one abstention.

Even though the proposal was pulled from the agenda at the start, many residents from the area were at the City Council meeting and spoke about their concerns about drainage problems and traffic problems in having an exit from the development onto North Economy Road.

There will be more discussion at a future date.

June 15, 2012 Commission Adjourns After Public Comments Since There Is No School Budget

June 14, 4:00 PM. Hamblen County Budget Committee approves county portion of budget without a school budget. Moves two-cents of tax rate to county debt service--dedicated for West High.

June 14, 5:00 PM. Hamblen County Commission meets in special session to vote on complete  county budget on first reading, hears public comments, and then adjourns because, without a school budget, there is no complete county budget to approve

There is no school budget because the Hamblen County Budget Committee gave tentative approval to a school budget on June 12 at 4:00 PM but later that same day the Hamblen County School Board approved a different budget at 7:00 PM. Video of each meeting is here.

June 12, 2012 County Commission Gives Contingent Approval to School Budget; School Board Rejects County Plan

After yesterday's joint meeting of the Hamblen County Budget Committee and the Hamblen County School Board, the County Budget Committee met at 4:00 PM today to approve a school budget.  

Commissioner Stancil Ford made the motion laying out the county's position on the school budget.  The motion passed 10-3 (NO: Paul LeBel, Doe Jarvis, Nancy Phillips) but was to take effect only IF the School Board met a few hours later and revised its budget in line with the county's proposal.  Click on arrow for video.

The School Board met three hours later (7:00 PM) but proposed and passed a different school budget, thus rejecting/modifying the county's plan. School Board member Carolyn Holt made the motion which passed 7-0. Click on arrow for video.

The Budget Committee is scheduled to meet again on Thursday, June 14.

The original plan was for the Budget Committee to finalize the entire county budget (county and schools) and then recommend the county budget and tax rate to the full Commission which was to meet in special session on Thursday and pass the complete county budget on first reading.

In light of the dueling budgets, whether the county will be able to pass a budget and tax rate on Thursday is unclear at this point.

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.

June 9, 2012 Freedom Energy Diesel Going Overseas for Financing

Above is a video of a meeting of the Industrial Development Board (IDB) of Morristown. The meeting took place at 8:30 AM on June 5 in the lower level of the Chamber of Commerce building on West First North Street.  Jack Fishman presided.

The main topic was Freedom Energy Diesel, a project dubbed "Project Victory"when the IDB announced one year ago that FED was coming to Morristown. 

In June 2011, the City sold 116 acres in the East Tennessee Project Center to FED at a deeply reduced price with the provision that the property would revert to the City on June 27, 2012, if FED had not begun construction on its building by thar date.

Construction on the FED building has not begun, so FED representative David Wild, a local contractor, came to the IDB to ask that the IDB recommend that the City give FED another year to get its financing in place and start construction. 

Wild said that a lot of gradework has been done, but final gradework has been halted while FED goes overseas to try and obtain "final" financing.

The IDB Board voted unanimously to send a recommendation to the City of Morristown asking that the City give Freedom Energy Diesel an extra year to get its financing in place and start work on its building in the East Tennessee Progress Center.

The recommendation will go to the City Council for a vote on June 19.
www.morristownhamblencfa.com

June 7, 2012 LeBel's One Concern: Why Isn't the MUC/McGuffin Law Appointment on the Agenda?

At the June 5 Morristown City Council meeting, Paul LeBel was strangely silent, pretty much confining himself to pushing buttons to vote.

At the end of the meeting, however, he did have a question. Why was the Morristown Utilities Commission (MUC) appointment pulled from the agenda?

Mayor Thomas answered, and Paul went back to his IPad.

Actually, the agenda as it was posted on the city's website and printed out for meeting attendees did not have the MUC appointment on it at all. So there was no Mayor's appointment to pull. 

LeBel was ticked, but he contained himself better than usual.

What LeBel really wanted to ask, in my opinion, was "look, the McGuffin Law is in place thanks to the efforts at the state level of Rep. Don Miller and Sen. Steve Southerland in helping me, Kay Senter, Claude Jinks, Bob Garrett, and Chris Bivens overturn the appointment process adopted by the votes of 3,202 people in the 2001 MUC referendum, so when do I get to vote for the 20th time against the mayor's nominee from the MUC list and finally set it up to  vote for George McGuffin--the only person in all of Morristown who I think is capable of sitting in what is now and for 34+ years has been the 'McGuffin' seat on MUC?"

June 6, 2012 Lakemoore Residents Demand Action To Address 30+ Years of Sewer Odors

A large group of Lakemoore residents showed up at the City Council meeting yesterday to present their concerns and to demand that action be taken on the decades-old sewer odor problems in that area.

Here is the presentation of a petition from the Lakemoore residents to council which was followed by several individual requests for help.

June 6, 2012 City Budget Passes on First Reading 5-2

Before yesterday's vote on the FY 2013 City of Morristown budget, Carl Murphy spoke about the budget and the budget "hearings."

Later in the meeting, the budget passed on a 5-2 vote with LeBel, Senter, Jinks, Garrett, and Bivens voting YES and Brooks and Mayor Thomas voting NO.

June 1, 2012 Charging Councilmembers for City Government Documents

At Morristown City Council's May 1 meeting, a resolution was passed that allows some City  officials to charge other City officials (City Councilmembers) for City Government documents.

Tony Cox describes the resolution, but he never says who is behind it or what prompted it. Cox doesn't explain the "need" to charge elected City Councilmembers for "non-routine"(?) City government documents.

Only Gene Brooks and Mayor Thomas commented on the resolution. Brooks and Thomas later cast the only votes against the resolution.