Cu ¥ COUNTY PAPER © EST. 1922389) _Inside_ News Local officials say the federal government is on track to reimburse the county for cost overruns on the new dock in Cedar Key, Page 2A. News Bronson town council members are looking into changing the rules for yard sales after one woman spoke up during Monday's monthly meeting, Page 3A. | News AWilliston teenager has been arrested for possession of valium withouta prescription, Page 5A. News _ The local area is getting ready to welcome the manatees home for the winter. Assistant Editor Anna Suggs was on hand to capture the excitement Page 14A. Editorial | Syndicated columnist _ Thomas Sowell says that in the world of politics, promises are cheap and nothing is impossible, Page TA. ‘Editorial What happens when cows pass gas? Tax-hungry : oliticians start licking their chops, that's what. Terry Witt examines: the sordid ae Page. BA... Sports Chiefland, Williston and Bronson hit the hardcourt this week. Thé good news? All three came home with victories. Guess what the bad news was. Find out, Page 1B, 12B. Sports What exactly does the future hold for Florida hunters? Florida Fish and Wildlife Association official Tony Young peers into his crystal ball and offers a suggestion or two, Page 2B. Lifestyle What were the best and worst movies of 2008? We wouldn't ask if we didn't have the answers, now would we? _ Page 7B. | | | 9078200200 PaclbesebUbeacccldacslU cl bocdbacdoalbbsasdesed dba UNIV OF FL DEPT SPEC COLLPK YONGE L | ShktkteaeeeeASEETECASCL 3_DIGIT 326 PO BOX 117007 GAINESVILLE FL 32611-7007 Levy Tear brace for budget cuts By Anna Suggs Assistant Editor The fate of Levy County schools is dependent on the Florida special legislative session that began in Tallahassee Monday and will last until. Jan. 16. The state has a $2.3 billion budget deficit that has to be made up one way or another. One of the routes being considered i is cuts to Public school funding. So far for this school year there has already been a 6 percent cut to Levy County public schools, $340 million statewide, said Levy County School Superintendent Bob Hastings. This special legislative session will determine if another 1-2 percent will have to be cut. Some of the potential cuts being investigated include reducing athletics and the number of games played, asking teachers to take days off without pay, reducing travel suchas field trips, saving energy, canceling workshops, renegotiating bus routes, and postponing the purchase of five new buses this year, he said. “Our main emphasis always will beto keep the integrity ofthe classrooms and make cuts elsewhere,” he said. ““We want to be as conservative as possible.” If the Florida legislature passes the education cuts, the Levy County School Board will have to make decisions on which cuts to make. Some cuts can be approved quickly by administration, in other words, by the superintendent, he said. These include narrowing and reducing the If so, the money will have to come from somewhere and ihiere isn’t anything the school board isn’t looking at, Hastings said. Volunteer Becky Loock carries several ears of sweet corn ‘to the packaging area. See School, Page 3A Free produce arrives in Bronson for those who need it Story and photo by Terry Witt _ Staff Writer People quietly waited in line Saturday outside Bronson Town Hall for free produce. No one asked whether they were poor. It wasn’t important. The produce giveaway was sponsored by the Children’s Table, an- organization founded 12 years ago by Bill and Verna Brown to feed children 7 and adults. The idea i is to uP people who need food. “We feel blessed to be ae to do it,” Brown said. ' Sweet corn, zucchini and yellow squash were distributed outside Bronson Town Hall and at Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church in Chiefland. The produce was donated by Farm Share, an organization in Florida City. Farm Share receives food from farmers that is surplus or not right for market. It is delivered to various charities. The Children’s Table arranged for the semi tractor-trailer to deliver five pallets of sweet corn, nine pallets of yellow squash and eight pallets of zucchini. James Cobb, a town of Bronson employee, used a front-end loader on : Levy Sheriff’s Office plans conversion of 911 system Story and photo by Terry Witt Staff Writer — The Levy County Sheriff's Office has | received a $338,000 state grant to convert its 911 emergency call center to a modern Cigna! system. Mike West, 911-coordinator for the sheriff’s office, said customers won’t notice any change after the system is installed in about six months, but call center employes will see a difference. “We’re just positioning for the future,” West Said “We're just making it more robust for us.” Residents call the 911 center hes they: have emergencies. Dispatchers send law enforcement officers to respond to the call. The. primary change in hardware will be the replacement of a large computer at the 911 office. All 911 calls are received through this. device and sent to the 911 center. West said he is negotiating with several companies that offer the digital model. The grant One was | provided by a state 911 committee. The funds are for 911 ' enhancements. West also appeared before the county. commission Tuesday and received permission to improve the 911-system in a different way. Commissioners voted 3-0 to give West permission to use $150,000 of money collected from Levy County phone bills — 50 cents per month from each customer — to hook up‘a new service called Intrado. The system will save the county $1,531 per month by replacing Sprint and Embarq as the phone system providers for the 911 center. The sheriff’s office will install a box provided by Intrado to route calls to the center. Customers can continue to use Sprint and Embarq in their homes and businesses. “This is a behind the scenes function,” West said. The 50 cent surcharge is imposed by the county commission to pay for 911 improvements. The county has accumulated $275,000 in the 911 fund. West said the county needs to spend the money or lose it to the state. 4 loan from the county road department to unload the pallets. A swarm of volunteers. organized by Alfreda Freeman bagged the produce. Since its creation, the Children’s Table has distributed 23 million pounds of food in 53 Florida counties. In 2002 it distributed 9,000 pounds of USDA commodities, Brown said. He never thought it would grow to this size. _ - The name Children’s Table “suggests the organization provides food’ to children, and it does, according to Brewn. But his definition of children doesn’t fit the standard model. .. “We discovered that: we’re all children,” Brown said. “We started feeding people from our Barden and it started from there.” The Children’s Table assists local food pantries in Levy County, said Alfreda Freeman, the Bronson volunteer’ in charge of Saturday’s produce giveaway. - She said she also goes to Gainesville every Monday to pick . See Produce, Page 6A Levy County 911 Coordinator Mike West says the call processing computer shown here will be replaced with a digital version. Free > Clesshied Lovertts Sie The ngacn economy seems to bea thorn i in everyone ’s side these days, particularly for families struggling to make ends meet. That’s why we at the Levy County. Journal have decided to offer free classified advertising for individuals and certain small businesses. Our community-based newspaper : reaches all of Levy County and is growing week by week. Take advantage of our offer and see why people everywhere think we are the area’s best Ter newspaper. The Levy County Journal - we are here for ie nr } ~~