A Special Meeting on the Calendar?

The School Board will hold a special called meeting Thursday, August 2nd at 7:30 PM (study session) and at 8 PM (regular meeting).  Interestingly, the meeting takes place on Election Day and on the second day of registration -- meaning many parents will not be able to attend.  Of course, all teachers are required to be at their schools until 8 PM that day, so attendance at a Board meeting that starts at 8 PM will be difficult. 

The agenda includes a study session item regarding the naming of school facilities.  Specifically, the item seems to be aimed at current County Commission Chair Merrol Hyde, for whom a Hendersonville school is named.  The policy change, proposed by outgoing Board member Danny Hale, indicates that if someone for whom a current school is named files a petition to run for office, the Board will immediately change the name of that school.  Should Mr. Hyde seek re-election to his current post, the Board would then be obligated to rename the school bearing his name, at a significant cost to taxpayers.  This would seem unwise given the current tenuous state of the school budget. 

Of course, the item could also be aimed at former Director of Schools Benny Bills, for whom a school in Gallatin is named.  Bills was rumored to have considered a run for the 44th District House seat that includes Gallatin and is currently held by retiring Rep. Mike McDonald. A future run for office for Bills is not out of the question, given his long service to the community. 

On the regular meeting agenda, only one item appears.  That item is related to the 2012-13 school calendar.  Of course, registration is this week and school starts on August 6th.  It is not clear what action might be taken on the upcoming calendar. 

The Mayoral Money Chase

Or, Steve Brown raises money from citizens, Foster, Elsten raise money at the kitchen table.  Yep, Both Elsten and Foster have given their campaigns substantial loans ... while Brown has nearly matched them dollar-for-dollar and not loaned his campaign any funds.  That means more donors for him -- which could be a sign of a broader base of support.

Late entrant Garry Forsythe hasn't raised much and has a long way to go to get to the $35-$40,000 believed to be needed to wage a competitive campaign. 

That's Quite a Group

The host committee for Alderman candidate Darrell Woodcock includes:

And he's running for ALDERMAN.  Wondering how his opponent, Kee Bryant McCormick is doing with fundraising?

Surely Not...

... The Courtney Rogers campaign accuses Rep. Debra Maggart of using her legislative office for political purposes...

From the Nashville Post: 

State House District 45 candidate Lt. Col. Courtney Rogers (Ret.) asked Speaker Beth Harwell today whether Debra Maggart’s use of her State House office phone number, taxpayer-paid employees and office space as a campaign headquarters. Maggart released her official state number at the bottom of an email asking voters to call Rogers’ unlisted home number to complain about her supposed “lying” about Maggart.







“If Maggart’s use of her official office number, space and people is not an ethics violation, it should be,” said Rogers. “Having someone else pay for your campaign staff seems to be an unfair advantage granted to incumbents.”






Campaign Manager Jeff Hartline commented, “As soon as I saw the number at the bottom of the email, I knew it was a Capitol Hill number. But I called it anyway and her Legislative Assistant, Brittany, answered the phone with an official response. Perhaps we should ask for equal access.”






Hartline continued, “This situation reminds me of her COMPASS relationship in Sumner County. Maggart uses the County Board of Education building and personnel to office and answer her phones. That’s a pretty sweet deal to have people helping you run for office that you do not have to pay for while you “earn” an income. Maggart has spent the entire campaign railing against a distinguished veteran for manufactured ethics violations when, in reality, Maggart, by her silence, supports “Ghost Voting” in the House, takes $173 per day for hotel expenses she does not incur when her colleagues from East and West Tennessee actually do incur those expenses, and uses her taypayer-supported office to run for re-election. Once Sumner County voters have heard the facts, they have been drawn to Rogers in droves. Stay tuned for a more negative campaign in these closing days.”






“The Courtney Rogers campaign has stuck to the facts in its mail, radio, and door-to-door work. We have talked about Courtney’s resume and her experience. That is our pledge and we will keep it. We call upon our opponent to pledge to do the same in these closing days of the campaign.”

Maggart vs. Rogers

It's the Final Countdown!  Incumbent state representative Debra Maggart is facing a stiff challenge from Courtney Rogers -- a challenge that will come to an end on Thursday. 

Bankruptcies, gun rights, and "conservative credentials" are the fighting issues. 

$1 Million More, Please

Because the School Board followed bad legal advice, they now will pay $1 million this year to teachers whose pay was retroactively seized in 2011 when the Board unilaterally violated the existing contract with the Sumner County Education Association.  The contract called for the Board to pay 85% of health insurance benefits for that year, but the Board decided to fund a budget that only paid 80% without negotiating the proposal.  Teachers had pay taken from their checks starting in February of 2011 to "make-up" for the difference.  Now, that violation is costing the Board at a time when it is seeking at least $7.6 million in additional funds from the County Commission. 

Quashed!!

The Silkwood Proposal was quashed on Tuesday night -- not even getting a second.

The proposal would have cut medical and other benefits to teachers and denied pay raises to over 600 employees who haven't seen a raise in four years now.

The Board will now resubmit their proposed budget to the County Commission.