Hamilton: County commissioner defends letter to schools superintendent

Friday, February 25, 2011

WHAT'S NEXTCommissioners plan another meeting with school board members on the PILOT money on March 15 at 5 p.m.

Hamilton County Commissioner Warren Mackey said Thursday that a letter he sent to Hamilton County Schools Superintendent Jim Scales, detailing county commissioners' concerns with the school system, was not disrespectful.

Scales indicated during a school board finance committee meeting on Tuesday that he was offended by the tone of the letter.

It's the latest episode in a struggle about who will control millions generated in payment in lieu of taxes agreements, known as PILOTs. To attract businesses such as Volkswagen, the county often turns to PILOTs, which state that businesses don't have to pay full property taxes for a certain number of years, but they must pay the share of property tax that is slated for schools.

The county wants to keep the PILOT money and designate it for school construction, but the school board wants to use it for general operations.

Scales and Board of Education attorney Scott Bennett sent letters to county officials last week, saying that withholding the funds would be "illegal." School board member Rhonda Thurman said during the board finance committee meeting that she did not appreciate the tone of those letters.

The letter Mackey sent to Scales contains comments from commissioners Mitch McClure and Tim Boyd. Mackey sent the letter before a contentious Feb. 14 meeting about the PILOT funds.

In the letter, Boyd told Scales the school board spends too much of its budget on central office expenses.

"Run the central office lean and place the savings from less central office cost back into the classroom, making sure our front-line educators have adequate funding for paper, books, markers, etc.," Boyd wrote.

Scales said the commissioners were overstepping their bounds.

"Our board is the duly democratically elected body that has the responsibility of managing the school system," Scales said.

Mackey said he believes his portions of the letter were civil. He wrote the letter's introduction and had that read into the record Thursday.

McClure and Boyd also defended their comments to Scales.

"I don't mean it to be disrespectful," Boyd said. "What I'm telling them is that I don't think their office is run efficiently."

Commissioner Joe Graham, who initially proposed withholding the PILOT money, said he hasn't intended to offend anybody.

"I don't want to come off as aggressive or disrespectful. I think we do need another meeting," Graham said.