June 27, 2023
By: Dwayne Page
Going up!
Unless you should qualify for a property tax rate freeze, don’t be surprised to see an increase in your property tax bill come this fall.
By a vote of 13-0, the DeKalb County Commission Monday night during its regular monthly meeting approved a property tax levy resolution which increases the rate by almost 27 cents per $100 of assessed value. The actual increase is 0.2692 cents which means the overall tax rate will jump from the current level of $1.7308 cents to $2.00. The only commissioner not present was Tony (Cully) Culwell who had to be out of town.
The property tax rate is to be divided as follows: County General: $1.2583, up from the current level of 0.9891 cents; Highways/Public Works: 0.0326 cents (no increase); General Capital Projects: 0.0733 cents (no increase); Debt Service: 0.1060 cents (no increase); General Purpose Schools: 0.5298 cents (no increase). Total proposed tax rate: $2.00, up from current level of $1.7308 cents.
During a public hearing prior to the meeting, concerned citizen Tony Lawson of the second district spoke out against a property tax increase.
“I am against the tax increase on property. I think what y’all have a problem with is spending. Y’all need to cut your spending back. All these agencies coming in just taking money right and left. We don’t need that crap. Y’all have to hire a guy out of another county to tell you that you need a raise on the property tax because you can’t balance your own check book. We don’t need that. At the dump sites, you can save 40% on your dump (costs) and the money you spend on that by closing every one of them that’s around the county line. Keep the Snow Hill, Cookeville Highway, and McMinnville Highway (convenience sites). Keep them open. Seven days a week if you want to. But them at the county line, you get five counties dumping trash and some of them don’t even have no people there to watch after it. Yall need to cut your spending,” said Lawson.
Another concerned resident, Rick Davies of Barnes Mill Road, suggested during the public hearing that if the county is having financial problems, it might appeal to the state for more support.
Although there was no serious effort to cut county funding ($36,805) to the DeKalb Animal Shelter, supporters and members of the shelter board addressed the commission with data showing a need for the county’s continued help.
“We wish to provide some hard data and facts about the dogs and animals we serve,” said Renee Ferguson, member of the DeKalb Animal Shelter Board of Directors.
“Last year, county intakes were 168 and city intakes were 56. That is 75% more than the city,” said Ferguson. “We now have a certified animal control officer that takes all calls, city and county even night and day. The city paid $102,000 this year with an annual increase of $1,000 a year through 2037 when the 15-year contract (between the City of Smithville and the DeKalb Animal Coalition) expires. The county pays approximately $36,000 per year so the city pays 74% more than the county for a lesser percent of animals. We raise our own money. Last year we had a ghost tour and raised $8,000 and we have a yard sale coming up in July. We had a dog wash a couple of weeks ago where we raised $645. We did a play in October here in this room (county complex auditorium). We have canisters, memorials, and grants and we get food periodically from Tractors Supply and Amazon so you can see we are working very hard to keep this going,” said Ferguson.
Coalition Treasurer Denise Brown added that operating the shelter is an expensive task and petitioned the commission to continue funding its contribution.
“Last Saturday we did a free rabies and microchip clinic open to anyone in all of DeKalb County. We served 54 animals and of that number 44 or 80% were from outside the city limits of Smithville. Ten were from the city. We do try and raise funds but when we look at our numbers for last year through June 30, our expenses for the shelter were $183,000. It takes a lot of money to keep this going. We are appreciative of the level of funding the county is giving us, roughly $36,000 and based upon the numbers and facts that we have given you, we respectfully request that you honor that same commitment this year when you pass your budget for this year,” said Brown.
Local business owner Susan Demay also spoke in support of the animal shelter.
“I am here to tell a story for Betty Turner who could not be here. She lives out in the county off Short Mountain Highway and she recently installed an outside video camera. Betty said she was shocked at the number of stray, feral, and loose animals out there. People regularly drop off dogs and cats. Sometimes they can hear the dogs running down the road crying as the vehicle disappears. It really pulls on their heart strings that these animals have to fend for themselves. What we need is not less resources, but actually kind of more,” said Demay”.
The new tax rate will help fund the 2023-24 budget for the county which was also adopted by the commission Monday night. The appropriations resolution to fund the various county departments passed 13-0.
A resolution to contribute funding to various non-profit organizations was adopted on a 13-0 vote.
The only vote that was not unanimous was a resolution to adopt the county budget in consolidated form, meaning combining each department’s budget (schools, county general, and road department) for a vote as one as has historically been done in the past. The vote was 11-2 to consolidate. Commissioners Tony Luna and Tim Reynolds voted against the budget consolidation resolution. Had the budget not been consolidated, the commission would have had to vote on each budget (schools, county general, and road department) separately.
The total county budget expenditure package comes to more than $63 million funded by local, state, and federal sources.
Steve Bates, the county’s financial advisor/fiscal agent said during the budget preparation process that the county needed more revenue to help offset higher costs of operation due to inflation and other factors that have taken a toll on the county general budget in recent years.
Budget highlights include the following from the School Budget, County General, Highway Department, Capital Projects, and Non-Profit Charitable contributions:
*Pay raises- A 5.24% pay raise as required by the state for county public officials. The county also includes the same 5.24% increase to county general employees in addition to any step increase to which they may be entitled on the county’s wage scales. Salary for Veteran Service Officer position to be increased from $12,900 to $16,800 per year. The Assistant EMS Director to get a one dollar per hour raise. Pay for the Juvenile Court Youth Service Officer will go from $42,360 to $45,000.
*County Clerk Office: County funding for half of new full time Deputy Clerk position. Restricted earmarked fees for the office generated from noting of liens and titling transactions will be used to fund the rest of the salary. The starting base salary for the position will be $33,819 ($43,600 including base salary and all provided benefits calculated for a first-year employee). The county will budget half the cost for this position
*EMS:
-$45,000 to equip a new ambulance scheduled to arrive in January with an automatic loading system and power cot which had not been included in the specifications when the ambulance was ordered this past year.
-The county plans to make application for a Community Development Block Grant for a new ambulance. If fully funded the grant totals $352,497 with a 16% grant match by the county of $67,142. EMS Director Hoyte Hale said the projected cost for a 2025 ambulance is $237,000 but it would also need equipment that the grant could cover including a Stryker automatic loading system, Pro 2 ambulance cot, Stryker Stair Chair, Zoll heart monitor, and ventilator.
-The county is awaiting arrival of another new ambulance which was ordered several months ago and funded in the 2022-23 capital projects budget. Funding of $225,000 for the new ambulance will roll over to the new budget year if not spent by June 30.
*Fire Department:
– $40,000 to replace a leaking metal roof on a portion of the Main Station fire hall on King Ridge Road and $7,000 to install insulation to the Belk Fire Station, which is a metal building with a concrete slab with no inside insulation.
– Additional $50,000 in capital projects funding, putting the total seed money at $150,000 to build a public safety building on property owned by the US Army Corps of Engineers near Center Hill Dam to house a fire truck to serve the Wolf Creek Community once a partnership agreement has been finalized between the county and the Corps.
*County Mayor: $30,000 toward purchase of an SUV for county mayor’s official use
*Sheriff’s Department- $165,000 to purchase four patrol cars. The needed equipment for the vehicles is to be funded by the sheriff’s department’s maintenance budget line item which is about $12,000 per car.
*Solid Waste- $80,000 to fund the purchase of 12- 30 cubic yard open top containers. Meanwhile, the county is awaiting arrival of a solid waste roll off trash truck, which was ordered several months ago and funded in the 2022-23 capital projects budget. Funding of $221,000 for the trash truck will roll over to the new budget year if not spent by June 30.
*Smithville-DeKalb County Rescue Squad: $2,000 increase in the county’s annual donation to the rescue squad. Captain Dustin Johnson said the new money would be to add internet service to the rescue squad building located near Greenbrook Park for electronic filing of reports to the state and for the “IamResponding” app providing quicker alerts to rescue squad volunteers for faster response time. The county currently donates $40,821 per year to the Smithville-DeKalb County Rescue Squad operation as a non-profit entity. The new contribution would go to $42,821
*DeKalb Emergency Management Agency: Director Charlie Parker asked for adjustments in a couple of EMA budget line items totaling $2,800. Part of the extra funds would be to cover expenses for continuing installation of a radar omega system to provide advanced weather radar storm tracking alerts to the public via app. A portion of Parker’s funding request would also be for communication expense and for meals not already provided at meetings of the local Emergency Planning Committee and for snacks and refreshments during any future missing person search efforts such as the massive one held recently for Brittany Miller.
*Recovery Court: $20,000 increase in county funding from $46,700 per year to $66,700 mostly to help meet increased costs for travel and contracted services.
Schools:
– $3,000 pay raise for certified personnel and a $2,000 increase for non-certified staff.
*Tutoring: ($82,500) state funding to tutor students who failed to pass third grade testing. (Amount could change)
*K-3 Literacy: ($439,272) state funding for support and tutoring students in K-3 Literacy
* Local funding to replace approximately $100,000 in federal funding for one teacher, five educational assistants, and one secretary in the Special Education Program.
*Career and Technical Education Program: State (TISA) funding for new Marketing Instruction Program teaching position.
*Local funding for projected 2% increase in employee Medical Insurance premiums
Capital Outlay: Local funding of $400,000 to purchase and install new bleachers and a retaining wall at the DCHS soccer field.
Highways: $2.5 million allocation from the State Aid Highway Program Investment fund made possible through the Governor’s Transportation Modernization Act which was approved earlier this year by the Tennessee General Assembly. Road Supervisor Danny Hale said the new money will be earmarked for state aid road and bridge projects to be spent over a three-year period.
County funding to the following non-profit organizations:
-Upper Cumberland Development District- $2,000
-TN Division of Forestry- $ 1,500
-DeKalb County Rescue Squad- $42,821 (increased by $2,000 from 2022-23)
-DeKalb Animal Coalition-$ 36,805
-Plateau Mental Health-$7,180
-Senior Citizens Assistance Senior Program -$ 81,948 (increased by $1,303)
-DeKalb County Soil Conservation District- $ 89,433 (increased by $4,837)
-DeKalb County Chamber of Commerce $35,000 (increased by $10,000)
-Imagination Library- $ 12,000
-Veterans Honor Guard-$1,500
-Civil War Trails-$ 400
-DeKalb County Fair- $ 5,000
-Jamboree-$ 5,000 (new contribution)
-Upper Cumberland Human Resource Agency- $ 5,500
-UCHRA Assessment-Homemaker Aide, Etc. -$9,717
Total- $ 335,804