Known as the overdose harm-reduction program, the Health Department is now providing kits with two doses of naloxone and 10 fentanyl test strips at community events.

Shelby County commissioners are still considering a hike in the wheel tax or the property tax to complete their budget season. 

The new county funding would be for 40 new counselors with the goal of preventing a “cross over” of children coming to the court for child welfare issues and then moving to delinquent behavior.

Janet Hooks, the county commission’s special adviser to Clerk Wanda Halbert, also says the commission should restore $1 million in funding to Halbert’s office that it cut earlier so she can fill positions with new employees instead of moving existing employees around.

Four county commissioners — two from each political party — met Sunday, June 11, with Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris for four hours. They came up with a compromise that has a wheel-tax hike back in play after it was rejected by the commission earlier this month. But property tax hikes are also in play.

Hiring challenges and overwhelming caseloads for public defenders aren’t new. The local office is doing what it can to incentivize new recruits.

The D.C. Scorecard shows partisan lines still intact among the city’s four representatives on the espionage indictment against Donald Trump. Also, Cohen talks Memphis to Nashville Amtrak service, while Kustoff talks workforce at Le Bonheur.

As the Shelby County Health Department cautions sensitive groups to reduce outdoor air exposure on Friday, June 9, due to smoke from Canadian wildfires, some scientists question whether the whole idea of “wildfire season” still applies.

The EPA returned to Memphis officially for the first time since last fall when the agency explained the health risks created by local EtO emissions. Representatives discussed proposals to reduce the community’s risks from the chemical.

Shelby County has among the lowest rates of confirmed first-time victims of abuse, while Stewart and Cocke counties log the highest.

Here’s a roundup of some other items on Monday’s Shelby County Commission agenda, which was overshadowed by budget deliberations and votes on the wheel-tax hike.

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris talks about the defeat of his wheel-tax proposal on The Daily Memphian’s “On The Record” podcast and has harsh words for Shelby County Commissioners.

The proposed wheel-tax hike, to fund the rebuilding of Regional One Health’s campus and new Frayser and Cordova high schools, fell two votes short of the nine votes needed. It was then one vote short in a late attempt to keep the funding option alive.

Halbert has talked of opening a new clerk’s office on Riverdale Road since late last year. The “soft opening” means the office won’t be fully staffed.

Shelby County’s 201 Poplar is a jail, not a prison. It’s meant for short-term stays and pretrial detention, but there are some detainees who never get out. 

The $50 wheel tax hike on the County Commission agenda is key to Mayor Lee Harris’ plan to finance $350 million toward rebuilding the Regional One Health campus and building two new high schools.

Dr. Reginald Coopwood said the hospital’s aging infrastructure does not match the quality of care it provides. 

This marks the first time since 2009 that a city in Tennessee was granted one of these funds.

A top aide to Shelby County Property Assessor Melvin Burgess says opposition to a two-year reappraisal cycle among the county’s seven mayors two years ago has changed as local governments take a revenue hit on sales ratio calculations. 

Area school superintendents are closely watching Mayor Lee Harris’ wheel tax proposal, if approved the could see an increase in funding for capital needs.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation served a court-authorized search warrant at an address associated with Shelby County Commissioner Edmund Ford Jr. Thursday morning.

But opponents of nuclear energy say harm to the environment and public health — including from mining and nuclear waste — outweigh the benefits of it being a low-carbon energy source.

James Lewellen could become an advisory member of the Memphis Light, Gas and Water board as early as next month.

The new state law requiring elected judges to make decisions about releasing defendants accused of violent felonies takes effect July 1. The County Commission is asking General Sessions judges to start doing that immediately.

The delay in the vote came after it became apparent the nine-vote two-thirds majority wasn’t there in the first of two votes. 

Related story:

County Commission calls on judges to enact new release restrictions early