52nd Annual Chamber Prayer Breakfast to be held November 17th

October 26, 2022
By: Dwayne Page

Everyone is invited to attend the Smithville-DeKalb County Chamber Prayer Breakfast to be held on Thursday, November 17th from 7 AM to 8 AM at the Smithville First Baptist Church Life Enrichment Center, 101 W. Church Street, Smithville. Doors open at 6:30 AM.

“We will have a guest speaker and people from our community will lead prayers making this a meaningful and memorable experience. A delicious pancake and sausage breakfast will be prepared by Smithville First Baptist Church,” said Chamber Director Suzanne Williams.

Tickets are only $5 per person. Email the Chamber at: swilliams@dekalbcountychamber.org or text 615-464-7760 with your name and the number of tickets you need, then you can pay at the door.

“Everyone is invited to attend this special and inspirational annual community event. Please join us as we give thanks to God for His abundant blessings upon our county and for His guidance as we move forward into the future,” said Williams.

The Chamber’s Annual Prayer Breakfast is a wonderful way to usher in the holiday season.

A BIG THANK YOU to Chamber Prayer Breakfast Sponsors: Ascension Saint Thomas DeKalb Hospital, DTC Communications, FirstBank, Liberty State Bank, Middle Tennessee Natural Gas “Project Hometown Help,” Wilson Bank & Trust, and Caney Fork Electric Cooperative.

October 26, 2022
By:

The DeKalb County Republican Party will welcome Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett to their annual Fall Picnic, this Saturday, October 29, from 11AM-1PM at the DeKalb County Complex in Smithville. Republican Nominee for Tennessee House District 40 Michael Hale will also be a special guest. This event is completely free and all DeKalb County Republicans are invited to attend.

“We’re honored to have Secretary of State Hargett in DeKalb County as our special guest,” said Chairman Dustin Estes. “He’s been a conservative leader in Tennessee for years and we look forward to hearing about his important work, including Tennessee recently being recognized as the #1 State for Election Integrity by the Heritage Foundation.”

Chairman Estes added, “Michael Hale is running a great campaign and always brings an inspiring message. In the wake of our historic Republican sweep in the August Elections, we are taking nothing for granted and rallying around our Republican Candidates-Bill Lee, John Rose, Michael Hale, and Lane Ball-as we look forward to victory on November 8.”

Early Voting runs through Thursday, November 3, and Election Day is Tuesday, November 8. For more information about this event, or the DeKalb County Republican Party, please go to our Facebook Page at Dekalb County Republican Party.

October 26, 2022
By: Dwayne Page

Nights are colder and days will soon be too which means more people will be turning on and turning up the heat at home and at the office including those who use natural gas.

Although Middle Tennessee Natural Gas has not raised rates in a long time, it doesn’t mean that your heating bill won’t be higher this winter. Mike Corley, General Counsel for Middle Tennessee Natural Gas says there are factors beyond the control of the gas company that often impact prices.

“The way our rate structure is the price of natural gas is a pass through. Middle Tennessee Natural Gas has not raised its rates, the rates that we charge our customers for the service Middle Tennessee Natural Gas performs in years. Has the price the customer pays stayed static? No, as the price goes up and down for the natural gas that gets passed through. In recent years natural gas prices have been considerably lower than they were even 10 years ago. We have had higher gas prices in the past but through the advent of more efficient drilling processes, some people want to use the term fracking to describe it, that has been able to make drilling much more efficient. But there have been other events this year that have caused prices to go up. Some of them are geo-political events that are not even happening in this country such as Europe and other places. They have gas shortages in Europe and that has pushed up the price because part of the natural gas in this country can be liquefied and shipped to Europe and if they are willing to pay more for that, even though that process is an expensive one, it causes prices to go up because we can’t buy it at the same price we were able to buy it two years ago. Its supply and demand. Its no more complicated than that,” said Corley

As for supply, Corley said there is no shortage of natural gas.

“There is no shortage of natural gas in this country. There are tremendous reserves but not all of that is accessible to drilling companies at this time but the gas is there. On occasion there could be temporary short supplies when it gets extremely cold in the depth of winter but we have procedures and emergency supplies in place and liquefied natural gas along with gas in storage to take care of those days when the system gets overwhelmed by cold weather to meet the needs of our customers. Plus we have contractual obligations with some of our industry in which on days that are the absolute coldest we can curtail those so that there is plenty of gas for home heating and residential use,” said Corley.

If you want to keep your heating bills down this winter, Corley said the best ways are the old tried and true methods.

“Have your heating equipment cleaned and checked. That will help make sure it is running properly and efficiently. Inspect and replace your filters. Insulate and seal around doors and windows. Keep your thermostat down a little lower. The lower you can set your thermostat and still be comfortable is the best. Consider setting your water heater to about 120 degrees rather than 140 degrees. That will help conserve energy. Insulate your water heater, pipes and the tank itself. If you have a fireplace in your house, keep the damper closed if you are not using it for a fireplace at the time. Open your shades during the day to let sunny warmth in and close them at night to help keep the heat in the house from escaping through the windows. Consider installing a tankless water heater. In recent years they have become extremely popular. You are only using the natural gas to warm that water when you are actually using it and needing it. That’s a very efficient way of conserving and to minimize the use of natural gas, still get the warmth of a natural gas water heater, and it will stay continuous. You won’t run out,” said Corley.

Middle Tennessee Natural Gas has provided consumers with information on the status of natural gas supply, prices, and conservation tips in the following question and answer format.

Q. Will natural gas prices be higher this winter than last winter?

A. Yes, Natural gas prices in the US and globally continue to be significantly higher than normal. They are projected to remain high during the winter months.

Q. Why are natural gas prices still getting higher?

A. Several factors are driving higher market prices, including strong demand and lagging production; national below average levels of gas in storage heading into the heating season; and conflicts disrupting supplies and increased exportation of liquefied natural gas to other parts of the world

Q. How much higher will my bill be?

A. We cannot say. It depends on a variety of difficult to predict factors, not the least of which is the weather. However, assuming similar gas usage as last winter, your household gas bill this coming winter will be higher than it was last winter.

Q. What is MTNG doing about it?

A. MTNG continuously focuses on minimizing the impact of the market’s volatile prices on your gas bill and always has the goal of ensuring service reliability. MTNG has secured existing winter supply commitments; MTNG has purchased natural gas at economical rates for storage throughout the summer. This gas will be used during the winter season when prices increase

Q. Will what MTNG is doing be enough?

A. MTNG efforts will help moderate the impact of the higher natural gas prices. However, these measures will not completely offset the increased prices, and assuming similar gas usage as last winter, your household gas bill this coming winter will be higher than last winter.

Q. Is there a natural gas shortage?

A. There is no shortage of natural gas. The US has an abundant supply. Supplies are tight temporarily.

Corley said consumers may contact or visit their local MTNG Office or visit MTNG.com to learn more about bill management options including enrolling in levelized billing which allows you to pay a more consistent amount each month throughout the entire year.

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