Supervisors discuss tax payments, lighting

Franklin County area taxpayers who come up with at least half of the amount they owe prior to Feb. 1 of each year can qualify for a payment plan.

“The payment plan includes a second payment of one quarter (of the total amount) by May 1 and a third payment by July 1,” Franklin County Tax Assessor-Collector Talina King Matthews noted during the Tuesday, Jan. 3 Board of Supervisors business meeting.

“Those second and third payments do include 1.5 and 2.5 interest, respectively. If either deadline is missed, the full payment is due. A lot of people don’t know (our office allows this).”

Information about the payment plan option can be obtained in the tax assessor-collector’s office at the courthouse in Meadville.

Also during the session, District 5 Supervisor Jimmie “Bodi” Bass, who also presides over the panel, asked Chancery Clerk Jill Jordan Gilbert for an update on the planned replacement of fluorescent bulbs and fixtures with LED lighting throughout county-owned buildings.

Gilbert said the county is still waiting on Entergy to provide a quote for the replacement of lighting inside the Franklin County Public Library and she did not know how long it would be before the company begins replacing any old fixtures.

“We have to get some lights fixed at the shop,” Bass said. “Timmy can’t see in the area by the rack, and he’s got to be able to see to work on the equipment. We need that this week.”

Gilbert made a note to check with Entergy and ask if they could go ahead and replace the lighting at the shop first.

In the event they can’t, Bass said he could ask an electrician to come look at the situation, but it might cost some money to fix.

The panel also discussed sending a request to the Mississippi Legislature for possible funding through an upcoming bond bill.

Some of the ideas tossed around by supervisors for those dollars — if allocated by lawmakers during the annual legislative session that begins this week — would involve the replacement of the Lucien Road bridge, the Knoxville Road bridge or the Sullivan Road bridge, as well as a county-wide drainage improvement project.

There was also an option to use such funding for courthouse renovations.

The board agreed to ask for state dollars for either the drainage project or courthouse repairs.

The bond bill provides for the issuance of public debt to fund capital and economic development projects statewide.

The next meeting for the board will be held at 9 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 17 at the courthouse in Meadville.

The session, originally scheduled for Monday, Jan. 16, was pushed to Tuesday due to the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., holiday observance.