Letter to the Editor
To the Editor,
Here we go again (Courier News 3/11/26 “Rough Roads”). Just on the heels of the Norris City Council enacting expensive $240-per-year additional water charges on its citizenry, Councilman Bill Grieve (and some of his cohorts) propose increased property taxes for “street repairs” under the half-truth: “We haven’t had a property-tax increase in 15 years.” A quick Google search shows property valuations in Norris have increased “129-133%” over the last 15 years. It is disingenuous to focus upon the rate when the city’s revenue has grown dramatically through property appreciation.
Many Norris residents live within their means on a fixed income. It is not too much to ask the city to do the same. It is pure laziness to bypass alternative channels for financing road repairs and take the easy route of a tax increase on residents.
Firstly, another quick Google search shows bond issuances are “ideal for towns that cannot afford to increase property taxes or that prefer to avoid property tax increases.”
Secondly, the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law recently allocated $973 billion that “provides significant funding to support small towns with infrastructure needs, such as road repairs.”
Recently, the small town of Duncan, Arizona received “$1.9 million in federal funding to repave two roads and improve infrastructure.”
Thirdly, another quick Google search shows “TVA may assist with road repairs in Norris, TN, if the roads are directly related to TVA transmission lines, power infrastructure, or, in some cases, projects impacting public lands or reservoir access.”
Lastly, Congressman Chuck Fleischmann’s local phone number is 865-576-1976. Mr. Fleischmann is an “appropriator” of federal funds (and chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Projects) and has steered billions of dollars into nearby Oak Ridge. Perhaps they asked for assistance.
It appears that the Norris City Council once again wants to take the lazy and expensive path of least resistance. The citizens of Norris deserve better, and a property-tax rate increase should be a last resort and not a first choice.
Samuel Foust
Norris
