Senators talk $925M surplus 'myth'

State lawmakers keep talking about a so-called $1 billion surplus, but two key members of the local Legislative delegation say the number is more a myth than a reality.

As it stands, the state might have roughly $925 million in extra money this year, but much of it has already been allocated.

The topic is part of this Sunday’s edition of “Inside Tennessee” on WBIR 10News.

The guests are Knoxville Republican state senators Becky Duncan Massey and Richard Briggs.

The discussion comes as the General Assembly convened on Jan. 10.
 
Briggs said Gov. Bill Haslam’s finance team met with state lawmakers recently to talk about the surplus.

Briggs and Massey didn’t want to get into too much detail, but both agreed that there is roughly “$100 million to $150 million” that hasn’t been allocated.

“I call (it) a little bit the myth of the myth of the one billion dollars,” Briggs said. “At this point, there’s going to be about $200 million – I don’t want to go into some of the details – that’s going into education. We have some of the built-in increases that happen every year due to the TN Care increase and we forget that with this affordable care act, we had about 60,000 or 70,000 people that were in the woodwork who are eligible for TN Care that never signed up for it. They’re forced to do that now or they’ll take a penalty.”

He said money also will go to “completely fund our retirement fund” and paying “back the other half that we borrowed back earlier in the 2000s when we had some deficits from the road fund.”

“We did half of that last year – we’re going to do the other half this year. That’s no secret. That’s about a 120 or $130 million . . . and then we have the investments we need to make on building maintenance that’s been delayed over the years,” Briggs added. “One other thing when we talk about all of this money that’s important – we do have some cash in hand but much of those are projections and we really don’t know what’s going to happen to the economy. If it projects out then we will have more money but it’s all not discretionary that we can spend.”

Massey said the surplus came from a “combination of fiscal responsibility” and revenues from business growth.

“Part of the surplus is in recurring dollars which there is a number of pots that almost take it before we even get to look at it . . . and then about half of it is non-recurring, which can be used more for short-term projects,” she said. “But I can guarantee you there’s a lot of people who have some wonderful ideas and significant needs and we’ll have to look at what’s the best return on the investment.”

The 30-minute political and public affairs program, which was taped Thursday, kicks off at 9:30 a.m. Sunday on WBIR.

Panelists include WBIR reporter Mike Donila, attorney Don Bosch and governmental relations specialist Susan Williams.

WBIR Anchor John Becker serves as the show’s moderator.

Lawmakers to debate how to use an almost billion dollar surplus

An almost $1 billion budget surplus for the state of Tennessee may sound like a good thing, and many lawmakers say it's better than the alternative, others are pointing out that means more money should be staying in your wallet.

 

"If we've got a $1 billion surplus, we're obviously taking too much away from the public," said state Sen. Frank Nicely, a Strawberry Plains Republican told WBIR 10News.

 

Tennessee lawmakers expect to decide this session how to spend $925 million in extra money this year. It marks the third straight year the state has taken in more money than expected.

 

Related: Lawmakers convene 110th General Assembly

 

State Sen. Doug Overby, R-Maryville, doesn't think the total will end up being quite that high once other expenses come out.

 

"A lot has been made of having a budget surplus. The fact of the matter is, in any given year, there are some natural increases in the state budget," Overby said.

 

He said increases in Basic Education Program funding and TennCare typically take some of the surplus.

 

But there will still likely be money available at the lawmakers' discretion to spend.

 

"I think we have to look at spending it wisely. As the Governor said, 'Let's not be stupid rich, let's be smart rich,'" said state Rep. Eddie Smith, a Knoxville Republican.

 

Many lawmakers agree two major needs deserve priority: education and road improvements. 

 

"I would like to see teachers get a raise, K-12 teachers, and I'd like to see some of that surplus going toward road construction or road maintenance," said state Rep. Martin Daniel, a Knoxville Republican.

 

Niceley and other representatives didn't go into specifics, but suggest lawmakers should find a way to return the money to the taxpayers.

 

"I'd like to give it back to the people," said Nicely.

 

"I want to know what is the mechanism to not collect so much that we have a surplus because that means we're over collecting somewhere," said state Rep. Roger Kane, a Knoxville Republican.

Knox County expects $2.2M surplus

Some 2,000 Knox County government employees and members of the Sheriff’s Office are set to receive a $500 bonus thanks to an expected $2.2 million in surplus revenues and savings as local leaders officially close the financial books on last year’s budget.

In addition, surplus monies will cover 400 bullet proof vests for deputies and $200,000 for the Knoxville Volunteer Rescue Squad.

The Civil Sessions Clerk will receive $70,000 for equipment and software maintenance and the Karns Volunteer Fire Department will pull in $75,000 to fulfill equipment needs.

The county also is prepared to give the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Tennessee Valley $100,000 and the health department $135,000 for records remodeling and signage.

"By operating in an efficient manner, we are able to use these surplus funds for one-time expenses,” Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett said. “This surplus was possible thanks to the hard work of our employees, and I'm happy we are able to offer them a one-time bonus as a show of our appreciation.”

As the county closes its books on the recently wrapped up fiscal year, the administration says it expects between $2.2 million to $2.5 million in surplus for its general fund, which covers much of the government’s day-to-day operations.

The money comes from an uptick in tax collections and overall departmental savings.

The county plans to spend most of it on a number of items that officials say will benefit the courts, emergency personnel and the health department.

The county also plans to use some $50,000 of the surplus to build a park in Karns for those who are disabled and $282,000 at the Foote Mineral site in southwest Knoxville for a park and horse trails.

“Thanks to their work and a fiscally responsible approach to government, we are able to also better protect our deputies by purchasing life-saving vests, purchase needed equipment, make facility improvements and support various emergency services,” Burchett said. “And best of all, we've been able to do this without raising taxes and while also reducing the county's overall debt."

The Knox County Commission will talk more about the surplus during its meeting on Monday.

Rest of story HERE.

A look at Regal: Funding the move

Regal's HQ will relocate to S. Knoxville

Here’s the city’s release on the Regal relocation – RIGHT SMACK HERE.

Not really sure what to say. You either like it or you don’t. Gov. Bill Haslam called it a “game changer” for South Knoxville.

I’m not sure I’d agree. Some 75 new jobs in exchange for more than $12 million in taxpayer monies is like $160K in folding coin per job.

That doesn’t exactly scream “bargain” to me. (I mean, in theory, those spaces would have been filled whether Regal moved or not. Right? But I digress.)

And whatever.

Maybe it is.

If the overall riverfront project is in danger and this is the only way to save it – and I’m not saying it is in trouble – then the Regal move would be significant. Maybe that’s the cash infusion that’s needed to keep it moving along. Or not.

Still, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want a pile of rubble sitting on the riverfront for the next 20 years. So this could be one of those instances where ya just hold your nose and vote for it. Or not.

MORE: Regal headquarters moving to South Knoxville waterfront

I think in five, six or so years – provided the entire development is complete – no one will give much thought to the move or how much was spent.

Now, here’s where they’ll get the money to fund it:

The county’s $1.5 million will come from end-of-the-year surplus.

The state’s $1.5 million will come from “I’m not sure where.” (No, seriously, I don’t know. Heh. I suspect there’s some type of economic development account or something.)

The city’s $9 million will come from: existing funds ($1.1 million); bonus/unexpected Hall tax revenues ($3.6 million); end-of-the-year surplus ($600,000); and reserves ($3.7 million).

The city actually has a pretty healthy reserve tank by the way.

And that's good.

The last time the city needed to come up with $10 million (ahem, pensions) it raised taxes. Now, that’s not going to happen for this project. It’s a one-time deal.

But, if taxes are raised maybe in a year or two? Oh man.

Commish approves $3.7M in expenses

The Knox County Commission on Monday unanimously approved a $3.7 million governmental shopping list with more than half of it targeted for health care, employee raises, new patrol cars, software upgrades and service contracts.

The money will come from some $7.6 million in surplus revenues the county is expected to reap when it closes the books on the recently wrapped up fiscal year.

"It's all one-time money, so it should only be used for one-time expenses," said Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett, whose office, along with the county's finance department, put together the designations. "We're not Washington where we're going to start putting this toward recurring expenses. But these are items that are good for the county."

Commissioner Ed Shouse agreed.

"As long as it's one-time money, then I'm fine with it because we can't always plan on having a big surplus," he said.

Of the overall $7.6 million in additional revenues, officials plan to allocate $2 million for the reserves and another $1.9 million for additional health insurance coverage; risk management areas, like worker's compensation; and air quality matters.

The remaining $3.7 million will pay for the designations approved Monday. Of that money, just under two-thirds was set aside for public safety and the health department.

Click right smack here for the rest of the bad a$$ story.

Knox earmarks surplus expenditures

Knox County officials have put together a shopping list for how they would like to spend what is expected to be as much as $6 million in surplus revenues, with roughly half the money targeted for health care, employee raises, new patrol cars and software upgrades.

Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett said there’s “nothing fancy” about the designations and noted that they are “basic needs” rather than “wants.”

“I think the departments understand that I’m serious when I say that we need to be fiscally responsible,” the mayor said. “They’re not coming to me with outlandish proposals. They’re coming to me with fiscally responsible ones, unlike what they’re doing in Washington where the politicians continuously spend more money than they’re taking in.”

As it stands, the county’s finance department on Tuesday said the general fund should get between $5 million and $6 million more than what officials projected last year when they put together the budget for fiscal year 2013, which ended in late June. The mayor’s office has earmarked just under $3.1 million of the money for purchases, and expects to put the rest into the reserves.

The Knox County Commission will discuss the proposal during this month’s meeting, and decide whether to approve the expenditures.

Click right smack here for the entire bad a$$ story and to get all the details.