By Tabitha Evans Moore, EDITOR & PUBLISHER
LYNCHBURG — It was smooth sailing on Monday night as the Metro Council approved the second a final reading of the 2024-25 budget. The budget passed 12-1 with Shane Taylor, Bradley Dye, Sunny Rae Moorehead, Arvis Bobo, Gerald Burnett, Amy Cashion, Marty Cashion, Peggy Sue Blackburn, Jimmy Hammond, Greg Guinn, Houston Lindsey, and John Taylor voting to approve the budget.
Despite asking no questions or making any public comments against any line item, Robert Bracewell cast the lone no vote. He voted no on the budget, the appropriations, and the taxy levy. He also voted against the county’s annual budgeted non-profit donations to Centerstone, the Moore County Senior Center, and the Moore County Friends of Animals.
Peggy Sue Blackburn cast the lone no vote against a set of Moore County School System budget amendments. She also asked no questions or stated an objections, prior to her no vote.
Only 13 members of the council were present on Monday. Both Dexter Golden and Douglas Carson were absent from the meeting.
No property tax increase
Prior to the vote, Budget Committee Chair Gerald Burnett stated that this year’s budget estimates a $1.9 million fund balance. According to the Local Governments Budget Manual supplied by the Tennessee Comptroller’s office, the state recommends that all local governments maintain enough fund balance to fund two months of operating expenses. State law also requires that it be at least 15 percent of the total budget.
“We got it at $1.9 million, so we’re very healthy in terms of where our ending fund balance is, “Burnett stated. “The same way with all the other funds. So we’re going to end fiscal 2024 in really good shape with our fund balance.”
Burnett also stated that they did not anticipate needing a Tax and Revenue Anticipation Notes (TRANs) during the months just prior to the majority of property tax payments.
Burnett praised Mayor Sloan Stewart and Assessor of Property Shawn Sherrill for working with state officials to negotiate a lower tax levy.
“In the past, we’ve got a lot of erroneous certified tax rates back from them, some too low, some too high,” Burnett stated. “They kept working with them till they got us a good rate.”
In general during a property reappraisal cycle, the state should lower the tax rate on the increased property value so that the homeowner pays about the same tax amount as the previous year.
“So the only way that that would change is if you improved your property,” Burnett explained to the group. “All in all, it’s a healthy budget. I think Mayor Stewart and the departments have all done a really good job controlling cost and giving us a budget that doesn’t cause us to raise property taxes.” •
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