The LATEST UNPUBLISHED Ltr. to Editor J.Todd Foster Maryville Daily Times

Editor, The last published Facilities Report was in 2009-10, attached, when Alvin Hord was Director for Schools and Jerry Cunningham was mayor, can tell the taxpayers why? TCA 49-3-351. A (2)  (c) All funds generated for the BEP shall be spent on BEP components. Five paragraphs later TCA 49-3-356 says, (a) The state shall provide seventy-five percent (75%) of the funds generated by the Tennessee BEP formula in the classroom components and fifty percent (50%) in the nonclassroom components. The Blount County taxpayers pay the remainder. The B E P HANDBOOK FOR COMPUTATION for Classroom and non-classroom costs revised September 2018 is on blountK12.org/budget and finance. It describes how to fund the BEP for NON-CLASSROOM capital projects, included in the Blount County Schools Budget passed by the School Board and submitted to the Blount County Budget Committee. TCA 5-12-104(3) The county mayor shall be the ex officio chair of the budget committee,. Quoting the law TCA 5-6-108 The county mayor shall be the accounting officer and general agent of the county, the county mayor. In other words, the Mayor is the Chief Financial Officer, with a Budget Director yet the Mayor is the Chairman of the Budget Committee. The Mayor is responsible to fund the Local Government Unit's share of the B E P including the Capital Improvements as determined by the LEA, the BEP, and approved by the Blount County School Board. So why has the Blount County Commission created a Facilities Director for a salary between $85-125,000 when the County has no school board budget-making authority. Is this more than just another reason for term limits? Respectfully, Harry Grothjahn Defoe Circle, Maryville TN 37804