Bradley Asks Legislators to Fund Measures They Approve

By Randall Higgins, Chattanooga Times/Free Press, Tenn.

Jul. 14–CLEVELAND, Tenn. — Bradley County commissioners are echoing what their Knox County counterparts are telling state government; if it’s good enough for us, it ought to be good enough for you.

Last week, Bradley commissioners approved two resolutions about what state legislators should do.

One urged state lawmakers to comply with the same legislation they impose on local government officials. A case in point is ethics laws approved in Nashville for local officials after some state legislators were caught and convicted in the federal investigation called Operation Tennessee Waltz.

“They are the ones that did it. Not us,” Commissioner Howard Thompson said in an earlier work session. Last week, he made the motion to adopt the resolution. It passed unanimously.

The second resolution urged state legislators to give local governments the option of deciding whether to implement unfunded state mandates.

It’s a common complaint, said Commissioner Ed Elkins, who made the motion for that resolution. It also passed unanimously.

At the earlier work session, Commissioner Lisa Stanbery asked what that would mean for federal mandates passed to the states and then passed to the local governments.

Mr. Elkins said he asked Knox County officials what they understand about that.

“I called the chairman of the Knox County Commission, Thomas Strickland, and he said it is his understanding that yes, this applies to anything the state did, whether it’s passed down from the federal government or not,” Mr. Elkins said.

But whatever the locals do, Commissioner Ben Atchley said, “Who do you think pays for it all?”

If the state comes up with money for a mandate, it’s going to come from the same taxpayers, he said.

Mr. Elkins said the folks in Knoxville told him they don’t expect the resolutions to have any effect in Nashville anyway.

“But the purpose of the resolution is to send a message,” Mr. Elkins said.

Commissioner Louie Alford said he hopes the area’s state representatives “would have enough sense” to resist voting for unfunded mandates.

“If the state’s not going to fund it, they shouldn’t vote for it,” he said.

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