Resident urges Knott County to probe proposed Kentucky Lithium project; court says it will invite company for Q&A

A resident urged the Knott County Fiscal Court on during public comment to “take further action” and more closely investigate a proposed Kentucky Lithium LLC project, warning of past lawsuits, limited mining experience among the company’s leadership and unanswered questions about water use, truck traffic and tax incentives.

The comment, delivered in a detailed memorandum, named Kentucky Lithium LLC as a subsidiary of Reelement Technologies and American Resources Corporation and said the companies’ leaders, including Mark Jensen and Thomas Sade, had “no experience in mining, mining, or commodities industries” and a history of legal judgments involving related firms. The speaker asked the court to reconsider prior approval of any memorandum of agreement (MOA), industrial revenue bond (IRB) support or tax-exempt incentives until those concerns were answered. “I strongly and respectfully urge the fiscal court to take further action to investigate and approach the project very cautiously,” the resident said.

The memorandum included specific allegations and requests for information: documentation of any buyer agreements, questions about the legitimacy of cited facility addresses, requests for the underwriting fee schedule (and whether underwriting costs would be paid from bond proceeds), a request to know whether a county transfer or county finances could be affected by bond default, and a challenge to the company’s claimed manufacturing footprint. The speaker also cited engineering-based water estimates and said a 15,000-ton-per-year production projection would require very large volumes of water.

County leaders responded in the meeting. Knott County Judge-Executive Judge Dodson said the court and state officials had reviewed the mechanism the county would use — predominantly IRB or similar industrial revenue bond structures — and that, as county officials had been advised, the bonds would not create county debt or directly affect the county’s credit. “There is no risk to the county in that it doesn’t affect bond scores, it doesn’t affect credit scores, and the county whatsoever,” Judge Dodson said, while acknowledging the public’s concerns were legitimate and warranted further review.

Judge Dodson and other court members told the audience they would convene a follow-up meeting with all parties involved so residents could question company representatives, bond counsel and state finance staff directly. “Let’s get all parties together for the next meeting and let them just have a question-and-answer session with these people,” Judge Dodson said.

Why it matters: The discussion concerns whether local government support or facilitation (such as IRB sponsorship, MOAs or tax incentives) should proceed for a proposed lithium refining project. County support for municipal bond-related mechanisms can affect local tax exemptions and land use approvals, and residents raised questions about water availability, truck traffic and long-term fiscal and environmental impacts.

What was not resolved: The public comment raised multiple factual claims about prior court judgments, bond settlements and the company’s facilities and operations. Those claims were not adjudicated at the meeting; the court did not approve or deny any IRB or incentive in the session and instead agreed to collect additional information and hold a dedicated session that includes the company and bond counsel. The public commenter requested written answers to a set of specific questions before any further action.

Next steps: The court agreed to arrange a follow-up meeting with company representatives, state finance cabinet staff and bond counsel for a public question-and-answer session. The timeline for that meeting was not set during the session.

Attribution: Direct quotes and claims in this piece are attributable to a public commenter who spoke at the Knott County Fiscal Court meeting and to Knott County Judge-Executive Judge Dodson, as recorded in the meeting transcript.