By Bill Grubb

ROGERSVILLE - A 20-cent property tax increase, elimination of the assistant building inspector, 50 percent reduction in the amount requested by the Rogersville City School and the layoff of three police officers were included Monday in the second draft of Rogersville's 2009-10 budget.
    The Board of Mayor and Aldermen began the called meeting with a budget that would have used approximately $1.2 million in reserves.
     "This is probably  the most painful year we've had up here,"Vice Mayor Ann Howe said, as she presided in the absence of Mayor Jim Sells. "If we take that $1.2 million out of reserves we're going to be in pretty bad shape."
    Even with the proposed tax increase and suggested budget cuts, the city will still use approximately $500,000 in reserves to balance the spending plan.
    City Recorder Bill Lyons said each cent of the city's property tax rate generates approximately $10,000 in revenue, and he also noted some of the state shared revenue has taken a dramatic decrease.    
    "The sales tax check we get should normally be $60,000 a month and it has dropped to $30,000.  Multiply that by 12 and you'll see how much we are down just from that one category," Lyons said.
    Former Alderman Dr. Blaine Jones, who attended the meeting, said the years of deferring a tax increase may actually have contributed to the current situation.
    "I sat up there with you all for several years and I think we knew that somewhere this was going to come back to bite us, and it's coming back now," Jones said. "Nobody wants to pay more taxes, but you've got to be realistic.  If you want to maintain the services and what you've got, you're going to have to do it."
    Alderman John Johnson said he was very concerned about raising taxes in a year when the recession is being felt by so many city residents.
    "I hate to raise somebody's taxes when you've got so many unemployed," he said.
    Stella Gudger, also attending the meeting, asked if the board members had tried to gauge community input on budget options.
    "If you ask people if they want to pay more in taxes I'm sure the answer would be no," Alderman Philip Beal said.
    The proposed 20-cent increase would raise the city's tax rate to $1.47 per $100 of assessed property value and generate approximately $200,000 in new revenue.  The increase would add $50 to a resident's tax bill for each $100,000 of property value.
    In addition to raising revenue the spending plan includes a layoff of three city police officers, a move that would reduce expenditures by approximately $150,000.
    Chief Doug Nelson said it was his opinion that reducing the number of officers would be a more practical option than reducing the number of hours all officers could work.
    "Even with the cut, we will still have two officers on a shift, the detectives and me. We should be able to maintain coverage but we may have to pull the school resource officer part of the time," Nelson said.
    The department currently has 14 certified officers and will have 11 if the layoff is implemented.
    "We hope this is a temporary situation and we can call them back," Lyons said, adding the officers would be eligible for unemployment benefits if they do not find other positions.
    Rather than a layoff, the Park Department will reduce the number of hours worked by each employee, creating a 32-hour work week.
    Board members noted the street department did not fill a position last year and another employee will soon retire and that slot will remain vacant.
    The BMA did agree to trim an assistant building inspector's post, currently held by Margaret Thames, which paid $7,868 annually. Although Steve Nelson would handle the inspection responsibilities, Thames would complete the paperwork for permits.
    "There is no reason why we can't handle the permits here at city hall," Lyons said.
    The budget proposal also includes $91,000 of the $182,000 requested by RCS Director Sherry Terry.
    Terry said she had trimmed approximately $133,000 from the proposed budget before submitting it to the BMA and that she might be able to find $5,000 to $6,000 in "piddly cuts."
    "This is a tough time.  I know nobody on the board likes making these cuts and raising taxes, but we really don't have that many options," Lyons said.
    The BMA will consider the budget and tax rate for a third and final reading on June 30, beginning at 5:30 p.m.