THURSDAY, MARCH 21 - 27, 2013
The Tennessee Tribune 3A
National Coalition of 100 Black Women Launches Leadership Program at Belmont By Staff Writer
Nationally, African American women in corporate leadership positions is down, but a local program promises to change that. The Metropolitan Nashville Chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women has formed a partnership with Belmont University College of Business Administration to launch a four-day program that will provide intense and rigorous training to prepare black women for positions on corporate boards. The program offers two models for participants to choose from. There will be two modules. One is a four half-day module and the other is a full day model. The cost of the program is still being decided. “This effort has been several years in the making and we are very excited about the development of a program like
this which has so much value in shaping the diversity and perspective of board leadership,” said Veronica MarableJohnson, president of NCBW Nashville. In 2012, professional black women accounted for only 1 percent of U.S. corporate officers, according to a report titled “Risk and Reward” conducted by the League of Black Women Global Research Institute. The numbers are similar when looking at the leadership spots in Fortune 500 companies where black women held only 1.9 percent of board seats compared to 12.7 percent of white women. “We seek to create a resource for organizations seeking well-trained and knowledgeable black women who are ready to contribute to the overall management, growth and success of organizations,” added Marable-Johnson. NCBW is an organization that focuses on the development and advance-
Sumrall Joins Airport Authority
NASHVILLE, TN —The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) recently named Shannon Sumrall manager of Corporate Communications. In this role, Sumrall will serve as spokesperson and manage all aspects of media relations for Nashville International and John C. Tune airports. Sumrall will coordinate internal and external communications as well as assist with marketing and advertising efforts to promote airport services and the mission of MNAA. “Shannon’s experience in media relations and communications will add depth to our
organization’s expanded communications efforts as we continue to publicize and promote the Nashville Airports Experience - serving as great airports for our passengers, business partners and employees,” Rob Wigington, president and CEO of MNAA, said. Prior to joining MNAA, Sumrall served as public information officer for the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. A Mississippi native, Sumrall is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi where she earned her master’s and bachelor’s degrees in public relations.
ment of Black women in the workforce and in the areas of health, education and economic development. The program at Belmont is an extension of the organization’s overall mission. The concept designed to specifically address concerns for female African American leadership, is also right in line with the multiple development initiatives already being offered at Belmont according to Jill Robinson, director of Executive Learning and Marketing at the university. Belmont professors will lead the training sessions. Upon completion, participants will receive a certificate. The African-American Women on Boards Certification Program with Belmont will be used as a model for board governance. “The competencies emphasized in the program will enhance every aspect of a potential board member’s skill set for board service, from time management to
IRS Has Over $14M for Tennesseans
Shannon Sumrall
TACIR Releases Eminent Domain Report NASHVILLE, TN — The Tennessee Advisory Committee on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR) released its report Eminent Domain in Tennessee, a study of two bills referred to TACIR by the General Assembly last year: Senate Bill 1566 (Ketron) [House Bill 1576 (Carr)] and House Bill 2877 (Gotto) [Senate Bill 2745 (Johnson)]. The government cannot take your land without paying for it, but they can force you to sell; this action is called condemnation. The power to condemn is referred to as eminent domain. In 2006, the Tennessee General Assembly enacted Public Chapter 863, which made significant changes to the state’s eminent domain law, including clarifying the definition of public use. These reforms, partly made in response to the US Supreme Court’s ruling in Kelo v. City of New London, greatly improved protections for property owners in Tennessee. But concerns remain about the time and expense of determining property value; the authority of housing development agencies, which are arms of the local government, to condemn property; and the ability of former property owners to repurchase condemned property that is not used by the government and later sold. Senate Bill 1566 would have allowed a property owner to require the local government to submit to binding arbitration in order to determine the price of property to be taken by condemnation. If it had passed, local governments would not have been able to object to the use of binding arbitration. Like litigation, arbitration is a process for dispute resolution whereby a neutral third party renders a decision after a hearing at which both parties have an opportunity to be heard. With binding arbitration, the parties are legally obligated to comply with the arbitrator’s decision. While binding arbitration generally reduces the time required to resolve a dispute, it has many of the disadvan-
tages of litigation. Binding arbitration is less time consuming than litigation, mainly because the decision cannot be appealed simply because the parties do not like the result, but it is potentially as expensive because the parties still hire lawyers, appraisers, and other experts when arbitrating disputes. One concern raised by local governments about Senate Bill 1566 involved the issue of being forced into a dispute resolution process that can be appealed in only very limited circumstances. The only other state with a similar provision is Oregon, which allows a condemnee to force a condemner into binding arbitration only when the value placed on the property by the parties is $20,000 or less. The fact that there is only one state that authorizes a property owner to force a condemner into binding arbitration, and only then in cases that involve small claims, suggests that this is not a desirable method for resolving eminent domain disputes. In its report, the Commission points out that since Tennessee already offers a number of alternatives to litigation for resolving valuation disputes, property owners should not have the power to force local governments into binding arbitration. One alternative to settling disputes that is already widely used in Tennessee is mediation, which is essentially a form of assisted negotiation. Less time consuming and less costly than other methods of resolving disputes, mediation is an informal process through which a neutral third party, the mediator, helps the parties reach agreement. The report says that mediation should always be considered before arbitration. Mediation is generally much quicker and much less costly than either litigation or arbitration. Moreover, the determination of value is left to the parties. If successful, mediation would make the overall process less costly and time consuming and would allow the par-
strategic thinking,” said Belmont’s College of Business Administration Dean, Pat Raines. The local chapter of 100 Black Women is not the only organization that is attaching itself to this new program. The Nashville Coalition of 100 Black Women Foundation, Inc., Meharry Medical College, HCA and members of the national leadership arm of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Incorporated are also involved. In fact, the certificate program that this training program will be modeled after will likely expand to NCBW chapters across the country, according to NCBW National President, M. Delois Strum. For more information on this program, contact Belmont at 460-6000. PLEASE SEE GROUP PHOTO ON PAGE 15A
ties to decide the price for themselves. The other bill referred to TACIR for study, House Bill 2877, would have eliminated the power of housing agencies to condemn property, and would instead require local elected bodies to institute condemnation proceedings on behalf of them. In practice, local governments already have oversight of housing authorities’ use of eminent domain through approval of the redevelopment plans under which the authorities operate. Under Tennessee’s redevelopment law, however, a governing body may delegate authority to approve redevelopment plans to another agency, including a housing authority, which then could both approve a redevelopment plan and use it as a basis for condemnation. The Commission found no local government that has delegated this authority. Still, removing language that allows the delegation of authority to approve a redevelopment plan to housing authorities would ensure that such agencies could not approve the plan themselves, thus using it as a basis for condemnation, without the oversight of the local governing body. It would not preclude housing authorities from condemning property to carry out plans that are approved by the local governing body. It would simply ensure that housing authorities could not be given the authority to approve the redevelopment plans that would give them the authority to condemn property. It would guarantee that the local governing body continues to have oversight of these projects. TACIR also studied a related bill not referred to the Commission for study, Senate Bill 548 (McNally), House Bill 952 (Dunn). This bill would have given a right of first refusal to property owners whose property was condemned by a local government or a state agency. Currently, a right of first refusal exists only in the case of condemnations by the Tennessee Department of Transporta-
NASHVILLE — Refunds totaling over $14 million may be waiting for an estimated 16,400 Tennessee taxpayers who did not file a federal income tax return for 2009, the Internal Revenue Service announced today. However, to collect the money, a return for 2009 must be filed with the IRS no later than Monday, April 15, 2013. The IRS estimates that half the potential refunds for 2009 are more than $550. Some people may not have filed because they had too little income to require filing a tax return even though they had taxes withheld from their wages or made quarterly estimated payments. In cases where a return was not filed, the law provides most taxpayers with a three-year window of opportunity for claiming a refund. If no return is filed to claim a refund within three years, the money becomes property of the U.S. Treasury. For 2009 returns, the window closes on April 15, 2013. The law requires that the return be properly addressed, mailed and postmarked by that date. There is no penalty for filing a late return qualifying for a refund. The IRS reminds taxpayers seeking a 2009 refund that their checks may be held if they have not filed tax returns for
2010 and 2011. In addition, the refund will be applied to any amounts still owed to the IRS or their state tax agency, and may be used to offset unpaid child support or past due federal debts such as student loans. By failing to file a return, people stand to lose more than refund of taxes withheld or paid during 2009. In addition, many low-and-moderate income workers may not have claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). For 2009, the credit is worth as much as $5,657. The EITC helps individuals and families whose incomes are below certain thresholds. For more information, visit the EITC Home Page. Current and prior year tax forms and instructions are available on the Forms and Publications page of IRS.gov or by calling toll-free 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676). Taxpayers who are missing Forms W-2, 1098, 1099 or 5498 for 2009, 2010 or 2011 should request copies from their employer, bank or other payer. If these efforts are unsuccessful, taxpayers can get a free transcript showing information from these year-end documents by filing Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return, with the IRS or by calling 800-829-1040.
tion (TDOT). Many stakeholders interviewed for the report supported the idea of giving property owners a right of first refusal in all condemnation cases. Nine other states already provide a similar right. However, local government officials, in particular, expressed concern about the burden of finding the former owner, and especially his heirs or assigns some ten years later, and about having to accept the original price paid rather than fair market value. Accordingly, the Commission recommended adoption of the TDOT model, including limiting the right of first refusal to ten years from the date of condemnation, limiting it to the former property owner only, and setting the
price based on appraisals of fair market value. Finally, several interviewees said that condemnation doesn’t happen very often, so efforts should be made to better inform property owners about their rights, including the right to receive just compensation for their condemned property. This could be accomplished by requiring condemners to include a statement of rights along with the condemnation notice before initiating condemnation proceedings. One option found in other states is an ombudsman, similar to the Office of Open Records Counsel within the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office, to assist individuals with their condemnation questions.