The so-called “boat tax,” an issue that has raised eyebrows locally for some time was brought to the forefront at this month’s regular meeting of fiscal court a week ago Monday night.

County Attorney Kevin Shearer, who had been asked by Judge-Executive Gary Robertson to look into the issue, gave an update on his findings to the magistrates at the meeting.

“My understanding of it as of today…is that it is a tax on the boats,” Shearer said. “If they’re registered here in the county then of course they’re getting taxed, but if they’re not they’re not getting taxed.”

Shearer said that PVA Tim Popplewell’s office gave him the figure of 182 documented in the county which would give the county around $20,000 or 10.7 percent of the tax while the local school system would receive 60.5 percent of the tax, or just over $100,000.

“I think the question is ‘are all the boats being documented’”? he said. While Shearer said he did not know the answer, he knows that he cannot collect the delinquent tax if they are not on the roll, which boat taxes are not.

“I think that is where the breakdown occurs,” Shearer said. “I’m not sure that many counties, just to be honest with you, are enforcing it very much.”

Magistrates Ronald Johnson and Jimmy McQueary said there was money to be had from enforcing the taxing of the boats but that it might spur tourists to relocate their boats to other counties’ marinas on the lake, subsequently losing those tourism dollars. Magistrate Larry Holt questioned how the boat tax could be enforced and wanted the judge to speak with the county judges from Wayne, Clinton and Pulaski counties on how to approach the issue.

Prior to taking office last fall, PVA Popplewell told the Times Journal, “If there are boats on the lake and at the marinas that we’re not collecting property taxes on that we’re entitled to by law, then we need to be. Anything that this county is entitled to by law, we should be receiving it.”

Boats must be docked in the county for at least 60 days to be eligible to be taxed.

Robertson said the collection of the boat taxes are state law and that the county had no real voice in the matter, other than seeing that the laws are enforced.

“We’re not doing the working people of the county right by charging them and not enforcing the law,” Magistrate Greg Popplewell said, saying it was a question of fairness. “I’m for being more diligent in collecting that money and I realize that it could hurt us one way or another but we’ve got to be true to the people that put us in office.”

John Carter with the Russell County Tourism Office said while the county could use the money generated from more boat taxes being documented there would be a tourism industry that would be hurt by the law being enforced with regularity.

“We’ve got four marinas in this county and each one of them employ local people,” Carter said. “Just about 30 percent of our jobs in this county are tourist-related. It doesn’t take long for that amount to go down.”

Carter said the issue needed to be tread lightly upon as a level playing field is discovered.

Robertson spoke like he was in favor of enforcing the tax, saying in two years when the sunset clause reduces the one percent payroll tax back to .25 percent, citizens would be asking him what the county has done to bring in more revenue.

“We’re trying to go by the law,” Popplewell added, while Magistrate McQueary said he would deal with the payroll tax issue when the time comes but that he didn’t want to have any part in running off tourists.

State Dock President Bill Jasper also attended the meeting and told the court that using 2010 boat tax rates, Russell County’s was 89.3 cents per hundred compared to Clinton County 13.4 and Pulaski County’s 8.3.

“I can tell you if I don’t work here and I don’t have to be at the dock and you raise my rate by 35 percent, effectively I’m going to Lee’s Ford (in Pulaski County),” Jasper said. He said out of town folks who visit the lake already pay their own school tax and it wouldn’t be ethical for them to pay a boat tax to go toward the Russell County School System.

“There are things I think they should pay for, police, fire and ambulance, things that these tourists might use,” he said. “What we’re doing here, though, is the scariest thing I’ve ever seen. If this is aggressively gone after that’s scarier than the water going down.”

Shearer said he would attend the next school board meeting to talk with officials about the issue.

While there was no vote, Robertson said he would talk with the other county judges on the issue in the coming days.

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State police and the Russell County Sheriff’s Office continue to investigate a burglary and attempted arson at Coffey Hill Friendship Church off of Ky. 619 in Russell Springs two weeks ago.

KSP Arson investigator Alex Wesley, Lt. Eric Wolford and Deputy Lee Smith believe the fire was set as a cover-up for the burglary and vandalism in which the perpetrators spray painted numerous “satanic markings” inside the church, which is pastored by Bro. Roger Wheat.

The acts were committed sometime between October 5 and October 6 and caused moderate fire and smoke damage to the interior of the church.

The FBI, the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the state fire marshal’s office are assisting the state police in their investigation.

Police say it’s an unusual crime because they couldn’t find any signs of forced entry inside or outside the church.

Bro. Wheat said he is not angry with those who committed the crime and even invited them back to the church, this time to participate in the worship services.

The following week, Detective Wesley arrested Coleman Ray Miller, 19, of Jamestown in regards to the incident.

While conducting a neighborhood canvas, Det. Wesley was able to recover several items taken from the church and subsequently charged Miller with arson-second degree, burglary-second degree, criminal mischief-first degree and receiving stolen property.

Miller was lodged in Russell County Detention Center. Det. Wesley was assisted by the Russell County Sheriff’s Department.

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An investigation by the Russell Springs Police Department and other law enforcement netted a large amount of alcohol and put a man behind bars two weekends ago, according to RSPD Chief Joseph M. Irvin.

A search warrant was executed at the home of 53-year-old Clinton Asberry on Geneva Drive on Saturday night, October 8, where law enforcement discovered the alcohol and took him into custody just before 11 p.m.

Law enforcement confiscated a total of 18 cases of beer, 15 bottles of vodka and seven bottles of whiskey at the residence.

Asberry was charged with the illegal sale of alcohol in a dry territory and taken to Russell County Detention Center.

RSPD Officer Chasity Shirley is overseeing the bootlegging investigation, according to Irvin.

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Local horse owner Shelby McGowan, who lives 6 1/2 miles north of Russell Springs off of Hwy. 76, is offering a $5,000 reward for the arrest and conviction of an alleged horse thief that took a six-year old buckskin mare walking horse from his property late last month.

McGowan said the mare is worth nearly $5,000 and was taken from his property sometime the last week of September while he was recovering from a surgery.

McGowan said the alleged thief came through the back side of his property, tied back the barbed wire fence and led the horse out and into a trailer.

He said he owned the horse at one time but was now boarding the horse for Carrie Bell, who he said was very upset and distraught about the incident.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the horse can call McGowan at 270-866-6101 or the sheriff’s office at 270-343-2191.