Tax Rates and Complaints
John Phelps of EUDS Consulting talking with Gary Fancher KY EM Area 3 Regional Manager while the court members were out for a closed session. In the background are (L-R) Solid Waste Coordinator Scotty Mosby, Road Supervisor Chris Compton, and Mark Parke owner of Parks Panel and Processing and chairman of the Summer Shade Volunteer Fire Dept. Board. Photo by PJ Martin
By PJ Martin
Editor
The Herald-News
The Metcalfe County fiscal court met on Tuesday, September 12th with all in attendance except magistrate Kevin Crain.
The court acknowledged the Metcalfe County Conservation District, Metcalfe County Library District, and Metcalfe County Ambulance District tax rates for 2023 Real Property, 2023 Personal Property, and 2024 Motor Vehicle and Water Craft. The tax rates are cents per $100 assessed value.
2023 Real 2023 Personal Motor Vehicle/Watercraft
Conservation District 9.9 10.99 3.00
Library District 11.5 12.77 3.31
Ambulance District 5.6 5.6 3.00
The county tax rates were approved unanimously and there were no changes to the motor vehicle and watercraft rate of 8.2 cents per $100 assessed value and personal property at 10.0 cents per $100 assessed value. The real property rates decreased by .1 from last year down to this year’s 8.6 cents per $100 assessed value.
The Metcalfe County School District’s tax rates were not received, because the rates were not approved until the board meeting that night.
Ordinance
The second reading of Ordinance #23-0822 was approved unanimously. The ordinance states “a person is guilty of obstructing a highway or other public passage when having no legal privilege to do so” carries a fine of up to $250 and/or up to 90 days in jail and is a Class B Misdemeanor.
Magistrate Ronnie Miller asked, “Who will enforce this?” to which County Attorney Sharon Howard replied, “Any law officer.”
Consultant
The Metcalfe County fiscal court published an ad in August for anyone interested in “providing professional consulting services to assist Metcalfe County in recovering from recent disaster events, applying for and managing FEMA grants and other federal and state funding to address existing hazards and mitigate the effects of future disasters, and planning and preparing for future events.”
There was only one response received other than a couple of emails with no reply. The one response was from EUDS Consulting.
John Phelps representing Electrical Utility Disaster Services (EUDS) spoke to the court and explained what could be done. “We’d like to be in position to help Metcalfe County. You all, much like Cumberland County, you all endure lots of different types of flood damage…we’d like to help with any portion of it.”
“Basically, everything that we would do is 100 percent reimbursable, hazard mitigation we might be able to help with that…You all have got a great EM director Emory Kidd. He’s as knowledgeable as anybody in the state.”
“We want to help you be prepared for your business with FEMA, to organize your projects. Every time you deal with the federal government, you know it’s slow and time-consuming.”
“Y’all are at the helm, we would come do whatever portion that you would have us to do.”
Judge/Executive Larry Wilson asked what the court would like to do and motions were made and approve to enlist the help of EUDS Consulting with the FEMA and disaster issues for the county. The motion was approved.
Other items
A citizen from near Summer Shade named Craig Bunch spoke to the court stating that during the wind-damaging storms in March, he said, “The complaint is on the fire department at Summer Shade…about not cleaning up clearing the roadways after the storms…and they have told us it’s not their job and it’s not their responsibility. What can we do about gettin’ this fixed?”
Magistrate Daniel Bragg asked what road and also stated that he was out with them clearing roads from the storms. Bunch stated that he cut trees on several roads Apple Grove Rd., Harold Paull Rd., and Cyclone Rd., and never saw a county worker or a firefighter.
Judge Wilson and Bragg both agreed that the county workers and some of the firefighters were out all night and the days following the storm working to clear roadways to which Bunch said, “You’re not getting’ to what I’m getting’ at. The chairman of the board of directors is settin’ in this room right now and he himself told me that was not in their job description nor did they get paid for it.”
Judge Wilson said, “They can’t get things back to normal after one flood before we have another one and I personally feel this way, unless Mrs. Howard can present me a KRS that says they’re obligated to go out and work, I don’t feel like, I know, I personally am not going to do anything. What’s happened between you and him. What was said I feel like that’s between you all and I don’t feel like, I’m not gonna condemn our fire departments. They’re all volunteers.”
Speaking about the responsibility of the fire department statutes GaryFancher said, “Their language it says they’ll assist, but you gotta look at the number of volunteers you’ve got available.” Bragg added, “I know the Summer Shade Fire Department were out cuttin’ trees… I was out cutting trees.”
Mark Parke presented a response to Bunch saying, “I am chairman of the board for Summer Shade Fire Department I did speak to Mr. Bunch and I told him I would check into it…We had 58 man-hours of cuttin’ trees that was accounted for. I know also that there was some during the storms that was so crazy that wasn’t wrote down. The March and April storms we had 27 man-hours and I was at the fire dept. in the March storm answering the phones and contacting firefighters myself to dispatch to tell ‘em where to go to cut trees. We had two trucks going out on that day that I know of and it is volunteer.”
A closed session for approximately 30 minutes returned with no action taken.
Metcalfe County Fiscal Court meetings can be viewed on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/metcalfecountyfiscalcourt.
County resident Craig Bunch asked about the responsibilities of the volunteer firefighters and rescue workers. Photo by PJ Martin
