My vision for Blount County’s future

I believe Blount County will continue to be a premier place to live, work, and raise a family; and therefore our population will continue to increase. That increase will mean more housing units will be needed and our local economy will have to grow to generate the revenues needed to provide the necessary public services for our people. This dynamic state of development will require our communities to manage the growth in such a way that we preserve the high quality of life that we enjoy today. We will identify key area resources and develop strategies for economic development around those resources. We will have to align our educational systems with our economic development strategies to assure that our citizens are qualified for current and future employment opportunities.

The process I will use in making appointments:

The responsibility to nominate and/or appoint citizens to the many boards and commissions affiliated with County government is perhaps the most important duty of the County Mayor. I will prepare a listing of all positions that are to be filled along with a description of the duties of each position and the expected qualifications of any person interested in serving in that position. As vacancies arise each position will be announced in the newspaper and on-line, and interested parties invited to submit their application to the mayor’s office. I will appoint a 5 member panel of objective non-partisan people who will review all applications received and will submit the names of the three best qualified candidates to me. I will conduct individual interviews with each of those three candidates and will select the one I feel is best for the job. Everyone who applies will be given full and fair consideration.

How would I ensure the accountability of county departments?

To me accountability of a department means that the people in that department are performing the functions of that department in a timely and cost-effective manner that is consistent with good practices. As County Mayor I would work with the department heads to identify any problem areas and to determine how to get those problems resolved. I will also maintain an open forum – both at the courthouse and on-line – where citizens can make their concerns known. And to the extent possible I will work with the department heads to address each of those concerns.

Blount County’s current debt position:

Clearly Blount County has a large debt due to bonds issued for construction of the Justice Center, several schools, Courthouse renovations, the Blount County Planning Commission, the health department facility, and other obligations. Unfortunately those projects were all supported on a piece meal basis and without any reliance on financial planning strategies. Also the types of bonds – fixed rate versus variable rate – and the use of rate swaps created large uncertainties in the debt service obligations of the County. Also the practice of rolling over a bond to delay payment has just added more debt.

How should ethical issues involving public officials be handled?

First I want to distinguish between legal and ethical. Legal means in compliance with the law. Ethical means conforming to standards of moral conduct for a given profession or group. So an act can be unethical without being illegal. Generally ethical issues involving public officials are about decision making situations in which they have a personal interest or a potential conflict of interest. The obvious and most direct way to handle ethical issues is for the officials to clearly identify their interests and to remove themselves from those decisions making situations where conflicts may exist.

Do I think current land use regulations are adequate, and if not what improvements are needed.

Current land use regulations in Blount County have evolved during recent years and will continue to evolve as development pressures continue. In general the existing regulations are sufficient unless too many exceptions are allowed. The land use regulations should be based on clearly stated objectives and should be implemented in a way that achieves those objectives. Those persons responsible for administering the regulations must conduct themselves in a fair and equitable manner

What are the three most important issues facing Blount County in the future?

Establishing Sound Budget Management Policies: The most immediate and urgent issue is the lack of a financial management plan for the county government that will help assure long-term fiscal stability while meeting our needs, managing our debt, and keeping taxes low.

Jobs, Jobs, and Jobs: Assessing the projected growth in our population and balancing the economic development activities with that growth to assure that we keep existing good jobs and attract new jobs so our people will continue to have a high quality of life and a tax base that will sustain the services provided by the county.

Education: We need to move aggressively to provide our children with the education they will need to have fulfilling lives, and we must develop vocational education strategies that are required to meet our economic development strategies, so our citizens will have the job skills needed in our ever changing local economy.

What can I do to impact these issues?

Establishing Sound Budget Management Policies: One of the primary duties of the County Mayor is to prepare the County budget and present it to the Commission. Historically this has been done on an annualized basis in a piece meal fashion . As County Mayor I would work with all department heads to develop long-range projections on budget matters (both revenues and expenditures) and rely on proven financial planning principles to make fiscal decisions. I would also lead by example to encourage all departments to move toward zero-based budgeting. And I would initiate a program to reward employees who identify cost-saving measures.

Jobs: Our population has increased steadily for several decades, it is reasonable to expect that trend to continue. That means continued residential development and the need for more jobs for our residents. Tax revenues from residential development are usually inadequate to cover costs of services associated with that development. Therefore we must expand our commercial and industrial development efforts to provide the quality jobs our people need and to provide the revenues our County needs for essential services. As County Mayor I would work closely with our economic development groups to assure that we are partnering with our existing businesses to help them remain successful and keep existing jobs in place. An integral part of this effort will be to support vocational training for young people and adults so local workers are prepared and qualified for those existing jobs. Another major thrust will be to identify strategic focus areas for economic development that are consistent with the resources available in this area.

Education: We elect a school board to manage the operation of our public schools and they hire a director of schools to implement the programs to facilitate the education of our children. However the County Mayor can play a significant role in the educational system by working with the school board on fiscal matters, building public support for education initiatives, and recognizing educational achievements. As County Mayor I will support academic camps and will encourage stronger parental support of education. I will also encourage increased use of local talent as volunteers in the classroom to assist teachers.