Prowseld County adopts 2026 budget, adds $3,000 EMS supplement amid public concern over overtime

Prowseld County commissioners on July 30 adopted the fiscal year 2026 budget ordinances, approving a $3,000 salary supplement for ambulance and medical personnel from Fund 118 and setting the general services tax levy at 2.1 and the urban services tax levy at 0.6731.

The budget matters were the most contested items during the meeting. The board held a public hearing on the budget and the EMS supplement before moving to second and third readings and final votes. Commissioner Beverly Atwood moved the general services appropriations ordinance; Commissioner Landon Gully seconded. The general services appropriations ordinance passed on final reading 14–4 with two absent. The general services tax levy passed 13–5 with two absent. Urban services appropriations and the urban services tax levy passed in votes restricted to the urban services council where applicable.

The vote followed a public hearing in which Commissioner Jerry Ford sharply criticized overtime levels at the county ambulance service and said he would not support raising taxes to cover those costs. “I believe, I looked, they're showing $390,000,” Ford said, referring to overtime costs he said were shown in county records. Ford said staffing patterns — three crews working 24-hour rotations — were driving overtime and argued for a fourth crew and different shift structures to reduce overtime. Other commissioners and commenters said staffing shortages and rising call volume were factors.

Commissioner Brian Crook and other commissioners described long-term staffing shortages and growing call demand as drivers of overtime. A speaker during the public hearing said the county’s growth had outpaced EMS staffing and that the service was not receiving an influx of applicants that would allow shifting schedules. The board distinguished those concerns as discussion points, and the budget vote did not include structural staffing changes; it approved the $3,000 supplement to EMS pay instead.

At the first reading the county posted updates to the budget on July 30, noting the $3,000 supplement and the updated general services tax rate. At the start of the second reading the chair recited that several commissioners had declared conflicts of interest at the June 30 first reading under Tennessee Code Annotated § 5-5-112; the board read those declarations into the record before voting. The commissioners who declared conflicts included Commissioner Shane Burton, Commissioner Brian Crook, Commissioner Bubba Gregory, Commissioner Landon Gully, Commissioner Leslie Overman and Commissioner Mark Presley; the chair said the declarations did not prevent voting but disclosed a potential conflict.

Formal actions recorded in the meeting minutes show: - Ordinance 3 26 20 25 13 (General Services appropriations for FY 2026): motion by Beverly Atwood, second by Landon Gully; final vote 14 yes, 4 no, 2 absent; outcome: approved. - Ordinance 3 27 20 25 14 (General services tax levy 2025 set at 2.1): motion moved and seconded on the floor; final vote 13 yes, 5 no, 2 absent; outcome: approved. - Ordinance 3 28 20 25 15 (Urban services appropriations for FY 2026): passed (recorded tallies during readings indicate passage; urban-council members voted as required). - Ordinance 3 29 20 25 16 (Urban services tax levy 2025 set at 0.6731): approved by the urban services council (3–0 among council members).

Discussion-only items in the record included the public hearing comments on EMS overtime, staffing models, and comparisons to neighboring counties; commissioners asked staff for underlying payroll and overtime detail. No wage-scale reorganization or staffing pattern change was adopted during the meeting; the adopted action was a one-time/ongoing $3,000 supplement to EMS medical personnel as presented in the appropriations ordinance.

The commission adjourned after adopting the budget ordinances and related measures. The board signaled continued attention to staffing and budgeting for emergency medical services as a follow-up item for committees and staff work.