Empty Promise?

The Mobile City Council is expected to decide Tuesday whether to fulfill a promise Mayor Sam Jones made in the heat of the annexation controversy.

In August, Mayor Jones committed millions of city dollars to repay the Mobile County School District for a half-cent sales tax it would lose if voters approved his annexation plan, but some city council members say he didn't have the authority to do that.

"My responsibility is not to back up the mayor. My responsibility is to use my own intelligence, wisdom and ability to make decisions I think are in the best interest of the city of Mobile," says Councilman Clinton Johnson, who wants to offer the school district the money as a loan instead of the no-strings-attached payment the Mayor proposed.

Councilmembers John Williams and Connie Hudson agree with Johnson's idea. "The mayor doesn't have the authority to go out an make promises," says Hudson.

When asked why council members didn't question the mayor's proposal before the annexation vote, Johnson said "we're not out for controversy," but as a result, Mobile schools are wondering how they'll fill the $2 million budget gap if the council doesn't back up the mayor's promise.