Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacob’s Weekly Update

Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacob’s Weekly Update.

TRANSCRIPT:

“It’s Friday. Time for another weekly update. Last Sunday, Knox County Public Library hosted a birthday party for Dolly Parton to celebrate her birthday and our 20 years of her Imagination Library in Knox County. Imagination Library sends a new book every month to children under the age of five at no charge to the family. Here in Knox County, that means 19,000 kids receive a free book every month. Since the program’s inception in 2005, our Library has mailed out 4.1 million books to 100,000 children. All of it possible because of the generosity and vision of Dolly Parton.

The START Center, or Skilled Trades Academy and Regional Training Center, welcomed eight Central High School seniors this semester under our new dual-enrollment program. A special thanks to the Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Tennessee, TCAT Knoxville and Knox County Schools for partnering with us on the program. This opportunity will provide these highly qualified students with multiple opportunities within the trades and is a testament to our commitment to preparing our students for successful careers. The education and hands-on experience they receive will prepare them for a promising future.

Young-Williams Animal Center has sent out an urgent request for people to become foster families for dogs in preparation for the arrival of pets displaced by the wildfires in Southern California. Officials said they are preparing to accept animals from overwhelmed or evacuated shelters in the Los Angeles area and must make room for the new arrivals. All necessary pet supplies will be provided, and there is no financial cost to foster families.

Finally, along with hundreds of thousands of other Americans, I was in Washington, DC, at the start of the week to attend the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States. So far, the Trump Administration has exceeded even my most optimistic expectations, addressing the border and immigration crises, strengthening U.S. sovereignty, and righting some egregious injustices. Most important, to me is the creation of the Department of Government Efficiency. While we all complain about government waste, the fact is bad fiscal and monetary policies have an enormous detrimental impact on all of us, from families to businesses to local governments. Inflation is one of those impacts.

Inflation is a policy choice which acts as a hidden tax, and it is devastating, especially to the poor and people on fixed incomes. But it hits us all. For instance, since I became mayor in fall of 2018, the cumulative inflation rate has been almost 26%. Another way of looking at that is your dollar has lost 26% of its value in only 6 years! While there is variation depending on the product, it’s not that gasoline, food, housing, and other necessities have gone up in price, it’s that the dollar has gone down in value. Obviously, just like families have to deal with this, so does Knox County, especially since property tax, a major revenue source, is not indexed to inflation.

Something has to be done. And that something is major cuts to federal spending. President Trump literally needs to take a chainsaw to the federal budget. And, with over $36 trillion in national debt, it has to happen soon. The alternative is a continued decline in the dollar’s value and all the terrible problems accompanying that. As I said, I am thrilled with the Administration so far, but government debt and spending are the existential threat that will destroy the American Dream, and I look forward to seeing our new President tackle that. Until next Friday, I hope everyone has a great week!”