Audio clip
Linda Bennett
Some City Council members on Monday voiced concerns about ensuring the separation of church and state when the head of the nonprofit Front Porch Alliance requested city funding during a morning of budget hearings.
“I think the churches should take this role, and it just shouldn’t be government involved,” Councilman Leamon Pierce said. “Basically, I’ve just never been supportive of funding this particular organization.”
Beth Trussell, executive director of the faith-based Front Porch Alliance, said after her presentation that the organization does not use city money for religious activities. She said all city funding is spent for building supplies for the World Changers program, in which volunteer workers fix up area homes.
“We can’t spend it any other way,” Ms. Trussell said.
The Christian organization is requesting $60,000 from the city for the 2008-09 fiscal year. That amount would be a $28,000 increase from what the agency got for the current fiscal year, according to documents.
Councilman Jack Benson also expressed his concerns and said he wants to make sure officials maintain a division between church and state.
Ms. Trussell said after the presentation that she understands the questioning from council members.
“They just want to make sure that it’s clarified and everything is clear to all parties involved that this is how … they’re spending their money, and that it isn’t put in the church and that a church didn’t receive a new roof because of the funds that they gave,” she said.
The City Council has held budget hearings for the city’s various departments and also for nonprofit groups that seek city funding. Councilwoman Linda Bennett has said that the presentations, new this year, are designed to give council members more information as they prepare for the budget year that begins July 1.
Council members heard from 14 groups Monday, including the Carter Street Corp., Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise and the Enterprise Center.
Carla Pritchard, executive director of the Chattanooga Downtown Partnership, said she was seeking $140,000 for the next fiscal year. She said that amount would bring the nonprofit, which puts on downtown activities, back to an earlier funding level after a couple of years of only receiving $100,000 from the city.
Mr. Benson questioned Ms. Pritchard about seeking money from the county.
“Rather than come to us for an increase, I was wondering whether you couldn’t start with them,” Mr. Benson said.
Ms. Pritchard said late Monday afternoon that the downtown partnership got county money through tourist development agency funding in 2003. She said the partnership has asked for county funding every year since then but has not gotten any.
She said she plans to check with county officials and see if there is a way to get funding.
“I want to exhaust any resource that may be out there,” she said.
Ms. Bennett said after the budget hearings that the general issue of city versus county funding continues to emerge as a concern.
“In some cases it seems that we may be double paying, considering the fact that we are also part of the county,” she said.
FUNDING REQUESTS
Fourteen local nonprofit groups presented budget requests to Chattanooga City Council members on Monday. Here are the 2008-09 fiscal year requests, compared to what was budgeted for the current fiscal year:
* Partnership for Families, Children and Adults: requested $79,998 (city budgeted no money for current year)
* Chattanooga Downtown Partnership: requested $140,000 (city budgeted $100,000 for current year)
* Tennessee Multicultural Chamber of Commerce: requested $150,000 (city budgeted $150,000 for current year)*
* The Enterprise Center: requested $125,000 (city budgeted $100,000 for current year)
* Front Porch Alliance: requested $60,000 (city budgeted $32,000 for current year)
* Homeless Health Care Center: requested $25,000 (city budgeted $17,500 for current year)
* Alexian Brothers Senior Neighbors: requested $70,000 (city budgeted $58,916 for current year)
* Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise: requested $1 million (city budgeted $1 million for current year)
* Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga: requested $160,000 (city budgeted $160,000 for current year)
* Community Impact of Chattanooga: requested $350,000 (city budgeted $300,000 for current year)
* St. Andrews Center: requested $10,000 (city budgeted no money for current year)
* Children’s Advocacy Center of Hamilton County: requested $30,000 (city budgeted $30,000 for current year)
* Sister City Association: requested $50,000 (city budgeted no money for current year)
* Carter Street Corp.: requested $219,000 (city budgeted $200,000 for current year)
* Money comes from Economic Development Fund
Source: City of Chattanooga
