County Commission Again Revises Medical Examiner Policy to Address MDI Pay

May 6, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

For the second time within a week, the county commission has revised a medical examiner policy regarding how medical death investigators (MDIs) from the ambulance service are to be paid on death calls.

Under the new policy, as adopted by the county commission during Monday night’s special called meeting, four members of DeKalb EMS (EMTs & EMT-IVs) serving as MDIs will receive incentive pay for responding to death calls. One EMS employee will be designated as the “lead MDI” paid an extra $1.00 per hour on his hourly rate while the other three MDIs will get an additional 75 cents per hour. The idea is to have people from different EMS shifts to serve in the role. Qualified non-county (1099 contracted) employees could be called upon to serve for $100 per decedent if EMS MDIs are not available. In recent years, the county has recorded up to 75 death calls per year.

The new policy states in part, “There shall be three regular MDIs and one lead MDI appointed by the Medical Examiner, EMS Director, and County Mayor from the ambulance service. These four individuals will be on a performance-based term of six months to participate as an MDI. An MDI is encouraged to participate within a six-month period. If an MDI has not participated in a six-month period or their performance has been considered less than the desired performance, the Medical Death Investigator can be replaced by request of the Medical Examiner after or during the six-month period. If the four MDIs are unable to take a call, qualified non-county employees may be used paid at a rate of $100 per decedent”.

Commissioners voting for the new policy were Tom Chandler, Daniel Cripps, Sabrina Farler, Myron Rhody, Tony Luna, Greg Matthews, Larry Green, Glynn Merriman, Andy Pack, Beth Pafford, and Mathias Anderson. Commissioners voting against it were Brandon Donnell and Jeff Barnes. Commissioner Tony (Cully) Culwell was absent.

Commissioner Tom Chandler said by offering this incentive pay, MDIs would answer death calls at any time as part of their regular salary. “Roughly ballpark, this policy at a dollar an hour (extra incentive) would give that lead MDI about $2,100 of extra money a year whether they did any death investigations at all. And it doesn’t matter when they went (called out) whether its 3 o’clock in the morning or 5 o’clock in the afternoon. They are getting paid to do death investigations. Their compensation for doing death investigations came as part of their salary,” said Commissioner Chandler.

Commissioner Greg Matthews raised a concern that with this policy, hourly EMS employees serving as MDIs under certain conditions might still earn overtime pay. “If they (MDIs) work their full (EMS) shift and get their full money (salary) and then they answer four (MDI) calls then all four of those calls is overtime and those hours are not figured into this money (incentive pay). We are basing this on an hourly salary based on their regular hours,” said Commissioner Matthews.

“They will get paid when they go out on a call so it could accumulate overtime,” said County Mayor Matt Adcock.

EMS Director Trent Phipps explained to the commission that EMS is trying to avoid tying up an ambulance on an MDI death call.

“On Friday when he (MDI) was on an ambulance call in Murfreesboro and the only other person that was currently being allowed to do it (MDI) was also on an ambulance and answered a call that was way above her training because it was only the second or third one, she had ever done. She was tying up an emergency ambulance trying to sort out a problem. We’re trying to make that not happen,” said Director Phipps.

The commission rejected an earlier proposal 9-3 during the meeting to pay the lead MDI an extra 75 cents per hour and 50 cents per hour more to the three other MDIs and to add four hours of overtime each.

Commissioners voting for that motion were Larry Green, Brandon Donnell, and Sabrina Farler.

Commissioners voting against were Tom Chandler, Daniel Cripps, Myron Rhody, Tony Luna, Greg Matthews, Glynn Merriman, Andy Pack, Jeff Barnes, and Beth Pafford.

During a county commission workshop on April 24, the policy as proposed at that time was to pay medical death investigators four hours (overtime per call) at an hourly rate based off their ambulance service salary. But during the regular monthly meeting Monday night, April 28 the proposed policy, as adopted by the county commission was changed at that time from four hours to eight hours (overtime) that medical death investigators were to be paid. That policy, as adopted by the county commission on April 28, came under fire from Sheriff Patrick Ray who argued that the policy didn’t provide a level playing field between the on-call MDIs and his own on call employees who often have to spend a much longer period of time at a death scene and are not guaranteed eight hours of overtime. The sheriff’s opposition prompted the special called meeting Monday night.

The new policy in its entirety as adopted by the county commission Monday night, May 5 states as follows:

“The DeKalb County Medical Examiner will be appointed by the County Mayor with confirmation by the DeKalb County Commission. The DeKalb County Medical Examiner will serve five-year terms without term limits. The Medical Examiner will serve as the Medical Examiner and Medical Director of the DeKalb County ambulance service serving in the role responsible for death certificates, cremation certificates, ambulance service medical protocols, and any other task even by the County Mayor or County Commission that is pertinent to the Office of Medical Examiner or Medical Director. This policy is to adhere to all provisions set by statute T.C.A. § 38-7-104.”

“The Medical Examiner will be compensated at $100 per decedent. Deputy Medical Examiners or Medical Death Investigators, furthermore, regarded as MDI’s, shall be compensated 75 cents extra to their ambulance service salary as an incentive for conducting medical death investigations. The “Lead MDI” shall make an extra one dollar on their EMS salary to be the lead MDI. This one dollar is not in addition to the 75 cents that a regular MDI would make. There shall be three regular MDIs and one lead MDI appointed by the Medical Examiner, EMS Director, and County Mayor from the ambulance service. These four individuals will be on a performance-based term of six months to participate as a MDI. An MDI is encouraged to participate within a six-month period. If an MDI has not participated in a six-month period or their performance has been considered less than the desired performance, the Medical Death Investigator can be replaced by request of the Medical Examiner after or during the six-month period”.

“If the four MDIs are unable to take a call, qualified non-county employees may be used paid at a rate of $100 per decedent”.

“Non-county employees or non-ambulance service employees may participate as a MDI if they are a licensed emergency medical technician (EMT), paramedic, registered nurse, physician’s assistant or a person registered by or a diplomat of the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators and approved by the county medical examiner as qualified to serve as medical investigator (T.C.A. § 38-7-104(f). This individual will be considered a 1099 employee and will be compensated at a rate of $100 per decedent. These MDIs will not be covered under the county’s insurance and will not be offered county benefits. It will be the responsibility of the 1099 contracted employee to self-provide any liability, malpractice, etc. insurances”.

May 6, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

Property tax rates for City of Smithville landowners will not be going up this year, but water and sewer rates will be raised by 4% in order to keep utility revenues ahead of expenses, per state requirement.

During the regular monthly meeting Monday night, the Mayor and Aldermen adopted on first reading a budget ordinance for the 2025-26 fiscal year. Second and final reading action will be at the June 2 regular monthly meeting.

The city property tax rate is 0.7523 cents per $100 of assessed value and it is expected to generate $1,230,000 in local revenue. Actual city property tax collections for the year ending 2023-24 were $1,217,281.

The new rates for city water customers will be $8.59 per thousand gallons of usage (up from the current rate of $8.26 per thousand). Rates for customers outside the city limits will be $12.88 per thousand (up from the current rate of $12.38 per thousand. City sewer customers will pay $8.00 per thousand (up from the current rate of $7.69 per thousand).

Under state law, if a utility operates at a loss for more than two years and doesn’t address it, the state has the authority to force rate increases to make it solvent. The city is currently not running at a loss in the water and sewer fund. According to the budget the city finished the 2023-24-year June 30 on the plus side by $530,625 but is projected to be only $2,914 to the good by the end of the 2025-26 year on June 30.

The new budget includes a 3% pay raise for hourly city and salaried employees with a few exceptions (noted below). Those with up to four years of service would get a step raise due them on their employment anniversary date along with the 3% increase. The total regular base pay for all city employees combined in 2025-26 will be $3,081,525, up by $169,567 from $2,911,958 in 2024-25.

According to the budget, the salaries of the following city department heads and employees will be as follows (regular pay not including benefits) in 2025-26:

City Administrator: $90,000, up from $85,840 in 2024-25

Public Works Director: $74,000 up from $70,008

Certified Municipal Finance Officer (CMFO): $74,000, up from $66,950

Golf Manager: $42,000 up from $38,192

Lead Operator in Water & Sewer Maintenance (same employee with new title): $26.32 per hour with CDL, up from $23.64 per hour with CDL.

Parks employee: (same employee going from part time to full time): $19.07 per hour, up from $17.52 per hour.

Also included in the proposed new budget is $4,000 to increase the longevity pay of volunteer firefighters as follows: 5 to 10 years of service- $250; 10 to 15 years of service-$500, and over 15 years of service-$750. Total budgeted payment to volunteer firefighters-$70,000.

Not included in the budget is the proposed purchase of a $1.2 million Pierce fire engine as requested by the fire chief nor the three additional full-time (career) firefighter positions he wanted.

Projected general fund expenditures for 2025-26 are to exceed revenues by $250,970. A year ago, the budget showed that actual city spending outpaced revenues by $795,688 for the year ended June 30, 2024.

In the water and sewer fund, the city is projected to finish next year (2025-26) in the plus column by only $2,914. A year ago, actual water and sewer revenues exceeded expenditures by $530,625 as of June 30, 2024.

The 2025-26 budget includes the following in new spending:

CAPITAL OUTLAY:

*Public Works: mower trailer-$5,000; steam cleaner-$5,000; backhoe thumb kit-$5,300 (funded 50% from the general fund or $2,650 and 50% from the water and sewer budget $2,650)

*Fire Protection: 2 tri band filters for radios-$7,000; 10 batteries for radios-$3,800; training site equipment-$15,000; loose fire equipment-$25,000; new hydrants-$50,000

*Street Department: Paving-$100,000

Police Department: 2025 Tahoe-$52,143, 2025 Tahoe equipment-$8,554; 2025 Durango-$45,060, 2025 Durango equipment-$10,925, and tasers-$58,592.

*Financial Administration: G-5 software upgrade- $27,600 (funded 50% from the general fund or $13,800 and 50% from the water and sewer fund $13,800); backhoe thumb kit-$5,300 (funded 50% from the general fund or $2,650 and 50% from the water and sewer budget $2,650)

WATER AND SEWER FUND FIXED ASSET ADDITIONS:

*Fixed Asset additions: wastewater treatment plant air piping project- $130,000; G-5 software upgrade-$27,600 (funded 50% from the general fund or $13,800 and 50% from the water and sewer fund $13,800).

May 5, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

The 2025 DeKalb County School District Teacher of the Year is Amanda Goodwin, special education teacher at Northside Elementary School.

Goodwin got a surprise visit to the school Monday for the “John Isabell Memorial Award” presentation by Director of Schools Patrick Cripps, Northside Elementary School Principal Angela Johnson, NES Assistant Principal Beth Pafford, Supervisors of Instruction Michelle Burklow and Randy Jennings, Special Education Supervisor Natasha Vaughn, and Federal Programs Supervisor Dr. Danielle Collins. As part of the honor, Goodwin also received a school bell award, a floral arrangement, and a certificate granting her a day off from school with pay.

“I am really excited, and I appreciate it. I don’t do this on my own. It takes the support of all the teachers here at Northside along with the administration, faculty staff, and students,” Goodwin told WJLE Monday when informed by the administration that she was named DeKalb District Teacher of the Year.

After spending two years as a special education assistant, Goodwin said she fostered a deeper passion for teaching and furthered her education to become a teacher, a position she has held for five years now.

“This is actually my seventh year here at Northside including two years as an assistant. I teach special education as an interventionist for second and third grade,” Goodwin explained. “I started out with a business degree. I had a bachelor’s in business and when my kids went to school I started subbing and really enjoyed it so I became an assistant at Northside in a special education classroom. That started a fire in me to want to be a teacher, so I went back and got a master’s in special education,” said Goodwin.

In addition to the visit with Goodwin, Director Cripps and school administrators paid a call on four other teachers at their schools Monday to present the school level “Teacher of the Year” awards including 4th grade math and science teacher, Cathleen Humphrey at DeKalb West School, 1st grade teacher Allyson Trapp at Smithville Elementary School; Kristen Lynch, special education teacher at DeKalb Middle School, and Dylan Kleparek (Coach K), science/chemistry teacher at DeKalb County High School.

This is the 18th annual Teacher of the Year observance.

“Our district’s Teacher of the Year program recognizes and honors outstanding teachers in DeKalb County. We applaud teachers who care about our children, who devote their professional lives to enriching the lives of DeKalb students, and who demonstrate exceptional gains in student achievement. We are not just exceptionally proud of our Teachers of the Year, but we are also grateful for all of our educators in DeKalb County,” said Director Cripps.

Teachers of the Year are selected competitively through five cycles: Building, System, Field Service Core Center Region, Grand Division and State; and from three categories (levels of teaching); Grades Pre-K-4, 5-8, 9-12.

Teachers selected at each cycle receive local recognition and awards underwritten by local sources. State recognition/awards include a banquet honoring the nine State Teacher of the Year finalists and certificates of appreciation from the governor. In addition, the State Finalists and the State Teacher of the Year receive cash awards.

The Tennessee Teacher of the Year Program is designed to promote effective teaching practices by recognizing and rewarding outstanding teachers while encouraging others to join the teaching profession.

« First ‹ Previous 1 4 12 13 1415 16 24 114 2597 Next › Last »