22 Dec 2014 BOS's Meeting

The following is our Committee's report at the meeting:

22 Dec 2014: Board of Supervisors’ Meeting @ 5p

Thank you for the appointment this evening.

We have 2 subjects in our presentation tonight. 

The first topic is about the funding you will be voting on tonight.

At your last meeting, we heard from Lyn Arnold how the Chamber and Economic Development became so closely entangled.  At the time, this may have been a good decision.  However, needs have changed and so has our funding. 

Please consider funding Economic Development and not funding the Chamber.  In most communities, funding of a local Chamber of Commerce is obtained through individual, company and corporate memberships.  Our Chamber has been largely funded through our local governments. 

As we transition to an Efficient and Sustainable Government, we will need to replace our lost income with other revenue streams and are in need of Economic Development to attain these goals.

 

Insert comment: As best a I can remember.  At the moment we have citizens attending the pre-employment program at Northwest Community College.  After the course they are supposedly qualified to interview at Schultz or GTA.  My husband, Bob, has been in the industrial training field for many years.  As I understand the process, a prospective employee will be interviewed and hired by the company before being trained.  It appears we may need to take a look at what we are doing as there are many complaints from citizens who are not getting jobs in Tunica County. 

The second topic concerns the recent Opinion piece that ran last week in the Tunica Times.  There is a very long post on the Transparency Blog rebutting a good bit of the Tunica Times offering.  It appears this Opinion blames so many of our troubles on our County Administrator when it is way past time for we, the people of Tunica County to accept the blame for the financial mess we are in and not try to continually transfer this responsibility to someone else. 

I will address one of the three “accomplishments” attributed to Michael Thompson in this Opinion. 

“in the biggest debacle for Tunica County, Caesar’s Entertainment abruptly closed the county’s largest resort property, Harrah’s, throwing over a thousand people out of work, shuttering three hotels, a world class golf course, Cottonwoods, and the resort area’s only true convention facility, and putting an end to a successful program of charter (flights) into Tunica Airport, flights which were drawing visitors from far outside the drive-up market.” 

1. May I be so bold as to ask, who built a golf course to compete with Cottonwoods and River Bend?  We did.  Not Michael Thompson.
2. Are you clearly stating that with the closing of Harrah’s, no other casino is bringing charter flights into Tunica Airport? That would be interesting to investigate but again this is not a decision attributed to Michael Thompson.  We the people of Tunica County are the people who allowed this airport to be built without the benefit of a feasibility study.
3. Then there is the statement about “throwing over a thousand people out of work.”  The month Harrah’s closed, Tunica County’s unemployment rate was 17% for Jun 2014.  Jul was 18%.  Aug was 15%.  Sep was 13% and Oct was 12%.  Not much of a change from before Harrah’s closed.  You know what else this might show us?  Not many Tunicans were employed at Harrah's.  Don’t know for sure but maybe.

As was stated earlier in this report, there is a more extensive rebuttal on the Transparency Blog.  In closing I would like to ask the Tunica Times to recognize the factual mistakes made in this “Opinion” piece and to run an apology to Michael Thompson in their next issue.  To show you are sincere this apology needs to be front page and above the fold. 

In the meantime, Michael, I would like to offer an apology from the Tuchel household for all of the mean spirited things that have been done to you and said about you since your arrival in Tunica County.

 

End of Presentation.

 

In other business, the Board did vote to fund the Chamber for $17k.  James Dunn did say that 90% of what the Chamber does is Economic Development.  Michael Thompson said he was working with Lyn Arnold on a proposal.

 

There was something said by James Dunn about first time home buyers but there was no discussion or voting of any kind.

Randy Stewart presented architect's drawings for the community safe house.  The drawings were approved and Stewart was reminded by Dunn to keep this project within the bid as there is no room for project change orders.  My note:  Even though 95% of this project is covered by a grant, do we really need this?  Has there been a feasibility study?  And 95% of what number?

Update 24 Dec 204: This was left out of the original post.  At one point in the meeting, James Dunn asked Adrian McKay to provide a list of all of the employees who have been effected by the recent 5% reduction in pay.  Comment: There is no problem with asking for or getting the list.  This is just another example of a supervisor not working through the County Administrator.  Another way to look at this is the employee is put in a position of taking orders from 2 different bosses.  This needs to change from the way things used to be done.
  

Cedric Burnett did not attend the meeting.

The meeting was adjourned.  The next Board of Supervisor's Meeting is Mon, 5 Jan 2015 at 5p.

19 Dec 2014 Rebuttal to Tunica Times Editorial...

"It's past time for Thompson to go"

Below is the entire Opinion with my comments highlighted in yellow and my notes highlighted in blue.  Grab a coffee and take a seat...this is going to be a long one.  By the way, how come neither Brooks nor Meg put their name to this opinion?  All of us are required to do so.  Just saying...here we go.

"This month, Michael Thompson is 'celebrating' one year as administrator for Tunica County. Yes, and one of his accomplishments is showing the public our broken tax structure.  Past County Administrators and Boards of Supervisors failed to take action by adjusting our tax structure to keep pace with falling gaming revenues and property values.  We have been living in a fool's paradise.

But we wonder if this anniversary of sorts holds any joy for him or if he wishes he had never heard of this place.  Are you kidding me?  Our Sheriff entraps him and many of our citizens are blaming him for our own misplaced trust and stupidity.  I feel your pain Michael.  Many folks in the white community hate me too and for the same reason: Telling the truth.  You see Michael, it' okay for false arrests and entrapment to go on as long as it is not one of them.

Thompson's general demeanor in recent months, as county finances have steadily worsened, has changed dramatically.  Where once he entered the meeting room smiling, laughing and greeting people in the gallery, now he sits glumly at his end of the Board table, offering the barest minimum of information only when called upon. Hmmm, this is not my observation.

Brought on as a consultant to conduct an independent audit of county departments and 'entities' two years ago, Thompson was suddently (suddenly) elevated to his current position last December 2, on what has come to be known in local circles as 'The Night of the Long Knives.' (Google Germany just prior to World War II.)  Oh, please.  Who is writing this stuff?  Dick, is this you?

In that now-infamous December 2013 meeting, supervisors McKinley Daley and Henry Nickson linked up to carry out a coup.  Along with a third supervisor, Phillis Williams, Nickson and Daley put forward and passed a motion to first dismiss county Board attorney Andy Dulaney while he was performing his duties during the meeting, and the county administrator Clifton Johnson.  The replacement attorney, Ellis Pittman, and Thompson were waiting in the audience that night to be brought to the table by the 'Gang of Three," without benefit of resumes, interviews or anything that could be construed as normal business practice.  Did it ever occur to you that perhaps Andy shouldn't have been serving as the BOS's attorney and the attorney for all of the other entities?  Maybe there needed to be some division?  The "Gang of Three" didn't remove Andy from any other board as far as I know.

Thompson's rise to power was the most astonishing, considering that he appeared out of no where onto the scene in August 2012.  Despite repeated requests from this newspaper for background information, a resume' or credentials, Thompson has yet to produce anything for public consumption that would convince us that he has the knowledge, skills or experience to carry out his current county job. Hmmm, funny thing about that.  Bob and I went to his office, asked the questions and got the answers.  Why can't you do the same?

During the 16 or so months he was acting as an independent auditor, Thompson, to our knowledge, failed to make EVEN ONE written report of his activities or findings.  Not true, PowerPoint presentations were made in the BOS's meetings and workshops.  Sorry the reports were not in the format you demand.  I feel sure if the reports had been written, you would have asked for a PowerPoint presentation because he was wasting paper.

We do know he began his review of county entities with the Tunica County Utility District and the Tunica Museum, before moving on briefly to the Tunic Convention & Visitors Bureau, whose Board ultimately refused to cooperate.  Don't you find it a bit strange that some citizens can refuse to share financial information with other citizens?  And just what is the CVB Foundation all about?  To the best of our knowledge, he never, in his time as auditor, examined any county departments, despite his assurances to supervisor Phillis Williams in mid July and again in mid August that he would find cost savings during the county's budget process in August and September 2013. And the former County Administrator was so open to listening and including any cost saving measures? Yeah, right.

In the month after his sudden hiring. Thompson brought in finance consultant Alex Wiley to assist him.  Thompson and Wiley apparently have a long professional and personal association and were soon seen frequenting local restaurants and traveling together back and forth to Memphis. This is just ridiculous.  Don't most colleagues eat lunch together?  I've never heard you say anything about other employees having lunch together.  Wiley stayed on the county payroll for six months or so, his name appearing on the claims docket as late as July this year.

While Wiley was still on the payroll, supervisors filled the vacant position of county comptroller Adrian McKay, a Rosa Fort High School graduate and former resident. Adrian also graduated from Alcorn State University with a degree in accounting.  It is unclear just how much influence McKay has exerted in his short tenure.  On July 1, McKay stated in an open meeting that he had not had access to the revenue side' of the county's financial picture.  You need to get your facts straight on this one.  I believe you can remember this committee's recent report stating that $13M+ had yet to be entered into the system.  Check the Public Records.

This information came out during one of supervisor Cedric Burnett's repeated requests to Thompson in open meetings for cash in the bank statements.  Burnett even went so far as to make a records request under the Freedom of Information Act.  To our knowledge, neither Burnett nor any other supervisor has received during Thompson's tenure, a cash in bank statement or report that could give the Board an accurate picture of the county's financial standing.  Burnett is my supervisor and he needs to spend more time helping to fix the problems he helped to create then being spoon fed information.  He can go to Michael's office and get anything he wants with which to make decisions. My supervisor is disruptive, lazy and not a team player.  I have to ask, what else is he afraid will be found out?

Last August, the county leaders are normally deeply involved in budgeting for the coming year, this newspaper was told by reliable sources that Thompson was out of the county and away from his post for perhaps two weeks' time.  Here we go..."reliable sources".  Care to share?  Consequently, the administrator and the Board bungled the entire budget process, failing to produce a coherent plan of action for the fiscal year that started October 1.  Not true.

Based solely on Thompson's very tenuous verbal accounting of county finances, given on September 11, mere days before the statutory deadline to produce a final budget, the Board passed a substantial tax increase, without giving the tax paying public its statutorily guaranteed right to protest and despite ongoing challenges to the county's assessed valuations of the majority of the casino properties located here. Not true.  It was different this year and actually an improvement.  The County Administrator held workshops to inform the public and not a thing changed from the 2013 dates.

On October 10, Hollywood Casino lodged a formal appeal of the tax increase and budget process, now slowly making its way through the state's often snail-like judicial process.  I'm interested to find out what the courts have to say about our budgeting process.  Hollywood has a right to sue about the tax increase but our budgeting process?  Oh well, we shall see.

Note: The next section contains 3 bullets.  I am changing each bullet to a number for easier understanding.


Thompson's other accomplishments in his first year?  Here are the highlights:

1. an ongoing dispute with the town of Tunica.  After legislation to revise the formula that divides gaming tax revenue among the county general fund, the public schools and the sole incorporated town or city within Tunica County, the town of Tunica, failed last spring, the county acted on an earlier threat and sued the town and school district in late October,  the county is currently illegally withholding November and December gaming tax money from the town, and it is believed, the school district.  Let us say that again: the county is breaking state law and withholding the schools' and town's share of gaming taxes.

2. Tunica County has repeatedly jeopardized fire protection in its jurisdiction by failing to renew existing contracts that cover most of Tunica County.  For nearly a year, county homeowners have been under threat of a significant increase in their property insurance rates perhaps as much as double what they are paying now.  Please tell us when anyone was without Fire Protection in Tunica County.  Yes, there were discussions and negotiations and a resolution.

In North Tunica County, where a special taxing district supports a paid fire department, declining tax revenues are forcing reductions in staff to risky levels, not only endangering the lives and property of those who live in the district but also failing to adequately protect casino visitors and employees. And what would you like Mr. Thompson to do about this?  Print money?  Perhaps this taxing district will have to increase what they are paying to cover the reduction in revenues.

3. In the biggest debacle for Tunica County, Caesar's Entertainment abruptly closed the county's largest resort property, Harrah's, throwing over a thousand people out of work, shuttering three hotels, a world class golf course, Cottonwoods, and the resort area's only true convention facility, and putting an end to a successful program of charter fights (flights) into Tunica Airport, flights which were drawing visitors from far outside the drive-up market.

And now you are blaming Mr. Thompson for Harrah's closing?  Please.  And as for the Airport?  How about doing some investigative reporting on how many flights go in and out of Tunica Airport?  Make sure you include the money Tunica has spent on this facility in your findings.  Oh, and see if you can find a feasibility study that shows we needed or could support an airport.  I've looked and asked and as far as I know there isn't a feasibility study.  Who decided to build this facility anyway? Here we go again with the same answer: Former Boards of Supervisors and Former County Administrators did not make good decisions and did not do the necessary pre project work.  And now the rest of us are left to figure out how to pay for all of these facilities.  Do you have any ideas?  Oh, yeah, your idea is to get rid of Mr. Thompson.  And just how would that help?  We would still be in the same mess we are in today.






Let's talk about Cottonwoods.  Who was it who built a golf course to compete with River Bend and Cottonwoods?  We did.  Not Michael Thompson.  It is way past time we, the citizens of Tunica County, take responsibility for the mess we are in and living beyond our means.


What is it you are really mad about?  Could it possibly be that your "in crowd" did not find and approve Michael Thompson?  Could it be that you supported the Sheriff's entrapment of Mr. Thompson and are disappointed he didn't leave then?  Are you upset you didn't get enough signatures to stop the bridge loan for tax receipts?  Are you still upset about the Museum?






Let's talk about the Museum for a bit.  I support the existence of our Museum.  What I don't support are all of these separate accounts held by all of these Component Units and I still want the County to take all accounting under it's roof.  Do you happen to know that the Battle Arena just spent $10,000 for a separate audit?  Why did they do that?  With everyone and his brother out there spending money whenever they feel like it and for their own reasons, it is no wonder all purchase orders now have to be approved by the County Administrator.











Note: End of "bullets"....







Gaming revenues, already dipping, have declined significantly since Harrah's closure in June, leaving the county with even less revenue to support government services, tourism development and the creation of new manufacturing jobs that could help a local work-force that is now in double digits in joblessness.

"Now in double digits in joblessness?"  We've been in double digits for a very long time.  Below you will find the unemployment rates for Tunica, MS according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from Jan 2008 to Oct 2014.  Both the Flood of 2011 and Harrah's closing have been indicated beside the appropriate month.





Jan 2008: 12.8%
Feb 2008: 12.4%
Mar 2008: 10.9%
Apr 2008: 8.5%
May 2008: 10.1%
Jun 2008: 9.1%
Jul 2008: 9.9%
Aug 2008: 9.9%
Sep 2008: 10.2%
Oct 2008: 9.5%
Nov 2008: 11.5%
Dec 2008: 15.4%




Jan 2009: 18.3%
Feb 2009: 16.3%
Mar 2009: 14.5%
Apr 2009: 16.3%
May 2009: 14.6%
Jun 2009: 12.8%
Jul 2009: 14.1%
Aug 2009: 13.7%
Sep 2009: 14.2%
Oct 2009: 13.1%
Nov 2009: 12.7%
Dec 2009: 17.00%




Jan 2010: 19.4%
Feb 2010: 19.8%
Mar 2010:  18.9%
Apr 2010: 16.4 %
May 2010: 17.1%
Jun 2010: 16.1%
Jul 2010: 18.0%
Aug 2010: 16.5%
Sep 2010: 15.4%
Oct 2010: 14.1%
Nov 2010: 16.1%
Dec 2010: 19.7%



Jan 2011: 21.3%
Feb 2011: 21.1%
Mar 20ll: 19.3%
Apr 2011: 17.8%
May 2011: 32.4% FLOOD
Jun 2011:20.6 %
Jul 2011: 18.2%
Aug 2011: 17.6%
Sep 2011: 15.4%
Oct 2011: 13.3%
Nov 2011: 13.0%
Dec 2011: 17.4%




Jan 2012: 18.6%
Feb 2012: 18.2%
Mar 2012: 15.9%
Apr 2012: 14.6%
May 2012: 15.9%
Jun 2012: 16.6%
Jul 2012: 16.0%
Aug 2012: 14.4%
Sep 2012: 12.6%
Oct 2012: 13.3%
Nov 2012: 13.3%
Dec 2012: 16.5%



Jan 2013: 20.5%
Feb 2013: 19.7%
Mar 2013: 16.7%
Apr 2013: 15.6%
May 2013: 14.3%
Jun 2013: 13.6%
Jul 2013: 12.6%
Aug 2013: 12.6%
Sep 2013: 11.9%
Oct 2013: 11.5%
Nov 2013: 10.1%
Dec 2013: 12.5%



Jan 2014: 17.2%
Feb 2014: 17.3%
Mar 2014: 15.5%
Apr 2014: 12.0%
May 2014: 13.4%
Jun 2014: 17.8% Harrah's Closed
Jul 2014: 18.2%
Aug 2014: 15.3%
Sep 2014: 13.1%
Oct 2014: 12.8%
Nov 2014:
Dec 2014:

This is going in the right direction?  Who are we kidding?  You said unemployment has dipped significantly since Harrah's closed.  Hmmm, looks like that's not right either.

Just this week, supervisors approved  five percent reduction in pay for county employees.  Well, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.  You are well aware that we have too many employees.  Take a look at the Sheriff's Department and the Rec.  There is no good time to cut wages or lay employees off.  What suggestion do you have?  How about this:  The Stennis Report lists those employees who are overpaid, those who are right on target and those who are underpaid.  Let's look at those who are overpaid.  If you take the 10 highest employees and reduce their salaries to the MS Mean, we will save about $400,000 per year.  Okay, that's my first suggestion.  Your turn to come up with an idea.

By all accounts, it's too little, too late.  I believe what is too little, too late is my supervisor voting no on everything when he voted yes on building all of this stuff.  He can sit there and vote no until the cows come home and it won't change what he did in the past.  The savings produced by this reduction is a mere $30,000 per month, according to Thompson's estimate Monday, not nearly enough to close the gap between a $1.3 million monthly payroll and gaming taxes to the general fund that have fallen below $1.2 million this month (again, according to Thompson on Dec.15.)

Need to remind you again, if former Supervisors and former County Administrators had recognized our broken tax system and made corrections along the way we would be better off today.  This information was harvested by Mr. Thompson.  Another piece of the puzzle.  Taxes can't be increased fast enough to correct errors from the past. 

Additionally, in the last couple of years and before Michael Thompson, I sent a letter to your newspaper stating that we had overbuilt and would not be able to keep up with our debt.  I was questioning why all of these facilities were built without feasibility studies.  The next week you all wrote that someone who had lived here for only about 10 years need not be criticizing others for their "vision".  I didn't respond then but I will now.  Those former decision makers made decisions that have us where we are today and whether you like it or not, two of those decision makers remain on the Board of Supervisors today.  Talk about two people who need to be removed.


So, what is behind all of this?  IMHO, there is a group of Tunicans who think they have all of the answers and just how dare someone else open their mouth.  You really don't want people from other areas moving here.  So, why not put up a big sign saying if you weren't born here, you are not welcome?  Did you ever stop to think that just maybe these "outsiders" might be able to help?

















It doesn't take a genius to see that with outgoing payroll and claims of $4 million this month and something less than that coming in (again, we're not sure, since no financials are available), we're in trouble.  And it doesn't take a genius to make adjustments in taxes when revenue and assessed property values are going down.  So, why did they and why can't you publicly recognize that.










And whether this is a run of really bad luck, poor governance, weak management or a combination of all these factors, the truth is that Michael Thompson is not cutting it as count administrator. I disagree. 

It's time that Tunica County cut its losses and cuts him loose. And what will that get us?

Who knows?  It might be a relief for all of us."  Not to all of us.


The Tunica Times owes Michael Thompson an apology for all of the inaccurate blame you have attributed to him personally.  This apology needs to be front page and above the fold.  I will be waiting to see if you have the where withal to do it.

Please, stop drinking the Kool Aide...

Why are so many people caught up in this "he doesn't live here" belief when talking about our County Administrator?  Hello Tunica, the new Comptroller doesn't live here either.  You know, the Comptroller Cedric Burnett keeps trying to move into the CA position?  That Comptroller.

Tell you what, why don't we just stop this hate fest and file for receivership?  Will that make you happy?

At last night's Board of Supervisors' Meeting, Cedric made a motion to have the Comptroller and the Chancery Clerk serve as Co-County Administrators.  Really Cedric?  How many times do you have to be told that the County Administrator and the Comptroller may not be the same person.  Honestly, you are like a little kid trying to wear his parents down to get his way.

You know, each of us is entitled to our own opinion but none of us is entitled to our own facts.


No matter your opinion, the facts say that our tax structure was broken toward the end of the last century by those we elected to office.  While this tax structure benefited everyone, those who benefited the most were the casinos, the large property owners and the large land owners.

Here's another fact: Neither Phillis Williams nor Sonny Nickson nor McKinley Daley nor Michael Thompson are responsible for our broken tax structure. 

No matter your opinion, former Boards of Supervisors and former County Administrators failed to recommend to the public an increase in our taxes to keep up with the falling revenue from gaming and our falling property values.  Why aren't you blaming them?  Why do you continue to blame Williams, Nickson, Daley and Thompson and why aren't you, at the very least, questioning Dunn and Burnett?

Look, we can't print money.  That's a fact.  What is it going to take for you to stop criticizing the 3 new Supervisors and Michael Thompson?  For Pete's sake, give these 4 people credit for having the guts to stand-up and get to the bottom of our financial problems.

You want to complain about "all the new employees" who have been hired?  Go talk with your Sheriff and the Parks and Recreation Director.  You want to save some money?  Here's an idea: Approximately one third of our employee are overpaid.  Did you know that we could save approximately $400,000 a year by bringing just ten of these people into the mean salary suggested by the Stennis Report?  You like that idea?  Go talk with your Supervisor.  I'd go talk with mine but, you know, my Supervisor is Cedric.

Here's something else I've been thinking about:  You know the 12% money we've been giving the School District...did you remember we have about 36 mills on the books for schools.  What if the school lived only on the 36 mills?  Oh, maybe they wouldn't be able to do that since our property values have gone down.  Then the School Board would want to increase our mills.  Maybe when you see this money coming directly out of your pocket, you might start screaming about spending so much of your hard earned money for a D rated school system.  You see, I believe since you don't ever really "see" the gaming revenue that goes to the School District, you aren't really paying attention.  But, then again, that's my opinion, not the facts.

So, what are you going to do?  Are you going to keep putting your head in the sand and "drinking the Kool Aide" or are you going to look at the facts and help find solutions?  As for Bob and me, we don't too much like the flavor of the Kool Aide Tunica is serving. But you already knew that.

Updated: 10 Dec 2014 Tunica County School Board Meeting

Last night I attended the above meeting.  First let me say, can you turn down the heat?  Why is the library always so hot?  On to the meeting.  The numbering refers to the assigned number on the agenda.

5. Financial presented by Business Manager Yolanda Austin: The public was handed a Financial Report listing the various accounts held at First Security Bank.  All accounts were listed as an interest baring account.  All accounts were shown earning an interest rate of 0.25%.  Let's take a look at the first account: "Accounts Payable Clearing."  The bank balance as of Nov 2014 was $176,579.41.  0.25% of this number is $44,144.85.  And yet the interest earned in Nov is listed at $60.64.  Hmmm...

Here's the rub: No one seemed to notice this error until the Public Comments when I pointed it out.  When I brought this to the attention of the Board and the Superintendent, BS Chandler said the percentage was correct.  Then he realized the percentage was not correct and said the percentage was supposed to be 0.0025%.  Then Chandler said the percentage was a quarter of a percent.  A quarter of a percent is 0.00025%.  At this point, the Business Manager spoke with Chandler and we were told this was a bank error.  Really?  You still didn't recognize the error.

Note: If you are trying to multiply the account balance by 0.00025% and you are not coming up with $60.64 don't be alarmed.  The interest is paid on average balance not ending balance.

Update:  I am not going to remove the above because I believe this to be an accurate record of what happened at the meeting on 10 Dec 2014.  The following is corrected information.



On Thu following the meeting Ms. Austin called me to let me know the above information in this post is wrong concerning the 0.25%.  We could not come to an agreement as to how the 0.25% was to be calculated.  That is, is this annual or simple interest.  I said that I would ask Michael Thompson if the 0.25% was stated correctly on the report.  As I now understand it and have learned is that by showing the percentage sign (%) after the number (0.25) it is understood to be the annual percentage rate (APR) and in this case earned interest.  Had the % sign been left off, it would be understood to be simple interest.  So, there you have it sports fans.  The entry on the report is correct.

7. Consent Items:  Board member Marilyn Young had added Rev. McKinley Daley to the agenda before the agenda was approved and accepted.  I understood from the discussion that Rev. Daley was cleared and reinstated as of 10 Dec 2014.  Chandler said he would be listed as a new employee.  Board member Tomaka Cotton said it was a given if Rev. Daley was being reinstated, he was due all back pay and benefits.

10. Public Comments: After having the discussion with the Board and Superintendent about the Financial Report, I asked the Board and the Superintendent how many National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT) were employed in Tunica County.  The answer was zero but it is being considered.  Considered?  Just do it.  Geez, what is it going to take for this District to get a move on?

From the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, I read the following statement from their entry for Mississippi:

"Research shows that the students of Board-certified teachers outperform their peers in other classrooms on achievement tests and that schools and districts with a high concentration of NBCTs see marked improvements in school culture, collaboration and teacher retention."



In 2013-2014, MS added 198 NBCTs for a total of 3,740 NBCTs.  According to the National Board's MS information, our top five school districts employ the following NBCTs:

Rankin County: 182
Desoto County: 133
Madison County: 123
Jackson Public Schools: 119
Tupelo Public Schools: 111

Okay, end of this subject..

Next, I asked for clarification of our current District rating because both "D" and "F" are being reported.  We learned that as of 9 Dec 2014 TCSD is a "D" when adjusted for Common Core.  As a citizen of Tunica County I voiced my objection to the $15,000 raise awarded to BS Chandler for a job poorly done.

End of reporting...

So, here's the deal Tunica:  We keep electing Superintendents when we need to be hiring the best we can afford.  When will this County stand-up and say enough?  We have been paying for a Cadillac and taking delivery on a broken down, out dated car for far too long.  When this Superintendent knows we need NBCTs and he hasn't hired any?  This is just unacceptable.

As for me, I don't want to see anymore of your charts and graphs.  For the money we are paying, I want to see a highly rated school system and not just for the sake of our children but for the sake of the economic improvement of our County.

Let's talk about our schools

Recently, I was given information about the Tunica County School District that I would like to pass on to you.  This concerns our failing school ratings.

The last year Gerry Gentry was Superintendent our schools were rated as follows:

A: Dundee Elementary
B: Robinsonville Elementary
C: Tunica Middle School
D: Tunica Elementary and Rosa Fort High School

*Note: I thought Gerry Gentry was a poor excuse for a Superintendent.

The first year BS Chandler was Superintendent, our schools were rated as follows:

B: Dundee Elementary
C: Tunica Middle School
D: Robinsonville Elementary
F: Tunica Elementary and Rosa Fort High School

The second year BS Chandler was Superintendent, our schools were rated as follows:

B: Dundee Elementary
D: Tunica Middle School and Robinsonville Elementary
F: Tunica Elementary and Rosa Fort High School

So, the Tunica County School District has gone from a C to a D and now to an F under BS Chandler's tenure.  You know what else?  Three of our School Board Members, Cotton, Hardiman and Anderson voted to give the Superintendent a $15,000 raise.  Unbelievable.

To do the same thing over and over and expect a different result is the definition of craziness.  We keep giving the schools a lot of money and the kids are not benefiting through better education.  Can't we just stop all of this craziness and cut off the money?

25 Nov 2014: Cedric at the Meeting

Oh please....Last night at the meeting there was an agenda item under Old Business.
This item was to "Consider Circuit Judge order for Administrators of the Court (AOC)."

Guess what my Supervisor wanted to do?  He wanted to tell the Judge we can't afford it.  After this order was explained to Burnett, he voted no.

Excuse me?  This is an order from the Court.  You don't get to decide if you want to comply.

Request for Appointment at a BOS's Meeting

25 Nov 2014: Board of Supervisors’ Public Hearing Meeting @ 5p

Thank you for the appointment this evening.

We have 1 subject in our presentation tonight.  This presentation is about the recent publication pertaining to agenda items.  First, a bit of background:

I.             Previously, this Committee has reported to you and asked for your continued vigilance when approving grants.  Our report included a statement about even 100% grants not being free to the County.

II.          I’ve examined the Public Records for Aug 2014 and found the following in the 4 Aug 2014 BOS’s Meeting.  (This information is recorded in Book 165 on page 485):

1. 6-30kw generator for traffic lights: $188,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
2. 1-150kw generator for Robinsonville Community Center: $74,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
3. 3-Retrofit 3 Community Centers with Safe Room: Dundee, White Oak and Robinsonville: $500,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
4. Construction of new Tunica County Emergency Operations Center: $350,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
5. 5 Laptop Computers and 6 Window 7 upgrades for Emergency Operations Center Communications Room: $5889.00

All Supervisors voted in favor of these grants and the resulting expenditures.  These grants will cost the County at least $283,889.00.

This is the result of documentation not being submitted for vetting before the Supervisors are asked to vote on expenses.  With these results, it is understandable that the County Administrator would ask for a 2 week review of internal documents before presentation at a BOS’s Meeting.

However, it is hard to imagine that a citizen’s request for an appointment needs to fall under these guidelines.  Mr. Thompson, would you please consider going back to the 72 hour deadline for citizen’s requests for an appointment?
(Answer: Yes, as long as we are not asking the Supervisors to vote or make a decision on what is being presented.)

Could we agree that a citizen can either call Vanessa and ask her to fill-out the top of your form or come by the office and fill it out themselves…all within the 72 hour deadline?
(Answer: Yes.)

 

An Opinion from Bob

As children, we were taught to do as we are told rather than to think for ourselves.  As teens, we tried to think for ourselves with typical naiveté and often with disastrous  results.  Now that we are adults, thinking for ourselves is required.  Yet, we seem to not know the rules for doing so.  In consequence, we are led by a few disgruntled souls.  We are their tools spreading their trash rather than being those who pursue facts and the truth.

The rules are simple.  First is the foundation, to gather facts.  This is usually followed by critical thinking.  That is, to analyze the facts.  This means to ask: what is their accuracy, their appropriateness to the issue, and their validity.  More steps follow these two steps but we can stop here for the moment. 

For too many months there has been an astounding number of our citizens railing against several of our Supervisors.  Then there are the wild statements about our County Administrator.  We also remember how Mr. Wiley was treated. Who is orchestrating this folly?  Where are their facts?  Why are they not in the open debating the issues and presenting their case?  A worse question is why are so many of our citizens repeating their unfounded and abusive remarks?  Are we followers who move along without thought, soaking up their bilge, helping them achieve their agenda?  Are we satisfied with their unfounded stories, their innuendo rather than fact? 

We do not know why they are behaving in this vengeful manner.  However, we should be asking them to come out of the shadows.  

The only factual statement I have heard is, “He does not live here.”  That is a fact about Mr. Thompson’s place of residence.  How that disqualifies him, somehow puts his solid qualifications in doubt, becomes grounds for rejecting what he has found in this County’s finances takes us back to our teen years; our years of being ineffective, immature, and led by fads and gossip. 

Seek the facts.  Share them.  Explore them for the truth.  Debunk those whose stories from “credible sources” are worse than fiction.  In short, when you are drowning and a boat comes along in the raging waters and you are invited to come aboard and help paddle to safety, do not reject the offer because you heard that those in the boat have not the qualifications to lead us to solid financial ground.

When will Hamp just admit he was wrong????

I am amazed at the comments attributed to the Tunica County Sheriff in the 14 Nov 2014 issue of the Tunica Times article: "Circuit trial reverses Thompson verdict."

"Sheriff  K.C. Hamp said he was not surprised by the verdict, citing Walls' background as a defense attorney prior to being elected as judge.

'He heard it with a defense (attorney's) ear and came up with a verdict,' Hamp said. 'The facts and law remain the same.'

Hamp said witness testimony and evidence presented was gathered during an investigation conducted by the state attorney general's office."

Let's take this paragraph by paragraph:

1. The verdict isn't my fault, it's Judge Walls' experience that caused this verdict.

2. Yes, the facts and the law remain the same.  I sat through every word of the 10 Nov 2014 trial.  The testimony was clear.  You, the Tunica County Sheriff, entrapped Michael Thompson.  Further, when Michael Thompson became ill while in your care, did you transport him to the hospital in an ambulance whose service costs the County $60,000 per month?  No, not you.  You had to show Mr. Thompson just how tough you are.  You, Sheriff Hamp, cuffed Mr. Thompson and shackled Mr. Thompson and put him in the back of a Sheriff's car.  Shame on you Hamp.

3. As I stated before, I sat through the trial on 10 Nov 2014 and the last paragraph of Hamp's statement above is just not true.  There was no evidence presented from the state attorney general's office.

So, where are we?  Just how much money is Hamp's foolishness going to cost Tunica County?  I have no idea but I bet it "ain't" going to be cheap.

10 Nov 2014: Thank you Judge Walls

A big shout out to Judge Walls for overturning Michael Thompson's guilty verdict for driving with a suspended license.   Thank you for listening to the evidence and deciding in favor of Mr. Thompson.

During the trial, I heard evidence that the Sheriff had instructed his employee(s) to open an investigation of Michael Thompson and Alex Wiley.  I was amazed to hear that the Sheriff would be trying to investigate 2 private citizens just because he wanted to.  It is very disheartening to think that an elected official would consider doing this.

This is the United States of America, Sheriff Hamp, not some police gestapo.  Enough said.

Housing Claim: 3 Oct 2014

When the Budget was approved in Sep, there was a $12,000 a month allotment for the Housing Department.


At the 3 Nov meeting, the Supervisor from Beat 1, James Dunn was heard to say he wanted to approve the claims but not the line item for the Housing Department.  I'm wondering why?


Dunn voted to approve the Budget and the Housing allotment was included in that budget.  So, Mr. Dunn, would you like to tell us why you are objecting to this line item now?


Note: The claims for Oct 2014 were approved.

Beat 2 Supervisor's Voting Record for Aug 2014

Beat 2 Supervisor’s  Voting Record for Aug 2014

4 Aug 2014 BOS’s Meeting: All Supervisors present

Book 165: page 382: Burnett voted nay to approving the Jul 2014 minutes even though he voted yes to some resolutions at the Jul 2014 BOS’s Meetings.

Book 165: page 384: Appointment with Allen Godfrey from the Gaming Commission.  Tunica County has not hit bottom yet.  It is expected that our income from Gaming will continue to drop.

Book 165: page 444: Monthly supplies for Road and Bridges: $163,500: Burnett voted nay.

Book 165: page 467: Contract with Lehman Roberts Company for project “State Aid Project No: SAP-72(5)M.  Burnett shown as absent.

Book 165: page: 468: Lehman Brothers contract for local system bridge program for Flint Wood Road.  Burnett listed as absent.

Book 165: page 485:   Grants presented by Randy Stewart:

1. 6-30kw generator for traffic lights: $188,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
2. 1-150kw generator for Robinsonville Community Center: $74,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
3. 3-Retrofit 3 Community Centers with Safe Room: Dundee, White Oak and Robinsonville: $500,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
4. Construction of new Tunica County Emergency Operations Center: $350,000
1. Federal share: 75%
2. Tunica County share: 25%
5. 5 Laptop Computers and 6 Window 7 upgrades for Emergency Operations Center Communications Room: $5889.00

Burnett voted yes to the above which meant he voted for an expenditure of $283,889 by Tunica County.

Book 165: page 493: Claims for Jul 2014: Burnett listed as absent

Book 165: page 496: Travel: Burnett listed as absent

Book 165: page 498: Lease agreements for Tunica Housing and Cribs to Crayons: Burnett listed as absent

Book 165: page 504: Vote to hire Hylon Oliver as HR Manager: Burnett listed as absent.

14 Aug 2014 All Supervisors Present

Book 165: page 624: Payroll: Burnett voted nay.

Book 165: page 624: Request for travel: Burnett voted nay.

Book 165: page 634: Request for manual check for United Healthcare Insurance.  Burnett voted nay.

Book 165: page 642: Request for manual check for Alex Wiley in the amount of $4,000.  Attorney Pittman advised we had to pay per contract.  Burnett voted nay.

25 Aug 2014 All Supervisors Present

This was a workshop with the County Administrator.  All Supervisors were present except the Beat 3 Supervisor who was recovering from surgery.  James Dunn left the meeting after about an hour.

28 Aug 2014 All Supervisors Present

Book 166: page 68: Payroll: Burnett voted nay.

Book 166: page 72: Tunica County Parks and Recreation Travel: Burnett voted nay.

Book 166: page 80: Request for manual check for 3 employees from the Sheriff’s Department to register for a mandatory MS Department of Health certification program.  Burnett voted nay.

Book 166: page 90: Aug 2014 Meeting Adjourned

 

Preparing for the 2015 Board of Supervisors' Elections

This is a new project for us.  We are going to start posting our Supervisor's voting records by Beat starting with Aug 2014.  Going back further might be too overwhelming.  The reason we are posting by Beat is because some votes may be of interest to your Beat but not to mine.

Example: The Robinsonville Community Center:  If you live in Beat 1, you may find a vote in favor of this project beneficial.  Since I live in Beat 2, I may think this project may be needed but we shouldn't have built it now due to our finances at the moment.

In the next post, I will be sharing the Aug 2014 voting record for the Beat 2 Supervisor, Cedric Burnett.  We need 4 other volunteers to research Beats 1, 3, 4 & 5.  If you volunteer, you will need to have your report for Aug 2014 to me by 15 Nov 2014.  Please use the format of the Aug 2014 for Beat 2.  You will find the report in the next post.

Bonds

Following are charts showing our outstanding General Obligation Bonds (GOB).  I've tried to do my best to make sure this information is accurate.  There is a combination of Public Information and asked and answered questions that has gone into this post. 

On page 34 of the 30 Sep 2013 Audit for our County, you will find a list of our outstanding bonds.  I had to ask questions to find what financial institutions are the final holder of these bonds.

Until 17 Sep 2012, there was not a dedicated revenue stream to either pay off this debt or make interest payments.  It was on 17 Sep 2012 that a 15.77 millage was voted to be placed on our books for debt service.  As I understand it, it was at this point that we would have had to default on our bonds or accept the 15.77 millage for debt service.

As always, if you find an error in this post, please let me know.

General Obligation Bonds: GOB	Outstanding	Interest Rate	Maturity Date
First Security Bank
GOB Airport Improvement Bonds
Series 2005	$1,755,000	3.60% - 5.125%	May of 2025
First Security Bank
*Purchased from:
Mississippi Development Bank
Special Obligation Bonds, Series 2010A
Tunica County, MS General Obligation
Industrial Development Bond Project	$3,275,000	2.60% - 6.25%	Jun of 2030
First Security Bank
*Purchased from:
Mississippi Development Bank
Special Obligation Bonds, Series 2010B
Tunica County, MS General Obligation
Airport Bond Project	$1,440,000	3.00% - 4.5%	Jun of 2030
First Security Bank
*Purchased from:
Mississippi Development Bank
Special Obligation Bonds, Series 2010
Tunica County, MS General Obligation
Refunding Bond Project	$8,425,000	3.00% - 4.00%	Dec of 2023
First Security Bank
*Purchased from:
Mississippi Development Bank
General Obligation Refunding Bonds,
Series 2012	$4,780,000	1.125% - 2.00%	Sep of 2023
Hancock Bank
General Obligation Refunding Bonds,
Series 2013	$9,510,000	2.00% - 3.00%	Jul of 2026
Total Bonds	$  29,185,000