Budget Committee Completes Work on 2025-26 Budget Except for Setting the Property Tax Levy

June 12, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

The county budget committee has completed its budget preparation for the 2025-26 fiscal year except for setting the debt service property tax levy.

During Tuesday night’s meeting, the budget committee approved the ambulance service and 911 budgets as well as an appropriations resolution and a capital improvement plan for current and future debt management but delayed action on setting the tax levy until after the jail committee meets next Monday, June 16 at 6 p.m. in the auditorium of the county complex where a recommendation could be made on the next step toward building a jail.

The current tax levy is $2.51 per $100 of assessed value which includes a debt service tax levy of 0.6160 cents. For now, the 51-cent tax increase from last year remains in the proposed 2025-26 budget but that could change by the next budget committee meeting before the final consolidated budget is submitted to the full county commission for adoption.

Steve Bates, the county’s fiscal agent, is recommending that the county keep the debt service levy the same as last year to fund a new jail and for the future construction of a second new school. According to Bates, if a jail is funded through a 12 year note rather than a 20-year bond, the county would save as much as $8 million in interest. Bates gave specifics when asked by budget committee member Tony Luna Tuesday night.

“Have you ever done the math on a 12 year note versus a 20-year bond? What is the difference in how much interest we’re paying”, asked Luna.

“Yes, let’s take the $35 million (jail construction option) you’re going to pay $44, 604,000 on the note or $53,100,000 on the bond. That’s $8,496,000 difference for eight years. That’s over a million dollars a year,” said Bates.

“Could you redo a note if interest dropped,” asked Budget Committee Chairman Jeff Barnes.

“Sure,” responded Bates.

“Can you also do that on a bond”, asked Barnes.

“Yep”, said Bates.

“What you would do is put call provisions on both of them. Typically, when investors buy a bond, they want to know if they are going to have that generated income for “x” number of years. You would probably put a 10 year call on a bond or on that note you could probably put a seven-year call or maybe five,” Bates explained.

“To reiterate, we could save the county over $8 million on a 12 year note versus a 20-year bond,” asked Luna.

“Yes”, replied Bates. “Because the further you go out the yield curve the higher the coupons get,” he added

Last week, the budget committee discussed new jail cost estimates provided by Bell Construction. When comparing the 152 bed versus 200 bed options, Bell concluded that jail construction on a new site would be from $8.6 million to $9.3 million cheaper. No cost numbers were apparently provided on the existing county property with the adjoining lot not owned by the county.

According to Rick Bruining of Bell Construction the pricing recap for the four scenarios on the DeKalb Jail Project are as follows:

*New site: 152 beds: $28,200,000
*New site: 200 beds: $34,500,000

*Existing site: 152 beds: $36,800,000
*Existing site:200 beds: $43,800,000

According to Jail Committee Chairman Larry Green, a new jail on the existing site would be a two-story structure as opposed to a one level building at a new location. More employees might also be needed to staff a two-level jail to meet state requirements.

County Mayor Matt Adcock said the Bell proposal for the existing site makes use of the property the county already owns leaving an option for future expansion on an adjoining lot the county currently does not own.

The new proposal has not been reviewed by the Tennessee Corrections Institute which has to certify it nor has Sheriff Patrick Ray had input.

There are still a lot of things missing like an armory, impound lot, evidence room, detective offices, etc. so there are still some questions on what that building would look like, “said County Mayor Adcock.

Bates presented to the budget committee last week assumptions on a jail debt service requirement on $29 million, $35 million, $37 million, and $44 million doing either 12-year notes, 20-year bonds, or 25-year bonds.

According to Bates, the debt service requirement on a new jail over 12 years would be $3, 080,000 on a $29,000,000 project; $3,717,000 on a $35,000,000 plan; $3,930,000 for a $37,000,000 option; and $4,675,000 on a $44,000,000 option.

“You could issue 12-year notes, get the jail out of the way, and then fund school #2,” said Bates. “Remember the 51 cents was never going to fund the judicial center on its own last year. It never was going to fund it alone. It was the fact that you have over $600,000 freeing up in debt service together with that money which was going to fund the project but that was defeated,” explained Bates.

“It goes back to the 12-year note. It depends on where you want to go from here. If you want to lower the tax rate in the future, then you’ll have to step up to the plate. You may not want to do it but that’s where you are at. What are you going to do? In 10 or 12 years another county commission is going to come in and have the same problem to fund school #2. Are they going to take the money that’s freed up together with contributions from local purpose and contributions from the general-purpose school fund to try to fund school #2? Or will they have a wheel tax if there is a shortfall? It’s going to be the same problem in 10 or 12 years. But I can tell you by doing the 12 year note your tax rate in the long term is going to be lower, longer. That’s the trade-off,” Bates continued.

“Look how much revenues are exceeding expenditures in 2034, by $4,219,000. If you did $7 million 30-year bonds in that year your debt service requirement would be $4, 225,000 if they could build a school for $70 million. You’re going through reappraisal next year and the tax rate is going to come down to at least $1.49 or thereabouts. You’ll go through reappraisal again in six more years. If your sales ratio is .88 you’ll come in at about $1.31 tax rate. I think we can keep a lid on expenditures until then. If we can’t then we’ll have to shift money from capital projects. We have excess money from interest income going to capital projects now and we could shift it back to the general fund to get us by. The longer you can play that game the lower your tax rate is going to be. I guess it just depends on what you think it’s worth to save a couple of pennies on your tax rate now versus 12- or 20-year bonds. If it’s just a couple of pennies you are better off doing the 12 years and being done with it. If it’s going to be 20 years, then I suggest you adopt an initial bond resolution at June’s meeting and see if you can even do bonds. You don’t have a solid waste fee. You don’t have a wheel tax. You don’t have any impact fees. You have a tax freeze for the elderly. You have done everything you can possibly do to soften it for the public,” said Bates.

The scheduled budget committee meeting for tonight (Thursday, June 12) has been cancelled.

June 12, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

The ambulance service budget is set for the year as recommended by the county budget committee Tuesday night.

According to the spending plan, EMS staff will get their scheduled step raises and for the first time, a step raise will be applied to EMS Director Trent Phipps whose salary has been $61,040. Based on his 18 years of service as a paramedic, Phipps’ pay will be adjusted by one percent to $61,650. The EMS budget also includes an extra $4,000 in incentive pay for medical personnel and $2,000 more in overtime for those serving as medical death investigators who respond to death calls.

Director Phipps had initially requested as one option a $5.00 per hour increase in pay for the 20 EMS medical personnel employed by the ambulance service and that his own pay be increased from $61,040 to $90,000. The idea was to put the director’s pay above the highest paid EMS employee. According to payroll records provided by a county commissioner, the highest paid EMS employee for the period of July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024 was $71,971 (gross amount) including hourly pay and overtime. The same employee earned $60,177 (gross amount) during the period from July 1, 2024 to April 10, 2025.

The proposed EMS budget request was later revised to include only step pay increases for personnel and for the director’s pay to go to $70,000.

During Tuesday night’s meeting, the budget committee was asked to consider raising Phipps’ pay to $70,000 and giving EMS personnel a $3.00 per hour raise in addition to the step increases.

Glynn Merriman, a member of the budget committee, made a motion to leave the regular step raises in place for the EMS workers along with the extra funds for MDIs and to keep the director’s pay at $61,040. The motion failed 4-3 with Chairman Jeff Barnes and members Mathias Anderson, Tony Luna, and Tony (Cully) Culwell voting against it and members Sabrina Farler and Daniel Cripps voting with Merriman for the motion.

According to Merriman, raising the director’s pay to $70,000 was too much at this time and he questioned the fairness in giving a $3.00 per hour increase in pay to EMS personnel without also providing it to sheriff’s department deputies even though the sheriff had not requested it.

“I know EMS does an important job and I appreciate everyone of them but if we give them a $3.00 an hour raise we need to give the deputies a $3.00 an hour raise because their lives are in danger too. That’s the way I look at it. They put their lives on the line too and he (sheriff) didn’t ask for one. I am not saying they are not worth it but if one gets it they both deserve it,” said Merriman.

After Merriman’s motion failed, Budget committee member Anderson made a motion to put the director’s pay at $70,000 and to give EMS personnel a $2.00 per hour increase plus the steps. His motion died for the lack of a second.

Budget committee member Luna then moved to leave the regular step raises in the budget for EMS personnel but to apply the step raise to the director’s position, which is something that has not been done before. Based on his 18 years of experience, Luna’s motion was to give Director Phipps a 1% increase in pay putting it at $61,650 and to include the extra $4,000 for medical personnel serving as MDIs and $2,000 more in overtime. The vote was adopted 6-1 with Anderson being the lone no vote.

Later in the meeting, Director Phipps asked the budget committee to reconsider his salary saying he had taken a pay cut when he moved from being a paramedic to director last year after the death of former EMS director Hoyte Hale. Phipps asked that his salary be at least $67,647 which is what it was as paramedic.
Budget committee member Mathias Anderson made a motion to up the director’s pay to $67,647 and to give EMS staff an extra $1.00 per hour in addition to their regular step raises. The motion failed 4-3 with members Merriman, Farler, Cripps, and Chairman Barnes voting against it. Joining Anderson in supporting the motion were members Luna and Culwell.

The total EMS budget is $1,900,615 including $803,476 in salaries for the 20 medical personnel and $188,419 in budgeted overtime pay.

In other business, the budget committee adopted on a 5-2 vote the emergency management budget which includes an $11,500 increase in the county’s longstanding contracted contribution to the DeKalb County Emergency Communications District. The total cost for that will go from $160,000 to $171,500 per year. Both the county and the City of Smithville are under contract with 911 to each fund three dispatcher positions including benefits. The Town of Alexandria also makes a 911 contribution to help fund a position.

DeKalb ECD (911) Director Brad Mullinax addressed the budget committee prior to the vote. “We have surveyed our surrounding counties and found out we are paying significantly less for starting dispatchers than counties around us and this includes Cannon, White, and Putnam. We didn’t shoot for the moon on this. Its about what they are paying in surrounding counties on average. We are proposing $18 an hour and this would be an increase to the county of $11,500 per year and to the City of Smithville as well. A starting dispatcher makes $16.56 per hour. It’s a $1.44 increase,” said Mullinax.

“Our budget is extremely tight. We have trimmed and cut. One of our biggest problems is we had significant money in cd’s gaining interest of about $50,000 a year but when we pulled out $1.1 million total for investment in radios that brought our surplus fund balance down to about $900,000. I am projecting now that we will get somewhere in the neighborhood of about $25,000 in interest versus $50,000 this year,” explained Mullinax.

“Our insurance is up because we have had more subscribers. Insurance benefits is up. That went from about $68,000 last year to $94,000 this year. The employees were told that the local match for their employee health insurance is going to increase by about $60 bucks. Their pay raise is basically going to cover their health insurance,” Mullinax continued.

“We have to give employees raises. We have to stay competitive in the job market with 911 centers in the Upper Cumberland because they will go somewhere else and it costs a lot to train a dispatcher. We have about $10,000 to $15,000 invested in a dispatcher by the time we get them fully trained up,” he said.
“Our 911 board has not yet been passed our budget for the year. That is to be acted on by June 24 and then sent to the Tennessee Emergency Communications District,” said Mullinax.

Meanwhile, the budget committee approved an increase in the 40 hour per week shared firefighter position (one position) which will go from $36,281 to $37,370. Available firefighters, who are trained and certified, rotate in and out of the position as needed and no firefighter works more than 24 hours a week.

The budget further includes funding for a new building codes inspection program. Earlier this year the county commission adopted a resolution establishing the current state building codes for the county to go by. A local part time building inspector is to be hired to administer the program. The position has already been advertised, and one person has applied. After a certified building codes inspector has been hired, the county will have to enter into a contract with him and then submit to the state a completed 14-page survey after which the county will be audited to ensure local compliance. Audits are done every three years.

County Mayor Matt Adcock said since this is a new program figuring the actual collections and costs the first year is challenging. According to Adcock, the inspector’s salary would be 65% of collections from fees.

“After one fiscal year, we will have a better idea of what to budget for next year. I’m thinking $25,000 to see where that gets us and add $1,500 in office supplies. We can amend it if needed,” said County Mayor Adcock. The proposed budget includes a projection of $40,000 in revenue from the program.

The budget committee adopted an appropriations resolution totaling $74, 448, 527 for the year 2025-26. Also approved on a 5-2 vote was a capital improvement plan. “This is a plan to look ahead to try to manage what it is you are going to do,” said Steve Bates, the county’s fiscal agent. The plan includes projections for a new jail at $35,000,000 on 12-year notes, $1.3 million for land purchase to build school #2, new elementary school construction and the purchase of an ambulance from capital projects in 2026, another ambulance purchase in 2028, and in 2036 construction of school #2. Members Farler and Culwell voted no on the capital improvement plan. Farler said she wanted to wait until after the jail committee meeting next week.

The scheduled budget committee meeting for tonight (Thursday, June 12) has been cancelled.

June 11, 2025
By: Dwayne Page

Alexandria Mayor Beth Tripp Resigns!

Ten months after being elected Mayor of Alexandria, Beth Tripp is calling it quits.

Mayor Tripp contacted WJLE Wednesday afternoon to announce her resignation and issued the following prepared statement in a letter addressed to the Town of Alexandria:

“Dear Town of Alexandria,

After much discussion with family, friends, and supporters please accept this as my official notice of resignation effective immediately. It has been an honor serving my community. I have always respected the board’s decision and have executed all their decisions without debate. It saddens me, that they now have issues with the decisions they have voted in town meetings and do not want to take responsibility for their actions”

“I appreciate all those who have supported me and continue to support me. I will continue to appreciate every one of you”

“Sincerely,
Mayor Beth Tripp”

The board of aldermen consists of Vice Mayor Bobby Simpson, Luke Prichard, Jeff Ford, Jonathan Tripp, Sherry Tubbs, and David Cripps.

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