County Mayor Holds Press Conference

Mayor Alan Palmieri at press conference, January 27, 2016, Jefferson County, TN Courthouse
Staff Photo by Jeff Depew

The Historic Jefferson County Courthouse was the site of a press conference held by Jefferson County Mayor Palmieri. During the 10 am media event, Palmieri presented three separate pieces of legislation that he will put before County Commission for approval. He prefaced his presentation with information on his decision to call a press conference, rather than just a meeting presentation, stating that the current atmosphere at Jefferson County Commission meetings is riddled with inconsistencies and bias, adding that he supports a separation in the legislative and administrative branches of local government. He also addressed his absenteeism at the recent meetings, stating that the climate of the Commission is dysfunctional and that, as the chief county administrator, he is not a voting member of the Commission.

Mayor Palmieri will bring two resolutions for tax increases, one which he admits will be controversial and the other as having “no logical opposition.” During the previous budget cycle, both were presented to the Commission and neither found favor. The former, a mineral tax increase, had opposition from those that were concerned that it might cost jobs and others that feared that a mineral tax would be the first in a line of targeted taxes. To those concerns, Palmieri stated that mineral tax is an untapped source of revenue and regardless of the amount of tax that it generates, it is just that much less that the tax payers will have to pay. In regard to the latter, the hotel/motel tax, Palmieri contended that there was no logical reason to not increase the tax, as it has no impact on residents of Jefferson County and can produce additional revenue for the Chamber of Commerce and EDOC for economic development. The Mayor stated that “no one asks how much is your hotel/motel tax” but rather, they ask “how much are your rooms?”

The final, and most controversial,issue that the Mayor will bring is for the Redistricting and Reduction of County Commissioners from 21 to 9. Palmieri stated that he is also in favor of Jefferson County having a “Private Charter” that provides for term limits for elected officials, as well as other items of change. He will bring a resolution that will establish a redistricting study committee and has hopes that if the Commission will not support the resolution as it stands, then they will put the issue to a vote of the people. Palmieri said that he finds the current number of commissioner to be excessive for a county of 52,677 and noted that many counties with more residents operate with fewer commissioners. He closed with saying that he believes that the items that he is bringing before the County Commission are in the best interest of Jefferson County and that “there should be no fear in letting the people decide.”