Wednesday, October 26

Was it an Epiphany or a Violation of the Open Meetings Act (‘Sunshine Law’)?

We Report, You Decide.

BACKGROUND - There is a limited exception of the Sunshine Law for Attorney-Client discussions.

The narrow exception applies only to discussions between the members of the public body and the attorney. Once any discussion begins among members of the public body as to what action should be taken based on the advice of counsel, those discussion must be open to the public.

The exception was limited to cases in which there was present and pending litigation and the public body was named in the lawsuit. In 1991 the exception was extended to a meeting of the board with its attorney regarding a pending controversy that was likely to result in litigation.

In summary, this narrow exception applies only to meeting between a public body and it’s attorney that 1.) Must concern litigation that has already been filed or which is likely to be filed and to which the county is or will be a party, and 2.) The private meeting must be limited to discussions between the attorney and members of the public body regarding the public body’s legal options, and no discussions between members of the public body as to what action should be taken can take place.

One could argue that the private meetings held on October 13, 2005 and on October 17, 2005, as accurately reported in The Courier, violates the Open Meeting Act in that there must have been discussions between member of the County Commission as to what action should be taken at these meetings or they all had an epiphany at the same time. Each of the commissioners would have to have had a sudden intuitive realization or a sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of the settlement agreement.

Now we’re talking about our Hardin County Commissioners and our Mayor here.

The Courier noted:

"After the public was readmitted, Commissioner James Whitehorn’s motion to "accept the settlement as presented" was unanimously approved without discussed by the board.

Mayor and Commission Chairman Davis did not offer any details about the settlement at the meeting and the attorney would not release a copy of the settlement to The Courier, saying it would not become a public record until signed by the parties to the suit."

This is the same settlement agreement that had just been unanimously approved at a public meeting, but it was not a public record, yet and the public couldn’t see it. Yeah, right.

Think about it. The standard is that NO discussions as to what action should be taken can take place and once any discussion begins among members of the public body as to what action should be taken based on the advice of counsel, those discussion must be open to the public. Not in Hardin County.

This is one of those wrongs without a remedy, but worthy of note for historical information.

But the question needs to be ask - remembering the litigation has been going on for months and the subject has been discussed for decades - Did it really take two more private meetings to explain the county’s legal options on the Jail to the Commissioners?

(Epiphany - A sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of something.
A comprehension or perception of reality by means of a sudden intuitive realization.)
Whatta think?

Monday, October 10

You ask - when we get this paid off, will our wheel tax and other prices go down? The short answer is, NO.

It might depend on what we call ‘paid off.’ Not all of the $36 is going for debt service.

The current plans call for thirty year bonds to be issued. No one, and I mean no one, expects this facility to meet our needs for the next thirty years.

The County Jail Consultant (from Kentucky) use 15 years out population projections to determine our bed needs, but this is also the same consultant that determined that 29,000 population at 4.5 beds per 1,000 is 152. Yep that's what we need, 152 beds. Well, 4.5 X 29 is 130.5. Trust me, I can't even make this stuff up.

The folks who ought to know say that we could fill up the 152 beds the day the facility open. The day after we will be back to overcrowding again. But then again, we do have the room to expand the jail by 100 beds, when we need to. Wonder how we are going to pay for the expansion?

Also, you might note that one-third of the wheel tax income goes for increased operating expenses of our new and improved facility. How do you ever get those 'paid off?'

The debt service for 30 years on $9.3 million at 4.5% per year (approx. $600,000 per year) is almost $18,000,000. By the way, does anyone have a clue as to what makes up the $9.3 million. Me Neither.

One must remember that a detention facility is capital project. And capital project are generally funded with property taxes. There are specific statutes that say the County Legislative Body, our County Commission, has a DUTY to erect a jail and courthouse. That's a capital project.

Who gains the most from having the ability to get the bad guy off the streets? The folks who have something for them to mess with or them that have to work pay check to pay check.

Said another way, The bad guys and gals drive by those $125,000 homes and say, O. K. let’s mess with their stuff. They drive by my $10,000 trailer and say, don't bother.

Both of us have cars, his is a Hummer and mine is a 1975 Ford pick-us that needs tires and some bondo, that I can't afford.

Both vehicles get charged the same for the privileges of driving on the roads in Hardin County. His is black topped and mine is chips and oil with a lot of patches on it. But, we all pay the same amount to build a jail and sheriff's department facility.

If I'm paying to have my $10,000 trailer protected, why shouldn't I expect those folks that are getting their $125,000 home protected to kick in a few dollars more. They are getting the greater benefit, aren't they?

Ted

Sunday, October 9

Why Should the Rich Pay More?

Some say, for the same reason John Dillinger robbed banks: because that's where the money is. There is some logic to that, the richest 2% control in the ballpark of 40% of the private wealth in the USA.

Others say; "Because they can afford it." Others who complain about progressive taxes say it's because people want "revenge on the rich", or it's "class envy". Or they say, "Why should the successful people be penalized?" That is an interesting take on reality.

But there is one argument that is not often seen, the "follow the money", or follow the tax money argument. Simply put, it says you get what you pay for. It says that if you eat a gourmet meal, you have purchased an entire different meal (not just more of it) than for a McDonald's Happy Meal.

One could claim that progressive taxes buys Rich Boy toys, regressive taxes buy Poor Boy toys. We say fair is fair. To test this idea, we follow the tax money.

Progressive taxes (such as income taxes) pay mostly for Rich Boy toys: the War on Terror, Katrena, gunboat diplomacy, the Fed's infinite labor pool and any related poverty, NAFTA, GAT, free trade agreements, interstate freeways, National Parks, FBI, CIA, a hot-shot standing military, etc. And regressive taxes: (mostly local sales taxes and fees) go for Poor Boy toys: local roads, hospitals, schools, local parks, libraries, cops, city/county councils, fire fighting, etc.

If "toys" sounds too flippant, feel free to swap with a term that rings true for you, such as "tools of the trade", or "economic infrastructures."

To oversimplify a bit, a carpenter does not require the Rich Boy toys, and the CEO of General Motors does not require the Poor Boy toys. And progressive (mostly federal income) taxes soak the rich, regressive (mostly local sales) taxes soak the poor. We are going to talk about Soaking the poor and middle class.

What Makes the Tennessee Tax System Regressive and Why Does Hardin County Have to Make It Worse?

A January 2003 Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) report, Who Pays, found that Tennessee had the third most regressive tax system in the nation.

The report showed that the poorest twenty percent of non-elderly Tennessee families paid, on average, 11.7 percent of their income in state and local taxes. Hardin County would be about 12.5 to 13 percent.

By contrast, middle-income Tennesseans paid 8.8 percent of their income in tax, while the very wealthiest 1 percent of Tennessee taxpayers paid just 3.4 percent of their income in state and local taxes.

In other words, the poorest Tennesseans paid three to four times more of their income in taxes than did the very wealthiest families.

In Hardin County it is even more because of our artificially low property tax rate. Sixth (6th) lowest in the State that has the lowest tax burden on it's citizens, in the entire Country. It would be about four time as much in taxes than those at the other end of this bell curve.

Your at the bottom of the bottom, if you have anything to be taxed. Our poorest and middle class folks, who don't have much to be taxed, are at the top of the top in the percentage of their income they pay in state and local taxes.

We can do better. We need to rethink that policy. Know what I mean?

FYI We have a 19% Poverty Rate among adults and 26% among children. Our elderly population is well above average for the State. Face it, we are older and poorer than the average Tennessean and we are infested with drugs. Gotta problem here?

Later

Ted
Why Should the Successful People Be Penalized?

As we have noted, that is an interesting take on reality. It's human nature to overestimate one's own powers and to undervalue the help we have received. The toys.

Some say that the American meal is the best meal in the world and some say that Tennessee is the best entre` in that America meal and we say that Hardin County has some of the best desserts in the Tennessee meal of the American dream.

If you have eaten of the Hardin County meal, pay your debts, and don't try and sneak out the back door. There is no free lunch.

Perhaps taxes are like any other transaction. A bundled transaction. When you buy a set of tires or a meal at a restaurant, you are paying for employee theft, drunk employees, security, air conditioning, accountants, and stupid business moves, etc. that you may disapprove of, bundled into the cost of doing business and it's not on your invoice.

Bottom line: nobody is forcing you to buy the tires or eat the meal.

Your choice. You can live like a hermit in a shack, eating roots. If you do not consume the toys or meals, likely you will be poor and owe no taxes. But once you have eaten and grown fat you are now in debt.

There is no free lunch. The bigger portions you have, the more your bill should be.
When will we accept the natural way to Fund Our Operating Obligations — property taxes that are enough to do the job.

We now have to pay for the foolish decisions and procrastination of our county government in the past or even today.
Guiding philosophy in Criminal Justice

Opponents can accused the jail planners of concentrating too much on bricks and jail bars and not enough on treatment and prevention programs to keep criminals from re-offending and re-entering the criminal justice system.

The guiding philosophy in criminal justice is to change the lifestyles and behaviors that lead to crime, resulting in fewer arrests, a reduced need for jail beds and a savings to taxpayers.

County officials could have engendered more support by being up-front. Critics will chastise commissioners for failing to include the public in the decision-making process. It was a message that resonates well with the voting public.

In their slow crawl to solve the jail crowding crisis, commissioners and corrections officials failed to involve the public in the decision-making process. They deserve any criticism thrown their direction.

Why do they do things in secret and wait until it's all done to tell us? They decide, and then they tell people what they're going to get stuck with.

This doesn’t send a clear message to community stakeholders that their opinions matter. Again, they deserve any criticism thrown their direction.

Ted
JAIL/JUDICIAL COMPLEX - What do we need and when do we need it.

Don't ya just have to wonder why we had a need for a Criminal Justice Complex in 1998-99, when the ($10,000) needs assessment study was done by an independent analyst (Not hired by Joe Barker), but we don't today? The analysis was changed by our perennial, inveterate and entrench consultants (Hired by Joe Barker) at the instruction of someone in County Government.

Said another way, Why can't we have what we have a need for, a Criminal Justice Complex? The most effecient and effective answer to our 'problems' by the experts, is just such a "Complex."

The answer lies in the answer to the question, Who owns the land, and doesn't want to sell, that you would need for such a "Complex" in Hardin County, if you have to include our existing Courthouse as an element of the "Complex?"

Answer - A County Commissioner (Office/House) and the Foreman of theHardin County Grand Jury (Parking lot leased to the County).

Go figure.

Just an old thought.
Ted

Thursday, October 6

Because We Had a Public Meeting

Do you understand the concept of slight of hand. Let’s review the ‘public meetings’ held by our Mayor and County Commission.

You say the folks will go along with the wheel tax this time because’ we had a public meeting and let everyone know what we were doing.’ Really?

When the Mayor first mention these public meetings taking place, it was announced at the Commissioners meeting in August that there would be two public meetings held TO GET INPUT FROM THE CITIZENS on what they (THE CITIZENS) wanted to do about the jail problem. The purpose was not to ‘let everyone know what we (the County) were going to do!!!’

At that time, property and wheel taxes were the options that were going to be presented for funding this ‘Jail Project,’ even though the wheel tax option had been turned down (BY THE CITIZENS) less than ten month earlier. For whatever reason, the voters said NO, the majority of them (55%) voted NO on wheel taxes.
Remember the question at that time was wheel tax OR property tax. I believe the vote could be view as, NO on wheel tax, do what you say you gotta do. Property Tax. Am I the only one who looks at it that way? I think not.

The Mayor also announced that the plans that were going to be presented at these public meetings had been unanimously approved by our "Jail Committee" yet, when ask, by me, to review whatever the "Jail Committee" had approved, the Mayor admitted that the "Committee" had approved the public meetings, not a specific plan.
The stated purpose of the meetings were TO GET THE CITIZENS INPUT and then the ‘Jail Committee’ would finalize a plan to present to the County Commission for their approval, at a later date.

At the first public meeting, we have the tape, the Mayor again addressed the "plans" that were being reviewed at these public meeting as follows:

"This jail plan that we’re presenting tonight is not the jail plan of the County Commission. This is for public input. This has not been voted by the Jail Committee to be the jail plan, it could be. It could be, after the public hearings go forward, as the jail plan."


Between the first and second public meeting the County Commission voted 19-1 to impose a $36 wheel tax to fund the 9.3 million dollar estimated cost for these same plan, that have not been approved by either the Jail Committee or the County Commission. These are basically the same floor plans that was presented in the 2004.

At the second public meeting, we have the tape, the Mayor again spun the wheel, again. This time it is, this is going to be the plan and we are going to pay for it with a $36 wheel tax. Now what is the citizens input on that?

The rules at this public meeting were, no yielding the floor to a third party, or yielding your time to a third party; Citizens will have 3 minuets to make their comments; after that 3 minuets the citizen can be cut off and will not be recognized by the Mayor again or would not be recognized again for any further input or to address any other issues that might be raised by another citizen, even if it is wrong as rain. The three (3) minuet rule will be strictly enforced, at the second meeting.

The Mayor has this cute little egg timer that he uses for the clock on the three minuets and the time the panel uses to answer any question, counts against the citizens three minuets. Kinda limits you to one question, unless it's a yes or no with no explination or remarks.

Said another way, We’re going to have public meeting this time, as a matter of fact were going to have 2. But we’ll only give the Citizens 3 minutes to say what they have got to say and then we’ll go and do what we want to.
They can’t complain because we held their ‘public meetings’ and let them vent. We have a record of it, too.

Oh, Goody. We have acted like we wanted the citizens input, like we were suppose to. They got no complaint, now. Wrong again.
Ted

Tuesday, October 4

SOAK
THE POOR
AND MIDDLE CLASS

Vote YES For

Wheel Tax
TAX FAIRNESS FUNDAMENTALS

Basic Historic and Biblical Notions on the Subject.
The question is, Why don't they apply in Hardin County, Tennessee?

"The subjects of every state ought to contribute toward the support of the government, as nearly as possible, in proportion to their respective abilities; that is, in proportion to the revenue which they respectively enjoy under the protection of the state . . . . [As Henry Home (Lord Kames) has written, a goal of taxation should be to] ‘remedy inequality of riches as much as possible, by relieving the poor and burdening the rich.’ "

Adam Smith, AN INQUIRY INTO THE NATURE AND CAUSES
OF THE WEALTH OF NATIONS (1776)
(Book V, Chapter II, part II, pp.777,779 (1937 ed.))

A fair tax system asks citizens to contribute to the cost of government services based on their ability to pay. This is a venerable idea, as old as the biblical notion that a few pennies from a poor woman’s purse cost her more than many pieces of gold from a rich man’s hoard.

The question was, Why don't they apply in Hardin County, Tennessee? The answer may be because the majority of the citizens of Hardin County have, in the past, abdicated their responsibilities as Christian/Citizens to keep themselves informed and to participate.

We could fix that, August 2006.
Respectfully submitted for your consideration.
Ted