An innovative high school dropout program in Haywood County was rescued from the chopping block this week after county commissioners and school officials agreed to go halves on the $61,000 needed to keep it open.

Haywood County could be turning a corner after a slow, stubborn climb out of the recession, according to some obscure tidbits of data hidden in the bowels of the county’s budget for the coming fiscal year.

Haywood County commissioners were greeted with silence at their meeting Monday night when they asked if anyone in the audience wanted to speak during a public hearing on the county’s $72 million proposed budget.

Sylva residents will likely see their tax rate skyrocket 42 percent this year, but town commissioners say that even the steep increase won’t let them do much beyond simply balance the budget.

Franklin’s proposed budget prioritizes a number of long-range infrastructure projects without increasing the tax rate.

Ambulance service in Jackson County could more than double in cost to taxpayers if commissioners decide to fund the full $1.4 million budget requested by Harris Regional Hospital.

When a report estimating cost and space needs for a new animal shelter came back with a staggering price tag — the report estimated a cost of $5.4 to $6.6 million — Jackson County commissioners had to catch a breath and start rethinking their planned timeline of capital construction. 

Jackson County Public Schools wants more than $12 million for improvements to its facilities through 2020, but despite the big number, the requests are pretty basic, Superintendent Mike Murray told commissioners last week.

Since 1940, the Federal Government has provided Impact Aid Funding to assist school districts that have lost a portion of their local tax base because of Federal ownership of property. 

The state budget was 78 days overdue last Tuesday night when a group of more than 20 public education supporters packed the Macon County commissioners meeting in support of more state funding.