Signatures secured for referendum

LAWRENCE COUNTY, Tenn. - After more than three weeks of gathering signatures on a petition, Jim Modlin can now rest.

He has finished his campaign to get 1,250 registered Lawrence County voters on a petition asking for a referendum that would determine if the majority of voters want the wheel tax increased to $50 per year.

Modlin, a Lawrenceburg resident who led the petition drive, said he was pleased with the response he received.

"We had a total of 3,600 signatures," Modlin said. "There were several people, probably a dozen, working on this very strongly. And it was from one end of the county to the other; there were a lot of people out working to get signatures."

County election Commissioner June Davis said it took her office two weeks to verify the signatures.

She said now that the signatures have been verified, it is up to the Lawrence County Commission to decide if the issue will be placed on the Nov. 4 ballot.

County Executive Paul Rosson said the commission will make that decision at Tuesday's meeting.

"The commission can either vote to put it on the November ballot or do nothing and let the issue die," said Rosson. "I fully expect it to be on the November ballot."

The commission voted July 22 to increase the county's wheel tax from $25 to $50 a year. County officials said that at present, license plates costs county residents $49, with $2 going to the clerk's office for a collection fee, $22 going to the state and the county receiving a $25 wheel tax fee.

With the increase, residents would be paying $74 for license plates each year.

Commissioners said the money would generate $880,000 annually, which would be used to retire a $10 million bond issue for county school improvements.

Commissioners want to use proceeds from the bond issue to finance a building program at New Prospect Elementary and South Lawrence Elementary that would remove 21 portable classrooms, many that are more than 20 years old.

The wheel tax increase would have gone into effect Sept. 1 if there was no opposition from the public. According to Tennessee law, residents had 30 days to develop a petition to call for a referendum on the issue. Modlin said the response the petition received proves that people in the county want a chance to vote on the issue.

"I hope they get the chance," he said. "Everybody in the county needs a chance to vote on an issue like this. I can't imagine the commissioner voting not to allow it to go to a vote."

Rosson said if the wheel tax is voted down, the commission may be forced to raise property taxes.

"Something has to be done. It will either be the wheel tax or a property tax increase in the near future," he said.

Modlin said he doesn't have a problem if the wheel tax is voted in. He just wanted the opportunity to vote.

"If the people want the wheel tax increase, I'm fine with that. My entire issue was getting the chance to vote on it," Modlin said.

Tom Smith can be reached at 740-5757 or tom.smith@TimesDaily.com.com.