Photo from video made by Caleb Farley
LOUISA, Ky. –Strange things are going on at the Lawrence County Public library, and it’s too early for Halloween.
A special meeting was called by ‘somebody’ (Library officials refused to come to the phone today (Thursday). All five board members attended including three new members suggested by Lawrence Judge/Exec Phil Carter.
Carter has complained that the library takes too much of the county’s tax funds with at least $1 million in reserve and adding to it each year.
The fiscal court has replaced three members on the committee, Smith, Collins and Perry.
Vice President Susie Chambers led the Wednesday afternoon ‘affair’ which was not made available to the media. Also another big spook was that Library director Carley Pelfrey WAS NOT present for the first time in at least two years at least.
The seemingly witchy issue of property taxes was the only thing discussed at the meeting which you can watch here.
The county’s multimillion dollar facility’s tax rate was set earlier this year at 11.8% but the meeting Friday was held to change the rates, which Chambers said needed to be adjusted because the board intended to keep the same rate as last year by taking the compensating rate. But, again oddly, the compensating rate is much higher than last and the library’s taxes would be 12.4%.
So the board, Lyndsy Smith, Lennie Collins, Treasurer Kim Burchette, Lynn Perry and Chambers, was set with the task of redoing the rate.
New member Smith suggested the rate be set at 10.% in this day snd time when things are so tight. Lynn Perry agreed and said people she talks to say the library has too much money, but later voted for the end result, a minuscule .3% reduction in tax rates for local citizens.
Burchett led the fight against the 10. tax rate saying that would be too much while acknowledging the $1million in reserve. She said the board should go down gradually, but not this year. “We would be further behind next year and if we have to raise it back up,” Burchette, a local banker, said.
In the meeting there was a discussion about “potholes not getting fixed” and other needs for other tax districts not having enough money. See video
Former Library Board member Dr. Mark Lester burst into the meeting to help fight against a tax rate cut. He injected a lot of emotion while explaining the library’s food program. “A lot of kids may go hungry without the meals program, he said.
Lawrence County is the only library in the state that has a free food program funded by the USDA.
LYNDSEY SMITH IS AN ENERGETIC AND PLAIN SPOKEN MEMBER OF THE LC LIBRARY BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Ms. Smith, a relatively unknown person here, was adamant about the amount of taxes going to the library instead of other county programs. She also asked, and was told, about the $1 million the board has banked up.
The result of the meeting was a tiny .3% lowering in tax rates to 11.5.
That’s a Republican for you want to attack the poor for their own agendas. The library helps alot of people In The summer. I would have Loved to had that program when I was a kid. I didn’t have food to eat most days. It’s a beautiful thing. Keep fighting Library Staff. My son loves coming there for your special events to thank you!
Years ago a state audit found at least 8 million dollars of tax payers money the library had stashed away in the bank. Thus the renovation. Thus the director making 90,000 per year. Thats more than a small college library director makes. Today they have a million extra and looking to add to it yearly. Come on folks Lawrence Co. is a poor county. Stop gouging us fo the library. How about this concept: Let the parents feed their children. They all get free meals at school. Please fix my road. Its become a local joke aroung the county.
Summer feeding is in the summer time, hence the name SUMMER feeding. School is out of session in the summer. The school system is able to participate in the same program but chooses not to, despite the USDA giving them the same funding for it they give the library. We need to be questioning the school system why they don’t provide this service to their students.
The reason being for schools not to have this, is because they’ve ran off all the good grant writers that actually had the wherewithal to be able to put together a grant. While I’m no fan of the director and what she did to her own sister-in-law, I think the library is a must for Lawrence county at this time.
The kids and families rely on the library, even now with everything being digital and easily accessed, they use the library to access these as well.
Phil Carter is the problem here. He’s eager to get his hands on any funds the county has… I can’t believe people still vote for him after all this time. He’s sucked the county dry, placed his favorites in positions, and sits back and lets the money roll straight into his pocket.
You do realize that the new library was built from the money (it wasn’t 8 million)….
You do realize that the free meal program is during the summer when they are NOT in school right? They don’t provide free meals during the school year.
The county is raising your taxes every year and not fixing the roads. Thats on the administration not the library board who has reduced their taxes EVERY SINGLE year since they started the new library.
Wade Queen could have written a better article and that’s really saying something
Dead. Lololol.
The grammar is wild.
I didn’t know potholes was a library issue! That explains why we have so many of them, they were busy with the summer feeding program, glad to know it’s not the county’s job to maintain roads
Is that why Judge Phil Carter was circling the block yesterday? I saw him almost hit some young lady and her kids in front of the library yesterday and heard him screaming at someone else
I never could understand when a person, business or in this case a county library that has always been frugal with their money people or politicians become upset or jealous. Never ceases to amaze me. Almost like a liberal, they want what you have but your job or responsibilities. They only see the end result. They do not see what you went through or done without over many years to achieve it. There’s some places politics have no place. This is one of them.
After watching part of the video, I understand why they had to have another meeting. Some where confused about whether they where previously voting on the rate or the amount of income. In the end, they decided to try to lower it below last years rate to see how it affected their budget. I think they did the right thing in not taking the compensating rate though.
They changed their mind after Kraut Karter went to their house and threatened them like he always does
If the lady is speaking about Fullers road from Rt 23 to Fallsburg, that road is a state road and no county funds are spent on that one. Now, the road around Fullers Ridge connecting Five Forks and Fullers Road IS a county road to which county funds could be spent upon. Just wanted to clarify that for everyone.
Not sure why the writer is confused or bewildered about the meeting. It’s pretty clear about why they needed to meet again to make certain everyone was on the same page.
The library money by law can not be used for pot holes or any other county projects that the Judge wants to pay his family to work on. It’s pathetic how the Judge is ruining one of the only nice things we have. The judge and the buffoons on the fiscal court are too stupid to understand the law. The library is an independent taxing district just like fire departments and schools and the money can only be used for business of the library. Hasn’t the judge misappropriated enough money to his family? Where is the millions unaccounted for from COVID? Did he settle the lawsuits against him for the NAPA store that was in the 100’s of thousands? He is an embarrassment and the reason Lawrence county gets nothing. Who would trust him and the brainless wonders on the court? His people he has placed on this board are only given one rule, fire the director. Watch and see.
What I wanna know is if the rumor is true about the FBI looking into him for misappropriation of funds from that bad audit he had last year. So much money went into his son in law’s pocket
That’s a Republican for you want to attack the poor for their own agendas. The library helps alot of people In The summer. I would have Loved to had that program when I was a kid. I didn’t have food to eat most days. It’s a beautiful thing. Keep fighting Library Staff. My son loves coming there for your special events to thank you!
I agree, the tax rate needs to be lowered as its a burden on the people. The library tax is too high. It should have been lowered to 10 percent. I drive by the library all the time and I see a limited number of people going in and out utilizing their services. Most everyone has access to the internet where they can find needed information at their finger tips. Public Libraries are a thing of the past.
The librarys tax rate has been reduced every single year for the last several years….. Any effective business owner will tell you that you should always have a years operating budget in savings to be able to operate in case something happens during the following year.
The county itself has NOT lowered tax rates and the funds that are taken from the library cannot be used to “Fill potholes” and if we have library board members that believe that the funds can be used that way, they need to read the regulations that they must abide by.
Many of the people complaining about the tax rates do not even OWN property in the county but seem to think that THEY are going to somehow be taxed….
Why does the Lazer continuously go after the library and their finances? Phil Carter used county funds to spend millions building a terrible moto cross track that gets used 3x a year. Lazer didn’t bat an eye then.
Because they are taking in millions of tax dollars they dont need each year. Its not being frugal paying the library director 90,000 dollars a year. Im telling you they are running out of ideas to spend their overflow of tax dollars. Next the library will be feeding Wayne County kids. Lower our taxes. I have never seen people who want high taxes until now. Especially people who never utilize OUR library.
Turn the library into a school give the old school to the library problem solved