Area News
Rock industry gains county support seeking delay in planned regulatory bill
Committee to look at proposal Wednesday
The Cumberland County stone industry is known world-wide because of the native Tennessee Quartzite (known locally as Crab Orchard Stone) but those who work in the rock say they are under assault by proponents of pending legislation that would increase fees and fines, add more restrictions and more heavily regulate the business.
Two in the industry — Woody Mercer and Delano Thompson — appeared before the Cumberland County Commission Monday night asking that the body formally notify the state and local legislators that a delay in the pending regulatory bill be made to allow for study and input over the summer.
The rock industry has been a cornerstone of Cumberland County economy for generations upon generations and Mercer claimed Monday night that stone workers were being singled out by the legislation. Admittedly, he added, this has happened because the stone industry is not formally organized like the Tennessee marble, lime and aggregate industries. Thompson and Mercer both said that they were not even made aware of the pending legislation until two weeks ago when it passed the Tennessee Senate.
The bill proposing new state permits if a property landowner disagrees with the mining is on the Senate Environment, Conservation and Tourism Committee agenda for this morning (Wednesday).
What brought this to the foreground is fight between a Florida company and the Bredesen administration over rock harvesting in the Cumberland Trail State Park near Chattanooga. Tennessee purchased the land for the park but failed to purchase the mineral rights, which were bought by the Florida firm.
Even though the state owns the property, the Florida company has been harvesting rock on the state land based on current mineral rights laws.
The case ended up in court with the Florida firm prevailing in early rounds. But a collateral issue has become the question of whether sandstone, fieldstone and flagstone are minerals. Environmental groups and the state contend that unless otherwise noted in land transaction records, rock should be considered a mineral.
Presently the state of Tennessee does not regulate the rock industry as it does mining. The state does give counties the right to tax stone that is mined as a product.
If the state legislature rewrites the law as presently planned, an adverse affect will be felt by thousands of workers in the rock industry, Mercer told commissioners.
After the presentation, which came under new business, Commissioner Lynn Tollett made a motion to send a resolution of support for the rock industry and to ask state lawmakers to delay further action until all parties are allowed are heard on the proposed law.
Commission parliamentarian Harry Sabine said the motion was out of order because it was not listed on the agenda, but a motion to waive the rules was then made and passed with Sabine voting no.
The motion to fax to surrounding counties, local law makers and members of the Tennessee General Assembly then passed on the same vote count.
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Vacant trailer destroyed in Saturday fire
No one lived in the trailer on Running Creek Dr. that caught fire Saturday evening.
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Historical museums to have displays at archives facility
The new archives building will not only hold priceless, historical county records, the facility will also give other local historical museums a display area to represent a sampling of what their facility has to offer.
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Man charged with holding girlfriend against her will; sexual assault
A Crossville man has been arrested by city police on three charges — including two felonies — after a domestic dispute escalated into violence and sexual assault, according to police reports.
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Felony charges filed in domestic assault
A Monterey man made his first appearance in Cumberland County General Sessions Court last Monday to answer a felony charge relating to a domestic assault that took place Aug. 15 during which a car was allegedly used as a weapon, a knife was pulled by the victim and both sides accused the other of being the aggressor.
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Home destroyed in blaze
Fire raced through a large home that the owner was putting finishing touches on around 9 a.m. Tuesday.
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Visit the Cumberland County Fair [Slideshow]
The Cumberland County Fair is under way at the Cumberland County Community Complex.
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BOE approves air conditioning for CCHS gym
The Cumberland County Board of Education is hoping to use a windfall in additional Basic Education Program funds to move forward with installing air conditioning at Cumberland County High School.
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Loggins is the Fairest
Lacy Loggins was crowned the 2010 Fairest of the Fair Saturday night at Stone Memorial High School.
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Walmart reports thousands in thefts of computers, electronics
Crossville Police at the request of officials at the local Walmart store are investigating the theft of thousands of dollars worth of computers and other items from the store's electronics section, according to reports.
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One killed in single-vehicle crash Friday night
One Cumberland County resident lost his life when the vehicle he was driving slammed into a tree at a high rate of speed on a rural county road, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
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