Amendment is voted on that may help Chester County’s budget
CHESTER COUNTY, Tenn.- One county is closer to finalizing their upcoming fiscal budget.
With an audience full of concern, the Chester County Commission met during their special session meeting Monday evening to discuss a possible property tax increase.
Commissioners opened the meeting with a public hearing, allowing residents to voice their concerns regarding the proposed 8 cent property tax increase.
“I want the commissioners to understand, which they probably very much will do. That its very difficult to continue to make plans for my retirement-which I’m meeting with my financial advisors tomorrow. I’m working on my 6 year plan- but am I going to be able to keep my properties in Chester county?,” one resident asked.
Another resident suggested that certain departments make cuts to their staff and departments that were working overtime.
“A lot of us anytime someone gets to talking about subtraction. We need to look at limiting these jobs or these hours or this overtime. I know that’s immediately unpopular because that affects us personally,” another resident voiced.
One problem that the budget committee conveyed while crafting the budget is a lack of revenue that the county brings to their budget.
“We have an agreement on a cell tower company to install a cell tower on the county property which they’re giving us some revenue and a monthly amount that would help the county,” Barry Hutcherson, Mayor for Chester county, shares.
This cell tower would hope to remedy their lack of revenue problem by bringing more money to the county.
“A motion was made to have it go into the general fund which that passed and the approval was made on continuing with the contract,” he adds.
With an amendment made and passed, the money would go from one department to another.
“The revenue from the cell tower goes into solid waste and we had an amendment and asked for it, instead of it going to solid waste that it goes into county general and that amendment did pass,” Mayor Hutcherson says.
The 8 cent tax increase was not voted on this evening but, will be voted on at a later date.
