Adkinson Asks To Look At County’s Books

Tia Taylor Appointed To Tourist Commission

Robert Moore

Herald Staff

rmoore@harrodsburgherald.com

A self-proclaimed “volunteer advocate” for Mercer County taxpayers is asking to take a look at Mercer County’s finances.

Waldon Adkinson has attended two meetings of the Mercer County Fiscal Court to voice his opposition to a tax increase on real estate to 12.2 cents per $100 in assessed value and the rate on tangible personal property to 17.53 cents. The new tax rate will add $4 to the tax bill for a property assessed at $100,000 in value.

At the last fiscal court meeting, Magistrate Tim Darland asked to clarify a motion he’d made at the tax hearing in August. Darland said he thought he had voted to keep the rates at last year’s levels, which were 11.8 and 16.26, respectively, but he and the rest of the court had actually approved the compensating rate, which is calculated by the state to generate the same amount of revenue as the previous year.

In the revote, the fiscal court were evenly split, with Darland, Ronnie Sims and Jackie Claycomb voting to reset the rates and Donnie Webb, Wayne Jackson and Dennis Holiday voting to keep the previously approved rate. Judge-Executive Milward Dedman cast the tie-breaking vote, saying the county would have lost $60,000 in revenue if they retained the previous rate.

Waldon Adkinson said the county has up to $1.5-million in reserves kept in CDs with local banks. Adkinson thinks the county can get a better rate of return and made an open records request for audio recordings of the last three meetings as well as bank balances and present interest rates.

In a written statement, Adkinson said, “I informed the Board that there was rates of 2 percent now available and suggested investigation into getting the much higher rates.”

Adkinson also presented the court with a written statement about the incident that happened at the last fiscal court meeting, when he and Magistrate Sims became involved in a dispute that required the intercession of Sheriff Ernie Kelty. The Harrodsburg Herald printed a correction to the story in the last issue, but Adkinson said no one he asked had read it.

“My reputation has been irreparably damaged,” he said. “I deserve the opportunity to clear my reputation.”

Judge Dedman said there was nothing he could do.

“Your problem is with the newspaper, not with us,” the judge said.

In other business, the Mercer County Fiscal Court appointed Tia Taylor to the Harrodsburg-Mercer County Tourist Commission as lodging industry representative for a two-year term that expires June 30, 2020.

The next meeting of the Mercer County Fiscal Court will be 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 9.

To learn more, check out this week’s issue of the Harrodsburg Herald.