Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs released his proposal for a record-high budget to the Knox County Commission Monday. Though the budget reached a record $1 billion, an increase of $90 million over last year’s plan, the mayor did not propose any tax increases. The proposal represents a 9.46 percent increase in spending.
One issue that could stem from the proposal is a potential showdown between the mayor and Knox County Sheriff Tom Spangler. Spangler requested enough funding for a 30 percent raise to deputies. The mayor proposed giving the sheriff’s department an 8Â percent funding increase, $11 million less than it requested, setting up the potential for a court battle.
Jacobs said that “if this proposal goes through since I have been mayor we have increased salaries by 24% and had $6,000 in bonuses.”
Spangler released a statement responding to the budget proposal, saying in part that he “could not in good conscience accept this knowing it would not come close to closing the current pay gap and therefore leave our citizens and our Officers vulnerable.”
The sheriff argued that Knox County lagging in law enforcement pay compared with other departments has resulted in “countless experienced officers leaving for other agencies that pay a livable wage.”
Representatives for Jacobs told WVLT that the offer was much less than Spangler proposed because any more money would require raising taxes.
About 66 percent of the total budget is the $660 million in general funding allotted to Knox County Schools. The increase in school funding for next year represents $70 million of the total $90 million total budgetary increase.
Other items of note in the plan include a $12 million increase in Knox County’s general fund, bringing it to $217 million.
If the budget is adopted, Knox County employees will see a three percent raise. The across-the-board raise would cost the county $3.9 million.
In conjunction with the budget proposal, the Mayor also debuted a five-year Capital Improvement Plan. This plan includes nearly $418 million in projected project funding through FY 2028. The list of projects includes vast improvements to Knox County public schools, namely security improvements, HVAC systems, and roof repairs.
In addition to school improvements, the Capital Improvement Plan aims to address road improvements, including “those dangerous roads and intersections where crash data has shown a critical need.”
Proposed spending decreased in only four budgetary categories: operating transfers (an $825,000 decrease), social/cultural/recreational (a $432,000 decrease), solid waste (a $7,666 decrease), and governmental library (a $925 decrease).
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Mac Roberts is a reporter at The Tennessee Star. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Glenn Jacobs” by Gage Skidmore. CC BY-SA 2.0. Background Photo “Knox County Tennessee Courthouse” by Nfutvol. CC BY-SA 3.0.
