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Daily Dose for June 10, 2008
Goetz Faces Criticism on AT&T Deal Approval
Goetz Faces Criticism on AT&T Deal Approval -- Finance Commissioner Dave Goetz faces criticism on approving AT&T's bid for a 10-year, $600 million contract to operate a statewide government telecommunications network. Goetz said that two competing bids will remain unopened because companies submitting them failed to meet a clearly stated requirement in the formal request for proposals to run a network the state envisions as linking all parts of state and local governments, including public schools, colleges and universities. Qwest Communication, who filed one of the unopened bids met with Goetz and asked to reopen the bid process, which Goetz denied. Goetz faces criticism on the deal from the TN Center for Policy Research, which points out Goetz has several conflicts of interest in the deal. Former Deputy Governor Dave Cooley now works with McNeely, Pigott and Fox, a Nashville public relations firm, with AT&T as one of his clients. Goetz's wife, Katy Varney, is a partner in the firm along with Cooley, but the commissioner said her work does not involve AT&T. Also, Bob Corney, former communications director for Bredesen, now works as a spokesman for AT&T. Goetz also favored AT&T in state contracts to expand internet offerings to local school districts.
May Collections Down -- The City Paper reports that state revenue collections were near the bottom of estimates by the State Funding Board. For May collections, sales taxes were $5.4M less than estimated, tobacco taxes came in $1M short while gasoline and motor fuel taxes were up 6.38%. Reflecting dwindling consumer confidence, sales taxes for the fiscal year are $173 million below expectations. State Fin. Commissioner Dave Goetz: “We will be looking to June, when a larger collection of business taxes are due, to see whether we are staying on track with the reduced budget.”
Alexander, Corker Join Adkins Presser on Food Allergies -- Tennessee’s U.S. senators joined country music star Trace Adkins to support legislation Monday helping schools protect the 3 million children nationally battling food allergies. Alexander, Corker and Sen. Chris Dodd are sponsoring the “Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Management Act.” The bill would direct the U.S. Health and Human Services secretary as well as the secretary of the Department of Education to create voluntary guidelines for schools to prevent exposure to food allergens and make sure a prompt response is given if a child suffers from an allergic reaction.
Shelby Co. To Review Vacation Policy -- In search of savings, Shelby Co. Government is considering a revised employee vacation and sick leave policy. The flex policy, which would go into effect Jan. 1 if the County Commission approves it, would lump all leave - sick, vacation, bereavement and bonus leave - in one "flex time" category and, in some cases, cut the number of allotted days in half for more tenured employees. The new policy faces strident criticism from county employees.
Cocke Co. Decides No Public Funding for Bell -- The Cocke Co. Commission has decided to reverse an earlier decision that would have allowed public funds to be used for the defense of General Sessions Judge John Bell against misconduct charges. State officials say that Bell used his position as judge to sentence defendants to terms of probation where they were forced to pay fees to his brother-in-law's company. Previously, the Cocke Co. Commission had decided to use public funds for Bell's defense after it was revealed that the Cocke Co. Attorney would not be able to represent Bell. However, a prohibition of using public funds to benefit one individual stopped that and the Commission decided to reverse their decision.
