James Taff has announced his candidacy for the office of Franklin County Revenue Commissioner in the upcoming Republican primary.

I am James Taff and I am announcing my candidacy for the office of Franklin County Revenue Commissioner in the upcoming Republican primary.

I am a retired businessman/dairy farmer from Phil Campbell. I have 35 years of real and practical experience running my own business, and I believe this makes me uniquely qualified to be the Franklin County’s next revenue commissioner. I believe that the experience of running a business, meeting payroll, sticking to a budget, and making a profit places me more in line with the values of the Republican party.

Experience is more than a slogan you stick on a sign and hope people will believe it. It’s getting up early in the morning before the sun rises and going to work to make sure your business is running smoothly. Experience is your employees’ and your family’s dependence on you making a profit

I ran a 600-cow dairy and an 800-acre row crop farm for 35 years with an annual budget of over $2 million. I know what it’s like to run a complex operation. I’ve done it my entire life. The job of collecting millions of tax payers’ dollars shouldn’t be on-the-job training. The people of Franklin County want someone who has experience in handling that kind of money, and someone they can trust.

If I am elected I will be someone who listens to your concerns with respect. I am very honest with people. People that know me know that I will listen to them and that I will tell them the truth. People who have problems want someone to listen to them. I might not always be able to solve the problem the way they want, but I will be available to the public and listen to their concerns.

I believe that people need someone in the office of Revenue Commissioner that is a leader. I am doing it because Franklin County needs a hard worker and someone they can trust to do the job ethically. Too many people are double-dipping out of state coffers these days and that is just not right. That is not what this country was founded on. People don’t want elected officials doing things like drawing retirement from state jobs and working another job. That just seems unethical and morally wrong.

I am a long time member of the Franklin County Cattleman’s Association and serve on the boards of the Upper Bear Creek Water Authority and Southeast Select Sires. I am a member of ALFA (The Alabama Farmers Federation). I also served on the Franklin County Board of Education in the 1990s. I am a member and a past president of the Phil Campbell Bobcat Boosters Club and enjoy cooking dinners for the football team every year.

My wife, Deb, and I have two children, Bo and Jodi. Bo is married to Red Bay native Karen Francis. Jodi is the bride-elect of Andrew Brackin, a Russellville native.

We are lifetime members of the First Baptist Church of Phil Campbell where I serve as chairman of the budget committee. I also led the rebuilding committee when the church was badly damaged in the April 2011 tornado that ripped apart my hometown.

If I am elected, I pledge to always do my very best job to protect the interest of the people of Franklin County, its people, its communities and its schools.