by Dana Wilbourn
posted June 30, 2008
) Rep. Jim Cobb |
Rep. Cobb is seeking re-election as the District 31 representative to the state legislature. He is opposed by Jim Vincent, a former District 31 representative. District 31 includes all of Rhea County and the northern part of Hamilton County around Soddy-Daisy.
The most talked about vote of his career, Rep. Cobb said, was his vote of “NO” on the BEP 2.0 plan. He said this vote has been interpreted as a vote against Hamilton County. He does not agree, he said.
“I did not vote against Hamilton County,” Rep. Cobb said. “I voted against a biased, faulty, and unfair formula.” In previous years, he said, the formula had been biased against the larger counties, Hamilton County included. “Everybody knows that,” he said.
“Some of the Hamilton County leaders, none of whom I see here today, fixated on a $24 million increase in funding for Hamilton County and it soon became every county for themselves,” Rep. Cobb said.
“I’m looking at Rhea County that has a high school with a capacity of 1,200 and seating 1,500 and an elementary school at 25% over capacity,” he said. “I could not in good conscience vote for this BEP 2.0 change. It looked very glamorous to Hamilton County, but it looked very bleak for Rhea County.”
“That vote (for BEP 2.0) was 84-11. I was one of the eleven. I stood my ground. Had I voted the other way, the vote would have been 85-10. I wouldn’t exactly call that a swing vote. I think it’s time to get over it.”
Another reason he voted against the BEP 2.0, he said, is that a cigarette tax increase of $0.40 per pack was attached to the bill and sold to the legislators as a package deal because the tax increase would go to education. Rep. Cobb said that the tax increase instead went into the general fund. He voted against the package deal because he had run as a candidate opposed to raising taxes.
Turning to other issues that his opponent is running on, Rep. Cobb addressed the proposed bridge across the Tennessee River in North Hamilton County connecting Soddy Daisy with Harrison. “I’ve heard my opponent say that this bridge is in the near plans for TDOT to be constructed with traditional funding versus a self-funding toll facility.”
“TDOT officials have told me, and will tell you quickly, that this idea is delusional,” Rep. Cobb said. “I don’t know how anyone can put out such nonsense when our federal government cut $320 million from our road projects this past year.”
Another issue is creeks, said Rep. Cobb. Spring City, Dayton, Graysville, Sale Creek, Bakewell, Rock Creek, and Soddy Daisy are all threatened with eroding banks, out-of-control flooding, and endangerment of lives from runoff of the Waldens Ridge watershed. Rep. Cobb said that he helped dislodge a permit that had been held-up on someone’s desk in state offices in Nashville for a year and a half. Abatement processes and creek re-routings have now been completed, he said.
The last issue that Rep. Cobb addressed directly was endorsements on campaign signs. It has been charged against Rep. Cobb that his campaign signs said that he was endorsed by the NRA and the Right to Life organizations when, in fact, they had not endorsed him.
Rep. Cobb said that he did receive their endorsement when he ran for office in 2006 and assumed that the endorsement continued as long as he held office. When he learned that he had to reapply for those endorsements for each campaign, he pulled his campaign signs and changed then to read, “Endorsed in 2006.”
Rep. Cobb says that the NRA worked with him and he was able to get their endorsement for the current campaign in one week’s time.
He said that he is 100% pro-life. It is unclear at this time whether the Right to Life organization will endorse Rep. Cobb or his opponent, Jim Vincent.
Rep. Cobb said in closing that he feels he is the right person to continue working for the people of District 31.
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