Latest news with #Evely
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Unicoi Co. Commission passes budget with near-$500K deficit
ERWIN, Tenn. (WJHL) — The Unicoi County Commission passed a budget this week with a nearly half-million-dollar deficit, and county leaders said it's largely due to the effects of Hurricane Helene. Unicoi County leaders said much of the deficit comes from the washout of the Industrial Park Drive area and the local hospital. The county has not had any income coming from those businesses since September, when Helene struck. The budget passed Monday with an over $450,000 deficit. However, the county expects to get some funding from the State of Tennessee. Mayor Garland 'Bubba' Evely told News Channel 11 on Wednesday that he is hopeful that six or seven of the businesses washed away from the Industrial Park will return and again bring income to the county. 'We worked on trying to cut expenses as much as we could,' he said. 'We got that down to under $500,000. And, the State of Tennessee has agreed to, in 2025-26, allocate funds to the most affected counties. And we're going to receive that funding in July, which the shortfall will be taken from the additional revenues the state's going to provide.' Evely said another big expense hurting the budget is the county's EMS service, which now must transport all patients into Johnson City since the Unicoi County hospital's closure after Helene. 'The shortfall is strictly due to [the] Helene disaster that we suffered and lost revenue from property values, homes that were destroyed, our industrial park being destroyed–to the tune of almost $570,000 in revenue that the county would normally receive in a regular year.' Evely noted that the county's budget is a little over $10 million and that the school system budget and highway department budget are separate from the county's. 'Helene has certainly created a lot of budget challenges, not just for the county and the two towns, but also for those like ambulance service, police department, sheriff's department, you know, it's created a lot more on the expense side, in addition to the lost revenue that we got.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mayors return from Nashville as Helene relief bill passes
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL)—Mayors from the region traveled to Nashville earlier this week for Governor Bill Lee's special session to advocate for East Tennesseeans. They returned home on Thursday feeling hopeful for their counties after the passage of the Hurricane Helene relief bill. One of them was Unicoi County Mayor Bubba Evely, who was emotional when speaking about the devastation his county had experienced. Tennessee General Assembly passes Helene recovery bill 'Just to the industrial park devastation, we've lost about 15% of our gross revenues,' Evely said. 'And until that's rebuilt, you know, we lose property tax. We lose personal property tax. Our sales tax will probably be lower. And so the governor's pledge that this wasn't the end of what the state would do in our meeting yesterday, I was really excited about that. He said he would continue to be here for the counties that were hit hardest.' Carter County Mayor Patty Woodby told News Channel 11 she was frustrated that it took so long for the session to be held and funds awarded, but she's focused on the future. 'There has been a level of frustration, and we've been saying what we said to the committee for several months now,' Woodby said. 'Whether it be at the local level, the state level and the federal level, all of the northeast, northeast Tennessee mayors have been preaching their concerns to every level of government that we could possibly get in touch with.' 'I cannot speak, and I still don't have an answer as to why it took four months to get us there. But what I can say is that we are truly grateful [for] the bill that passed last night. The main goal now is to not look at the past and what has happened. The main goal now is to see that this bill is passed and that we're accessing the funds to build our communities back.' Woodby said her priority is ensuring that the community, which has already endured a lot, does not bear the financial burden. 'Everything revolves around money,' Woodby said. 'And we're a small rural county with a small tax base, and our only stream of revenue is our taxpayers. And we do not, and I will not support putting that burden on our taxpayers. That's one reason why we're looking at every option to offset even having to discuss anything about a tax increase on our citizens. It's just not in the cards.' Evely and Woodby emphasized their gratitude for funding but agreed that this would not cover the total loss – expecting future bills and additional funding. 'I think this is a step forward to kind of give guidance on what's going to be needed and just get us some money moving into our communities,' Woodby said. 'But I do not for a minute think that this will be enough. They will have to look at passing future bills as they get into session next week for their full session, and myself and my colleagues, other mayors will continue to let them know the needs and concerns and the dollar amounts needed here.' The bills will now go to Gov. Lee's desk for him to sign. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
