Criminal mischief happening in Mt. Olivet

By Toni Curry

KyNewsGroup

Criminal mischief, destroying public property, breaking & entering, robbery, theft by unlawful taking, wanton endangerment and loitering on the streets and parking lots are all crimes occurring in Mt. Olivet. 

To some, it seems an endless crime spree is in progress.

Saturday afternoon Mt. Olivet was a buzz again with Criminal Mischief involving the newest Mt. Olivet City Police Car. 

The City of Mt. Olivet's Police Car was the target of what could have been a dangerous prank or injury causing accident.

Police Chief Jamie Stamper lives in Robertson Square Apartments while he is searching to purchase a home in this area. 
Saturday in broad daylight someone attached a steel cable to a tree close to the cruiser then proceeded to run the cable along the drive and under the car where it was wrapped around the axial and underneath parts of the police car. 

The situation could have caused considerable damage to the police car if Officer Stamper had not been informed by residents first and had left the home in a hurry to respond to a call. There could have been considerable damage to the car, and the area if the tree had been uprooted.

 According to Mt. Olivet Mayor Linda Reed damage was prevented underneath the car, the tree was not uprooted and no one was hurt by a falling tree, thanks to some observant neighbors who noticed the cable and reported the situation to Chief Stamper.

 Kentucky State Police investigated the criminal mischief and according to Mayor Reed laws in the City of Mt. Olivet will be enforced. 

Anyone with any information pertaining to this incident please contact Kentucky State Police.

Crimes continue to be reported in Mt. Olivet this summer. 

There was an incident of breaking and entering of a home on South Main Street with items taken, also stolen air conditioning units from the Mt. Olivet Diner, there were checks stolen from a residence, windows broken out and items stolen from Mt. Olivet Christian Church van. 



Redistricting leads to split vote

By Charles Mattox

charles@kynewsgroup.com

After a lengthy discussion which led to a split vote and no small amount of confusion, members of the Robertson County Fiscal Court passed a motion July 22, to keep the number of voting districts in the county at five, rather than the proposed three-district recommendation submitted by the three-member reapportionment committee.

Robertson County Clerk Stephanie Bogucki presented the three-district recommendation to court members last month but they rejected it.

Bogucki returned last Friday with one of the committee’s other options. It changed the boundaries of the districts, but still kept the number of districts at five.

Reapportionment committee members Warren Massey, Jim Bromagen and Larry Jones, were appointed to the committee by the fiscal court and tasked with rebalancing the county’s districts to accurately reflect equal representation due to the changing population numbers, as determined by the 2010 census.

Bogucki was assigned the task of overseeing the committee in accordance with Kentucky law, but she had no vote on the committee.

Robertson Magistrates were torn in their decision and their votes reflected the complexity of the task.

Magistrate Terry Craycraft was adamant in his decision to follow the recommendation of the committee and vote for implementing three districts.

“The majority of the people I’ve talked to said they wanted three districts,” Craycraft said. “We’re elected to represent the people and I’m going to do what they want.”

Other Magistrates disagreed.

“The people I’ve talked with said there have always been five districts and they didn’t see any reason to change it,” Magistrate Sue Conley said.

Magistrate Dee Whitaker and Conley agreed on one aspect of the possibility of reducing the districts to only three.

“If there are only three magistrates, then two votes will be the majority,” Conley said expressing caution that in that scenario any given two people who agreed and were properly motivated could basically manipulate the county to their own benefit.

Magistrate Whitaker said some in the county might want to diminish the districts to only three to save money (cutting the salaries of two magistrates) but that might lead to nowhere.

“If the districts are cut to three… well, what’s to keep from it being cut to two or even one in the future,” he said.

Magistrate Troy Martin was quick to vote for the five-district recommendation but newly elected magistrate Rick Myers hesitated.

When Myers did cast a vote in the flurry of the confusion, he later asked that he be allowed to amend his vote and vote against the five-district proposal as he supported the three-district one.

The complexity of the wording of the motion, coupled with the legal ramifications caused some confusion and it was only after Robertson County Attorney Jesse Melcher, who had stepped out of the room to research a state statute on the matter, returned that the confusion was put to rest.

The vote tally finally stood at 3-2 with Craycraft and Myers voting against the five-district proposal and Conley, Martin and Whitaker voting for, thus the motion passed.

For the five-district map to be adopted a public hearing must be held and other considerations observed.

Court members will hold a special called meeting on Aug. 5 at 9 a.m., to discuss this subject and perhaps one or two others.

Photo by Charles Mattox

This map was approved in a split decision by members of the Robertson county fiscal Court to represent the new alignment of voting districts within the county.



ROBERTSON COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY LOWERS TAX RATES

     The Robertson County Public Library met on August 8^th for their regular monthly meeting.  The library board did an extensive review of the budget, financial reports and projections for the upcoming year.  Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives Regional Librarian, Charlotte McIntosh was in attendance to help advise the board and answer questions about the new tax rate law options for special taxing districts.

     Even though the Legislature did not change the law regarding property taxes in this spring’s session, there was a significant change from previous years in the options public library boards has for setting property tax rates. Unlike previous years, library boards now have the option of taking a rate lower than the compensating rate and the board can also select a rate that will result in less revenue.

      In the past, library boards in Kentucky were required by law to adopt one of two tax rates.  The first being the compensating rate, which according to Kentucky Revised Statutes, is the rate which, rounded to the next higher one tenth of one cent ($0.001) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed value and applied to the current year’s assessment of the property subject to taxation by a taxing district, excluding new property and personal property, producing an amount of revenue approximately equal to that produced in the preceding year from real property.  The second rate option was a 4% increase. The “4%” tax rate would be that rate when applied against the real property assessment would produce revenue up to a 4% over the previous year’s revenue.

The Robertson County Public Library Board of Trustees has never taken the 4% increase and has always adopted the lowest rate allowed by law, which was the Compensating Rate.  The Attorney General reviewed the law that stated special taxing districts could set no lower rate than the Compensating Rate; OAG74-644.  This spring, the Attorney General issued a new opinion; that special tax districts could, by law take a lower rate that the Compensating rate.

 After receiving the 2012/2013 tax rate certification notification, the Robertson County Public Library Board of Trustees requested additional rate options be calculated for the board to review before setting the new tax rates.  After reviewing all options the library board voted to decrease the tax rates for Robertson County tax payers.  The library board is very conscientious of their obligation make decisions that will provide the best library service possible for the community while making wise financial decisions.

     The library facility was fully funded by grants and most of the improvements and features you see have been funded by grants and donations.  Just to name a few,  the library has received the following: 

New Facility/Property – Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives

Received funds donated for construction of gazebo – Johnny King Family

Landscaping & Furnishings/Equipment – Kentucky's Resource Conservation and Development Grant & Community Donors

LED Message Center Sign – Governor’s Office of Local Development Community Economic Growth Grant & Mt. Olivet City Council

Computer/Technology Grants – Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Data Projector/Motorized Screen/Laptop/Technology Grant – Institute of Museum and Library Services - Library Services and Technology Act

Automation Grant - Institute of Museum and Library Services - Library Services & Technology Act

State Aid Grants – Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives

Book Grants/Program  – Libri Foundation, Robertson County Early Childhood Council

Software Grants - TechSoup

Computers/equipment donated by the Lexington Shriner’s Hospital and the Ole’ Barn

Erate for  telecommunications costs – Universal Service Administrative Company

Display Case & Artifacts  – Robertson County Historical Society

Indian Artifact Collection – Bill Leet

Log Cabin/Sled Replica – Dewey Miller

Pictorial History Display – Robertson County 4-H Council

Volunteers and Library Board of Trustee Members donate approximately 530 hours per year to the library

Library Furnishings, Artifacts, Magazine Subscriptions, Books, Genealogy Information, Equipment, Landscaping, etc. – Donated by the many thoughtful  people who wish to see all people in this community have access to a library and its treasures.

                 In these hard economic times libraries play a big role in the community.  By utilizing the library and its resources, people have greater access to job opportunities, and have a greater ability to compete in the work force and earn higher wages. New businesses are more likely to locate in an area that has a pool of technology literate employees available in the community which creates a potential for economic growth. 

            Public libraries are positioned to fuel not only new, but next economies because of their roles in building technology skills, entrepreneurial activity, and vibrant, livable places.  The combination of stronger roles in economic development strategies and their prevalence make public libraries stable and powerful tools for communities seeking to attract new businesses and productive citizens.    Libraries stimulate people to use all available resources to their advantage in education, employment, and homes, resulting in an enhancement of the community.

As each family feels the pressure of a bad economy; the Robertson County Public Library is the one place in the community that people can visit without any money in their pockets and leave with a wealth of knowledge and entertainment at their fingertips.  The library offers high-speed internet access and is used on a regular basis by people searching for job opportunities, submitting job applicat ions and filing for unemployment.   

The main purpose of the Robertson County Public Library Board of Trustees; who governs the library, is to provide resources to improve this community and its citizens.  They work very hard to offer “big city” library services on a “small town” budget. 

Robertson County has no industry and local tax dollars are very important in the operation of the library as funding is essential to purchase resources and maintain the services provided by the library. 

The library is heavily utilized and is one of the most important services to the community.   If you haven’t visited us lately, today would be a great day to come in.  For more information on all our services and the community calendar, please visit our website at www.youseemore.com\robertsoncountypl.

Library Tax in Kentucky

The Process:

Overview of the process:

1. The PVA establishes valuations for a county.
2. Valuations are sent to the Revenue Cabinet.
3. The Revenue Cabinet reviews these valuations in the order received.
4. No earlier than July 1 of each year (by statute) the Cabinet begins to certify valuations
5. Certifications are faxed to Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives (KDLA)
6. Two rates are computed by KDLA – the compensating and 4% rate.
7. Rates are mailed to the library.
1. KDLA sends the library the rate information, the property valuation information, and the sheet for submitting the rates to the County Clerk.
2. The library board selects a tax rate.

1. The library files all paperwork with the County Clerk.
2. The County Clerk sends the rate to the Fiscal Court for printing.