There are 377 article(s) tagged Lee Harris:
Adding more funding to county reserves is competing with a scaled-down lawsuit settlement, more spending and a basic tax rate that has been reduced by the state for the new fiscal year.
Commissioners suggest funding should go to existing schools in need of repairs.
Shelby County commissioners talked Wednesday, June 3, about leaving the county property tax rate at $2.69. It’s a discussion they’ve had in past budget seasons with different rates. But this year’s decision may be different.
The expensive legal settlement grew more complex last week with word that the $18 million would have to be included in future Sheriff’s Office budgets.
Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. and Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris agreed earlier this month to settle Bonner’s lawsuit against Harris with a “confidential” deal for an $18 million amendment to the sheriff’s budget for the current fiscal year.
Lowering the property-tax rate a few cents and another proposed school, the third of his tenure, highlighted Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris’ final budget proposal.
The backdrop for President Donald Trump’s visit to the city is complex and has everything to do with the Memphis Safe Task Force. What Trump will say, if anything, about the task force is anyone’s guess.
How are candidates booted from primary ballots? Also in the political roundup, heads butt on the Memphis Safe Task Force, where Lee Harris and Edmund Ford Jr. agreed and recent D.C. votes on Iran air strikes.
County Mayor Lee Harris went public about a funding dispute between the county and the state over housing prisoners. Harris said the cost could lead him to propose a property tax hike this spring.
The City of Memphis released $8.5 million to prekindergarten organization First 8 Memphis. The funds could keep some classrooms afloat while city, county and First 8 officials remain in negotiations for a long-term funding plan.
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris’ goals as he leaves office at the end of August include negotiating new terms for funding universal prekindergarten services across the county.
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris is calling for stronger reforms at the Shelby County Jail, saying the Sheriff’s plan falls short amid a rise in inmate deaths and what he described as a “lack of basic humanity.”
Gov. Bill Lee declines to sign up for federal food assistance program, shifts focus to state-funded solutions.
Also in the political roundup, Jerri Green gets a new job and stays on the campaign trail. And meet the first Republican contender for County Mayor.
On “Behind The Headlines,” Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said he has tried to meet with federal officials from the Memphis Safe Task Force to talk about his concerns ICE agents are racially “profiling” Memphians.
Sheriff Floyd Bonner faults Mayor Lee Harris for problems at the County Corrections Center and not being responsive in assisting with problems at the jail.
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris says the number of jail deaths calls for dramatic change that could include the county or the state taking over the county jail currently run by Sheriff Floyd Bonner.
The number of National Guard members moved closer to the 1,000-troop limit set by federal leaders as local elected leaders said ICE agents in the city could be their next target in court.
Lee Harris also called for better demographic numbers on those arrested and charged, as well as a total county of traffic stops including those where no one is charged or jailed.
Lee Harris has vetoed six ordinances or resolutions approved by the Shelby County Commission in his seven years as county mayor. Some have stood, others have been overridden by the commission and one was some of both.
As the Memphis Safe Task Force ramps up its presence, local elected leaders are focusing on a lawsuit challenging the state about sending National Guard troops to the city.
Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and leaders of other groups seeking to stop the National Guard deployment in Memphis say the city was never offered an option to join their lawsuit.
“We are weighing some sort of legal action in order to put a stop to some of the unconstitutional actions that we’ve seen and heard about,” Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris said.
When Regional One Health leaders and county elected officials marked the naming of the teams that will start design work on the new county-owned hospital this past week, some of the dollar figures had changed.
A “threat to democracy” vs. making Memphis “the most safe city in America,” area leaders give their thoughts on what the National Guard deployment can mean for the city.