Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Glad to have Jimmy Stevens back in Jefferson County Commissioner.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Good to see us, sir, it's been a while.
Speaker 3 (00:05):
It has, I tell you. It's good morning to see you.
It's looks like we may have a little bit of
rain this morning, but rainy days and Monday shouldn't get
us down.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
No, let's go.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
I'm feeling pretty good about this Monday morning, and I
bet you are too.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I saw some good.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
News about you when it comes to a little battle
of cancer. You've been fighting. What, what, how did all
this start and what kind of cancer was it.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
I appreciate the opportunity to let me come up and
kind of tell everyone what to do and what not
to do. I had been diagnosed with the squamos cell
carcinoma skin cancer. Yes, skin cancer. That's from being out
in the sun too much.
Speaker 4 (00:46):
Yeah, you know when we were growing up. I'll take myself.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
I'll say, when I was growing up, we did not
have any sunscreen, and many people put baby oil and
I down there, yes, in order to get a good tan.
And I don't believe that was the right thing to do.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Probably not in hindsight. We'd look like bacon that's right.
Speaker 4 (01:09):
So here here we are today.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
I had a squamosael carcina num were removed and used
to mold surgery, which is supposed to be the state
of the art, and one of the cells actually got
loose and traveled through my lymph system of my body
and lodged under my right axillary.
Speaker 4 (01:31):
What the heck is acillary is? You're is under your RM.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
P Okay, that's where lymphodes are.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
That's where I'm in your nets are.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Yeah, if you've if you've been a lady, or if
there's a lady out there listening who's had breast cancer.
She nodding her head, yes right now, saying I knew
exactly what you're going through, Miss Dins. And so they
attempted to reduce the size of the remember through a
(02:01):
new drug immunotherapy that it attacks the cancer itself. It's
a targeted type therapy that works on the the I
believe it's the sea cells, and so it's not.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
A chemo or radiates a chemo.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
It's not nearly as destructive to your other tissues. It
targets the cancer. Unfortunately, the type I took it had
no effect at all, and that put me six weeks
behind after right after the first of the year. Uh,
(02:42):
they did another PET scan, which is one of the
greatest things you'd ever want to see. They had put
sugar into a radioactive isotope in ject you let you
wait a night, weren't coming there, and do a complete
body scan on it. And it appears that cancer love sugar.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
That's what I've heard.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
So it goes to everywhere there are cancer cells. So
I was fortunate my cancer was limited to my right
accillary and I had one that had grown on my
neck and all these there's an inside that were part
(03:24):
of my limp system. So they came in of the
very very skilled surgeon that UAB came in and performed
an eight and a half hour surgery good night, and
removed all of the cancer that they could see and
ninety six lymph nodes.
Speaker 2 (03:45):
Ninety what how many lyptoids we got?
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Well, we've got a bunch apparently, but I've got a
bunch less now.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Well good, but your cancer free.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
Now I am totally cancer for free. Less past week
there has got high five. They came in and I
did another PET scan and found none. That's fantastic, and
told me to go resume my normal life. I just
want to tell the surgeons, the oncologists, and the radiation
(04:16):
oncologists that at UAB, the team that they assemble for me. Oh,
they usually want to remember my sea attitude. As you communicate,
you cooperate, and you coordinate. They did every one of
those perfectly.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
And you're very pleased.
Speaker 4 (04:35):
I am.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
I am very pleased. I'm cancer free. I'm back to
my normal duties. Excellent, and I look forward to finishing
this term and beginning the next.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
So your advice to people listening, if there's any thought
of anything, get it checked.
Speaker 3 (04:50):
Don't wait, please get it checked. If if you see
something that looks abnormal, if you have a spot on
you someone, or if you have a little lump on
you somewhere, doesn't hurt to check it. Common sense tells you, hey,
that's not supposed to be there.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Yeah, get going and let's see what that is. Once again.
Praise God, Jimmy on your cancer being clean and clear.
Now on you, and now that you're back to work,
let's talk about what's going on here at work. Waterworks
Board Friday, another lawsuit has been filed now. Birmingham City
Attorney's filed an amendment. I guess you would call it
on behalf of the mayor and members of the city council. Basically,
(05:31):
the city maintains that the state action is illegal and
it reconfigures. You know, the utilities board include mostly suburban
members of Jefferson County and surrounding counties, with just two
from Birmingham.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
Boohoo. I guess. I mean there's a reason this is
all being.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
Done because years and years and years of problems with
the waterworks Board. So I'm kind of in favor of
the realignment, if you will, and representations spread heading out
a little bit and a little bit more of an
even playing field. Your thoughts on this, I know you're
involved with you get to appoint somebody.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
We do and you did or I did on this
particular case. Yeah, you know, we're regarding that lawsuit and
the amount of representation that each municipality has. Those are
really up in the air. JT as far as.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
The number, As far as the numbers go.
Speaker 1 (06:28):
Yeah, the waterworks you know, serves a five county area.
Ninety two percent of the customers live in Jefferson County,
and they say forty four percent of them live with
Birmingham City limits.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
And is that true?
Speaker 4 (06:39):
I don't believe.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
So.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
Okay, this era has been.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Regurgitated and said over and over again by all the
news media outlets. The Census Bureau numbers don't lie. And
just like to congressional portion the population, not the number
of connections, is the only valley means to determine the representation.
(07:08):
Birmingham's to proportion of the utility is interesting and that
is twenty five percent. So actually there are actually over
represented there you go in that.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
So do you believe that this whole thing will be
kicked by the judges? And said, Look, we've moved forward here,
the governor signed it, We're already putting people on the board,
we're making changes. Well, are they just going to continue
to clog the whole thing up with more lawsuits in
the city of Birmingham.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
You know, I've always been a proponent of the best
government is one that you never hear of. Yeah, and
the one that you never hear of is usually doing
things right.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
It's a good point.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
I would like for the Birmingham Waterworks Board, through the
appointments that have been made, to give them an opportunity
to do things right. I understand that the appointments have
been made and they are very good appointments. The good
(08:16):
appointments I know that Philip we admire is my appointment.
He's a forty five year album Power Employees retired engineer,
has served on many public boards. He understands what's going on,
he understands the needs, he understands the water loss that
(08:41):
the water Works Board is encompassing. The problem that we
have is that the Birmingham Waterworks Board has gotten into
a cycle to where their average rating increase over the
past twenty years is six point one two five percent.
(09:05):
Now they'll go one year and have a real high one,
they'll go one year and have a two or three.
But if you just go back twenty years, you can
look at an average rate increase of six point one
two five percent every year, every year, every year, and
that does not include all of your capital expenditures.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
When you have.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
Ratepayers such as the Birmingham Waterworks Board and also the
Jon County Sewer Board, who is part of that too.
The difference between the Waterworks Board financing and the County
of Sewer financing.
Speaker 4 (09:48):
Is a waterworks board uselessly a basic paygo. They'll look
at what their expenses are.
Speaker 3 (09:59):
Look at their owent in see what their debt service is,
and then look and see what the used to be. Right, right,
we go out ten years at least ten years, and
we make the rate increase be verified by them operational
(10:21):
maintenance of the facility, run facility, the capital expenditures, and
a debt service and all of that is included in
your rating increase so you will not have to go
back to the market after that.
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Are you pleased with where we are with this board
and the changes that have been made and looks like
some more are coming and moving forward with us and
will rectify the years of craziness going on there.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
There is changes being made in the board and the
way they do business. I think most, if not all,
of those changes are good. I think that they are
opening up a line of communication transparent. I think that
if they do that and have their finances in order. Yeah,
(11:06):
once they have their finances in order, they will be
able to look and see exactly where these water licks
are and be able to fix souls and not have
so much of a.
Speaker 4 (11:20):
Burden OneD a new bill.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
Well, I think the ratepayers and the citizens are anxiously
awaiting big changes and right in the shift that's been
so wrong for so long. So well, I appreciate you
coming in once again. Congrats on you being cancer free.
That's just fantastic.
Speaker 4 (11:35):
Thank you JJ
Glad to have Jimmy Stevens back in Jefferson County Commissioner.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
Good to see us, sir, it's been a while.
Speaker 3 (00:05):
It has, I tell you. It's good morning to see you.
It's looks like we may have a little bit of
rain this morning, but rainy days and Monday shouldn't get
us down.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
No, let's go.
Speaker 1 (00:15):
I'm feeling pretty good about this Monday morning, and I
bet you are too.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
I saw some good.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
News about you when it comes to a little battle
of cancer. You've been fighting. What, what, how did all
this start and what kind of cancer was it.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
I appreciate the opportunity to let me come up and
kind of tell everyone what to do and what not
to do. I had been diagnosed with the squamos cell
carcinoma skin cancer. Yes, skin cancer. That's from being out
in the sun too much.
Speaker 4 (00:46):
Yeah, you know when we were growing up. I'll take myself.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
I'll say, when I was growing up, we did not
have any sunscreen, and many people put baby oil and
I down there, yes, in order to get a good tan.
And I don't believe that was the right thing to do.
Speaker 2 (01:05):
Probably not in hindsight. We'd look like bacon that's right.
Speaker 4 (01:09):
So here here we are today.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
I had a squamosael carcina num were removed and used
to mold surgery, which is supposed to be the state
of the art, and one of the cells actually got
loose and traveled through my lymph system of my body
and lodged under my right axillary.
Speaker 4 (01:31):
What the heck is acillary is? You're is under your RM.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
P Okay, that's where lymphodes are.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
That's where I'm in your nets are.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Yeah, if you've if you've been a lady, or if
there's a lady out there listening who's had breast cancer.
She nodding her head, yes right now, saying I knew
exactly what you're going through, Miss Dins. And so they
attempted to reduce the size of the remember through a
(02:01):
new drug immunotherapy that it attacks the cancer itself. It's
a targeted type therapy that works on the the I
believe it's the sea cells, and so it's not.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
A chemo or radiates a chemo.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
It's not nearly as destructive to your other tissues. It
targets the cancer. Unfortunately, the type I took it had
no effect at all, and that put me six weeks
behind after right after the first of the year. Uh,
(02:42):
they did another PET scan, which is one of the
greatest things you'd ever want to see. They had put
sugar into a radioactive isotope in ject you let you
wait a night, weren't coming there, and do a complete
body scan on it. And it appears that cancer love sugar.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
That's what I've heard.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
So it goes to everywhere there are cancer cells. So
I was fortunate my cancer was limited to my right
accillary and I had one that had grown on my
neck and all these there's an inside that were part
(03:24):
of my limp system. So they came in of the
very very skilled surgeon that UAB came in and performed
an eight and a half hour surgery good night, and
removed all of the cancer that they could see and
ninety six lymph nodes.
Speaker 2 (03:45):
Ninety what how many lyptoids we got?
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Well, we've got a bunch apparently, but I've got a
bunch less now.
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Well good, but your cancer free.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
Now I am totally cancer for free. Less past week
there has got high five. They came in and I
did another PET scan and found none. That's fantastic, and
told me to go resume my normal life. I just
want to tell the surgeons, the oncologists, and the radiation
(04:16):
oncologists that at UAB, the team that they assemble for me. Oh,
they usually want to remember my sea attitude. As you communicate,
you cooperate, and you coordinate. They did every one of
those perfectly.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
And you're very pleased.
Speaker 4 (04:35):
I am.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
I am very pleased. I'm cancer free. I'm back to
my normal duties. Excellent, and I look forward to finishing
this term and beginning the next.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
So your advice to people listening, if there's any thought
of anything, get it checked.
Speaker 3 (04:50):
Don't wait, please get it checked. If if you see
something that looks abnormal, if you have a spot on
you someone, or if you have a little lump on
you somewhere, doesn't hurt to check it. Common sense tells you, hey,
that's not supposed to be there.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Yeah, get going and let's see what that is. Once again.
Praise God, Jimmy on your cancer being clean and clear.
Now on you, and now that you're back to work,
let's talk about what's going on here at work. Waterworks
Board Friday, another lawsuit has been filed now. Birmingham City
Attorney's filed an amendment. I guess you would call it
on behalf of the mayor and members of the city council. Basically,
(05:31):
the city maintains that the state action is illegal and
it reconfigures. You know, the utilities board include mostly suburban
members of Jefferson County and surrounding counties, with just two
from Birmingham.
Speaker 2 (05:45):
Boohoo. I guess. I mean there's a reason this is
all being.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
Done because years and years and years of problems with
the waterworks Board. So I'm kind of in favor of
the realignment, if you will, and representations spread heading out
a little bit and a little bit more of an
even playing field. Your thoughts on this, I know you're
involved with you get to appoint somebody.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
We do and you did or I did on this
particular case. Yeah, you know, we're regarding that lawsuit and
the amount of representation that each municipality has. Those are
really up in the air. JT as far as.
Speaker 4 (06:25):
The number, As far as the numbers go.
Speaker 1 (06:28):
Yeah, the waterworks you know, serves a five county area.
Ninety two percent of the customers live in Jefferson County,
and they say forty four percent of them live with
Birmingham City limits.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
And is that true?
Speaker 4 (06:39):
I don't believe.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
So.
Speaker 4 (06:41):
Okay, this era has been.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Regurgitated and said over and over again by all the
news media outlets. The Census Bureau numbers don't lie. And
just like to congressional portion the population, not the number
of connections, is the only valley means to determine the representation.
(07:08):
Birmingham's to proportion of the utility is interesting and that
is twenty five percent. So actually there are actually over
represented there you go in that.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
So do you believe that this whole thing will be
kicked by the judges? And said, Look, we've moved forward here,
the governor signed it, We're already putting people on the board,
we're making changes. Well, are they just going to continue
to clog the whole thing up with more lawsuits in
the city of Birmingham.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
You know, I've always been a proponent of the best
government is one that you never hear of. Yeah, and
the one that you never hear of is usually doing
things right.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
It's a good point.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
I would like for the Birmingham Waterworks Board, through the
appointments that have been made, to give them an opportunity
to do things right. I understand that the appointments have
been made and they are very good appointments. The good
(08:16):
appointments I know that Philip we admire is my appointment.
He's a forty five year album Power Employees retired engineer,
has served on many public boards. He understands what's going on,
he understands the needs, he understands the water loss that
(08:41):
the water Works Board is encompassing. The problem that we
have is that the Birmingham Waterworks Board has gotten into
a cycle to where their average rating increase over the
past twenty years is six point one two five percent.
(09:05):
Now they'll go one year and have a real high one,
they'll go one year and have a two or three.
But if you just go back twenty years, you can
look at an average rate increase of six point one
two five percent every year, every year, every year, and
that does not include all of your capital expenditures.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
When you have.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
Ratepayers such as the Birmingham Waterworks Board and also the
Jon County Sewer Board, who is part of that too.
The difference between the Waterworks Board financing and the County
of Sewer financing.
Speaker 4 (09:48):
Is a waterworks board uselessly a basic paygo. They'll look
at what their expenses are.
Speaker 3 (09:59):
Look at their owent in see what their debt service is,
and then look and see what the used to be. Right, right,
we go out ten years at least ten years, and
we make the rate increase be verified by them operational
(10:21):
maintenance of the facility, run facility, the capital expenditures, and
a debt service and all of that is included in
your rating increase so you will not have to go
back to the market after that.
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Are you pleased with where we are with this board
and the changes that have been made and looks like
some more are coming and moving forward with us and
will rectify the years of craziness going on there.
Speaker 3 (10:45):
There is changes being made in the board and the
way they do business. I think most, if not all,
of those changes are good. I think that they are
opening up a line of communication transparent. I think that
if they do that and have their finances in order. Yeah,
(11:06):
once they have their finances in order, they will be
able to look and see exactly where these water licks
are and be able to fix souls and not have
so much of a.
Speaker 4 (11:20):
Burden OneD a new bill.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
Well, I think the ratepayers and the citizens are anxiously
awaiting big changes and right in the shift that's been
so wrong for so long. So well, I appreciate you
coming in once again. Congrats on you being cancer free.
That's just fantastic.
Speaker 4 (11:35):
Thank you JJ
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