By Ray King
With the exact number needed to have a quorum, the Jefferson County Quorum Court on Thursday approved legislation which will allow the county to make the final payment to FBT Bank for leased equipment.
Nine Justices of the Peace were present for the special called meeting and with no dissent approved the transfer of $250,000 from the County Wholesale Fuel Tax Fund to County General.
The nine JP’s who were present were Ted Harden, Rick Victorino, Cedric Jackson, Margarette Williams, Dr. Conley Byrd, Reginald Adams, Reginald Johnson, Patricia Royal Johnson and Brenda Bishop Gaddy.
Absent were JP’s Alfred Carroll, Jimmy Fisher, Melanie Dumas and Roy Agee.
County Director of Roads Rickey Bullard and Office Manager Sandra Graves said in a letter to County Judge Gerald Robinson and members of the Quorum Court that $177,177.49 of the total will go to Lease Purchase Principal and the remaining $72,822.51 will be to pay Lease Purchase Interest.
Over five years ago, the county signed a lease with FBT Bank to purchase equipment for the road department and Robinson said in a previous meeting that for five years, the lease payments were made without a problem.
It was only when he and members of the Quorum Court got crossways with each other were there problems.
