The Coffee County Commission will be meeting for an unusual second time this month, Tuesday night (June 26. 2012) at 6pm.

Commissioners will be looking at the budget for 2012-13 with a slight increase in your property taxes. The increase would be 4-cents under the current proposal.

Coffee County School and Transportation Department officials told the Budget and Finance Committee that they were requesting an additional $390,000 for the upcoming school year, primarily to purchase three new school buses and increased fuel cost despite the fact that the department is losing a total of eight buses now considered “too old” by state standards.

The law stipulates that any school bus being operated for a 17th year must have mileage under 200,000. Coffee County will be pulling the 8 buses off the road due to the state law.

Really dry at Normandy Lake... Photo by Barry West

Officials are keeping an eye on Normandy Dam to make sure the area is adequately supplied with water. TVA officials say that Normandy had received less rainfall than it did during the severe drought of 2007. Conditions at the lake are extremely dry with the water area decreasing in size.
Officials with TVA and the Duck River Development Agency say water levels are some seven feet low, though the reservoir has been lower at times. Officials said low water levels have had no impact on drinking water.
Arnold Engineering and Development Center facilities are served by Woods Reservoir but levels there are kept almost constant by Arnold, according to U.S. Air Force officials.
Arnold Engineering spokesman Jason Austin said officials have maintained levels in the smaller Woods Reservoir, which is used by the base for drinking water and cooling for military testing activities.

Gas prices continue to fall across the country. The national average now sits at $3.45, down 22 cents from last month. The average price for a gallon of gas in Tennessee is $3.13. The low price for a gallon of gas in Tullahoma area yesterday was $2.99 a gallon, while the low in Manchester was $3.06.

Planning to vote in the Aug. 2 elections? Time is running out to register. The Coffee County Election Commission reminds prospective voters this week that Tuesday, July 3, is the deadline to register to cast ballots in this summer’s state primary, county general and Tullahoma and Manchester city elections. Voter registration can be done in person at the election commission office, Department of Safety and the post office.

The Hillsboro Fire Department was sent to assist fire departments in Franklin County Saturday afternoon near Morris Ferry Bridge on Highway 127.
According to Franklin County Sheriff Tim Fuller, LaJuana Valentine and her children were grilling under carport when a problem developed with the grill.  The outside wall caught fire, then flames spread to the attic.
Capitol Hill, Estill Springs, Alto Oak Grove, Decherd and Hillsboro Fire Departments responded and fought the fire for some time.
According to the sheriff, a deputy found two marijuana plants behind the residence. An investigation is continuing on the plants with charges to come.

Searchers have found the body of a teenage boy who disappeared while swimming in the Elk River in Fayetteville.
WAAY-TV in Huntsville, Ala., reported the body of a 17-year-old boy was recovered late Sunday afternoon near the Highway 231 bridge. The Fayetteville Fire Department confirmed the youth was last seen walking to a rope swing with friends early Saturday afternoon. He went back to his truck to retrieve an item and his friends reported him missing about five hours later.
A search continued past midnight Saturday and resumed at dawn Sunday. His body was found about 4:30 p.m.
An autopsy will be conducted in Nashville.

Everyone is invited to come out and enjoy live music and fireworks at the City of Manchester 4th of July Celebration.
Chancy Willis, Charlie Allen and Tony Stampley will perform a FREE concert at the Rotary Park Amphitheater beginning at 6:00 p.m. Fireworks will begin at 9:00 p.m. Bring your lawn chairs!!
Please call the Recreation Complex at 728-0273 or City Hall at 728-4652 for further information.

The Tullahoma Kiwanis Club will host an Air Show and its Forty-Third Fireworks show at the city’s airport this Friday evening. Gates to the airport will open at 3 p.m. Friday with the entertainment beginning at 6 p.m. Admission to the event is free. However, special premium parking closer to the grounds is available at $5 per car.
Spectators are encouraged to bring chairs, blankets, sunscreen, hats and umbrellas because the grounds could be hot before the sun goes down. Flashlights are also recommended because lighting will be limited while exiting the grounds.