DeKalb County | Alexandria | Dowelltown | Liberty | Smithville | Tennessee | United States

DeKalb County Courthouse

    

The DeKalb County Commission
Formerly Known As The DeKalb Quarterly Court

     The commission is composed of 14 popularly elected members representing the 7 voting districts in DeKalb County.  Each district elects 2 representatives to serve on the commission.  The commission has 12 called meetings on the 4th Monday of each month at 6:30 PM in the basement courtroom of the DeKalb County Courthouse. 

The meetings are broadcast live by WJLE Radio [101.7 FM and 1480 AM].  Broadcast of the meetings are available on the Internet via audio streaming.  Visit the WJLE website to listen.

     The DeKalb County Commission is the legislative body of county government.  Duties include setting of the property tax rate and appropriating adequate funds for county government to operate.  The duties and functions of the county commission are set forth in the State Constitution and regulated by state laws passed by the Tennessee General Assembly.  {Read More}

DeKalb County Commissioners
	District 1: Mason Carter Voting precincts represented: Alexandria, Temperance Hall, Edgar Evins State Park	383 Carter Lane Liberty, TN 37095 615-548-4046
	District 1: Elmer Ellis Jr. Voting precincts represented: Alexandria, Temperance Hall, Edgar Evins State Park	415 Corley Rd. Alexandria, TN 37012 615-548-8011
	District 2: Jack Barton Voting precincts represented: Liberty, Dowelltown, Snow Hill	1075 Snow Hill Rd. Dowelltown, TN 37059 615-597-1303
	District 2: Bobby Joines Voting precincts represented: Liberty, Dowelltown, Snow Hill	511 Frazier Hollow Rd. Dowelltown, TN 37059 615-536-5105
	District 3: Randy Caplinger Voting precincts represented: Middle School	178 Hurricane Ridge Rd. Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-7660
	District 3: Jerry Scott Voting precincts represented: Middle School	2054 Robinson Rd. Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-7029
	District 4: Wayne Cantrell Voting precincts represented: Courthouse, Cherry Hill, Rock Castle	575 Pine Grove Rd. Smithville, TN 37166 H - 615-597-7584 W - 615-597-9200
	District 4: Chris Smithson Voting precincts represented: Courthouse, Cherry Hill, Rock Castle	380 Smithson Lane Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-5572
	District 5: Jeff Barrett Voting precincts represented: Smithville Elementary School, Johnson Chapel	7181 Sparta Hwy Sparta, TN 38583 931-761-7180
	District 5: John Green Voting precincts represented: Smithville Elementary School, Johnson Chapel	280 Young Green Rd. Smithville, TN 37166 H - 615-597-7659 W - 615-597-4388
	District 6: Jeff Barnes Voting precincts represented: Blue Springs, Keltonburg, Belk	10492 Belk Rd. Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-4330
	District 6: Marshall Ferrell Voting precincts represented: Blue Springs, Keltonburg, Belk	217 Marshall Lane Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-5109
	District 7: Larry Summers Voting precincts represented: Church of Christ Annex	1636 Short Mountain Hwy. Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-8220
	District 7: Willie Thomas Voting precincts represented: Church of Christ Annex	854 Luttrell Ave. Smithville, TN 37166 615-597-6794

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Tennessee County Government Hand Book
 

CHAPTER 2 - COUNTY LEGISLATIVE BODY AND COUNTY MAYOR

Traditional Structure:

The most basic and widely used form of county government in Tennessee is one with a popularly elected county executive, entitled county mayor (T.C.A. § 5-6-101), who is the administrative head of the county, and a popularly elected county legislative body, which the General Assembly has formally entitled board of county commissioners and which is commonly referred to as the county commission. Members are generally referred to as county commissioners. T.C.A. § 5-5-102(f). This is the constitutionally required form of county government unless a county has followed the provisions provided by the Tennessee Constitution and implemented by statute a consolidated form of government with one or more of the county’s municipalities, or an alternate form of government. Of course a consolidated government will have a legislative body of some type, but the size limitation of 25 does not apply. TENN. CONST., art. VII, § 1.

County Legislative Body Nature of the Body:

The county legislative body may exercise the powers of a legislative nature granted to it by the General Assembly in public acts (laws of general application or local option application, which may be found in codified form in the Tennessee Code Annotated) or in private acts that apply to a particular county (that do not conflict with the general law). The General Assembly has given the county legislative body a considerable array of powers, including the power to levy property taxes without limitation regarding rates, the power to expend funds for any lawful purpose, zoning powers for the unincorporated areas of the county and some regulatory powers, yet the General Assembly has not seen fit to grant to the county legislative body all of the powers that have been granted to Tennessee’s incorporated municipalities (cities and towns). Therefore, counties must always look for the source of authority for any action taken, as counties have no authority to act outside the scope of the powers granted by the General Assembly.

Membership, Size and Districts:

Except in counties with a consolidated city-county (metropolitan or unification) form of government, the county legislative body is made up of not less than nine nor more than 25 members, elected from districts. No more than three members may be elected from any one district. T.C.A. § 5-5-102. Districts must be reapportioned at least every 10 years, and commissioners must represent substantially equal populations based on the latest federal census. T.C.A. § 5-1-111. Members a reelected by the voters in their district for four-year terms and until their successors a reelected and qualified. T.C.A. § 5-5-102. The county legislative body determines by resolution whether members in multimember districts are elected at large within the district with the two or three persons receiving the greatest number of votes being elected, or whether candidates must run for designated seats, usually designated A and B, also C in three-member districts. T.C.A. § 5-5-102.(h). Members are elected in the August general elections coinciding with the election of the governor and take office the following September 1 after being qualified to hold office.

Qualifications:

There are no extraordinary qualifications to hold the office of county commissioner. However, a person must comply with the general requirements for holding office in this state. All persons 18 years old and over, who are citizens of the United States and of Tennessee, and who meet certain residency requirements are qualified to hold office unless the person:

1. Has been convicted of offering or giving a bribe, of larceny, or of any other offense declared infamous by law, unless the person has been restored to citizenship as prescribed by law;

2. Has not paid a judgment for money received in an official capacity, which is due to the United States, Tennessee, or any county;

3. Has defaulted to the treasury at the time of election (in which case the election is void);

4. Is a soldier, seaman, marine, or airman in the regular United States Army, Navy or Air Force; or

5. Is a member of Congress or holds any office of profit or trust under any foreign power, other state of the Union, or the United States. T.C.A.§ 8-18-101.

County commissioners must reside within and be qualified voters of the district represented. T.C.A. § 5-5-102. County employees otherwise qualified to serve may hold office as a legislative body member, except that a director of schools who was not a member of the county legislative body on June 18, 2005, is not qualified. T.C.A. § 5-5-102. However, no person elected or appointed as county mayor, sheriff, trustee, register, county clerk, assessor of property, or any other countywide office filled by popular vote or by the legislative body may be nominated for or elected to the legislative body. T.C.A. § 5-5-102. If a legislative body member accepts the nomination as a candidate for the office of county mayor, sheriff, trustee, register, county clerk, superintendent of roads, superintendent of schools, circuit court clerk, assessor of property, general sessions judge, or General Assembly member when the office is being filled by the legislative body, that member becomes disqualified to continue in office, and a vacancy in the county commission will automatically exist. T.C.A. §5-5-102.

After receiving a certificate of election from the county election commission, a person elected as a county commissioner must take two oaths prior to taking office: the constitutional oath and the oath of office (otherwise known as the fidelity oath). An example of the constitutional oath combined with the statutory oath of office for the county commissioner may be found in the appendix to this handbook .

Oaths of office for county officials, including county commissioners, may be administered by the county mayor, the county clerk, or a judge of any court of record in the county. Also, the judge of the general sessions court may administer oaths of office to all elected and appointed officials. The oath of office for any county official required to file an oath may be administered at any time after the certification of the election returns in the case of elected officials, or after appointment in the case of appointed officials. However, even if the official files an oath before the scheduled start of a term of office, the official may not take office until the term officially begins. T.C.A. § 8-18-109. The oath must be written and subscribed by the person taking it. Accompanying the oath must be a certificate executed by the officer administering the oath, specifying the day and the year it was taken. T.C.A. § 8-18-107. The oath and the certificate are filed in the office of the county clerk, who endorses on them the day and year of filing, and signs the endorsement. T.C.A. §§ 8-18-109, 8-18-110.

Compensation:

The compensation of legislative body members is fixed by resolution of the body, although the General Assembly establishes the minimum compensation in certain classes of counties. T.C.A. § 5-5-107. Currently, the legislative body may not set the compensation of its members at less than the following daily amounts in these classes (by population) of counties:

Third class (50,000-150,000) $35      Sixth class (5,500-12,000) $20
Fourth class (23,300-50,000) $30      Seventh class (3,770-5,500) $20
Fifth class (12,000-23,300) $25         Eighth class (under 3,770) $20

These county classes are set by population and are delineated in T.C.A. § 8-24-101.The amount provided above, or a greater amount provided by resolution duly adopted by the legislative body, must be paid to the members for each day's attendance at meetings of the county commission; however, a greater amount may be provided by resolution adopted by the legislative body as a stated salary per month. The compensation fixed by the legislative body for attending authorized committee meetings is one-half the daily compensation paid for attending regular sessions when the compensation is based upon attendance at meetings. T.C.A. § 5-5-107.

Special provisions exist for the state's largest counties: Members of legislative bodies in counties with a population of 100,000 to 600,000 according to the 1970 federal census must receive at least $25,000 per year. T.C.A. § 8-24-115. In Hamilton County, the legislative body was statutorily required to set the compensation of its members by a two-thirds vote effective July 1, 1999; each year on July 1 the compensation is adjusted to reflect the same percentage increase received by the county mayor for that year. T.C.A. § 5-5-107.

The compensation of the chair and chair pro tempore is fixed by the county legislative body but if on a per diem basis cannot be less than the amount fixed for members. The compensation of the chair pro tempore cannot exceed the compensation of the chair for like services. T.C.A. § 5-5-103(e).

Chair:

In counties other than those with a consolidated form of government or county charter, the county legislative body elects a chair and a chair pro tempore at its first session on or after September 1 of each year. The county legislative body may elect one of its own members as chair, or it may elect the county mayor; however, the county mayor is not required to take the office and may decline. If the county mayor is elected as chair and accepts the office, then the county mayor relinquishes the power to veto legislative resolutions of the county legislative body. T.C.A. § 5-5-103. A county mayor who assumes the chair may vote to break tie votes of the county legislative body, but otherwise does not vote. T.C.A. § 5-5-109(b). Alternatively, the legislative body may elect one of its own members as chair, in which case the member who is also chair may vote on all issues as a regular member of the body, but may not vote again to break a tie vote. T.C.A. § 5-5-109.

When the regular chair is unable or fails to attend meetings of the county legislative body, the chair is under a duty to notify the chair pro tempore who shall attend and discharge the duties of the chair. If neither is present, the county clerk will call the meeting to order for the election of one of the members to temporarily preside over the meeting. T.C.A. § 5-5-103.

The chair may designate another member of the county legislative body to sit in the chair’s place on any board, authority or commission that the chair serves upon by virtue of holding the office of chair. Any such designee may vote or exercise any power the chair could exercise had the chair been in attendance.

Meetings, Notice Requirements, Filling Vacancies:

The county legislative body is required by law to meet at least four times annually at a time and place established by resolution of the county legislative body. All meetings must be public and no secret votes may be taken. T.C.A. § 5-5-104. A limited exception to the open meeting rule is provided by case law due to the judicial doctrine of attorney-client privilege; the county legislative body may meet in closed session with the county attorney or other attorney representing the county to discuss with the attorney pending litigation involving the county, but no discussions among members of the body as to the action to be taken or votes or decisions may be made in secret, nor other matters discussed.

The Open Meetings Law (discussed in Chapter 23 of this handbook) requires adequate public notice of regular meetings as well as special meetings. T.C.A. § 8-44-103.

The meetings of the county commission are presided over by a chairperson or the chairperson pro tempore if the chair is not in attendance. T.C.A. § 5-5-103. If the chairperson fails or is unable to attend the meeting, the chairperson pro tempore will discharge the chairperson's duties.

A majority of the membership of the entire county legislative body constitutes a quorum for transaction of business, including election of officials or confirmation of appointees, fixing salaries, appropriating money, and any other business coming before the body. A majority of the full actual membership, not merely a majority of the quorum, is required to pass almost all measures. A vacancy on the county legislative body will lower the number to determine a majority, but a mere absence will not. T.C.A. §§ 5-5-108, 5-5-109. (See the appendix for a full discussion and table of votes required for a majority.) Also, a county commissioner who abstains from voting for cause due to a conflict of interest on any issue coming before the county commission will not be counted for the purpose of determining a majority vote. T.C.A. § 5-5-102(c)(4)(B).

In counties not operating pursuant to a consolidated government charter or county charter, special meetings of the county legislative body may be called by the county mayor. Also, the chair of the county legislative body may call a special meeting upon application in writing by a majority of the county commissioners. The call for a special meeting must be made by publication in some newspaper published in the county, or by personal notices to the members sent by the county clerk at least five days before the time of convening the special meeting. The call must specify the objects and purposes for which the special meeting is called, and no business not referenced in the call can be transacted at the special meeting. T.C.A. § 5-5-105. This notice is for the purpose of informing the county commissioners and is in addition to the notice to the public required by the Open Meetings Law. However, one notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county appearing five or more days before the special meeting may serve to meet both requirements.

Also, should any offices need to be filled, or a vacancy occur in any office required to be filled by the county legislative body, the county clerk, or if there is no county clerk, the county clerk’s deputy, or if there is no county clerk or deputy county clerk, the acting chair of the county legislative body, is obligated to give 10 days notice to every member of the county legislative body to assemble at the courthouse in order to fill the office or vacancy. T.C.A. § 5-5-113. This notice to inform county commissioners for the purpose of filling an office or vacancy may be for a special meeting or for action to fill an office to be held in conjunction with a regular meeting. When a meeting is to be held to fill an office or vacancy, the chair of the county legislative body is required to give public notice in a newspaper of general circulation in the county at least one week before the meeting, specifying the offices to be filled at that meeting. T.C.A. § 5-5-114.

Procedure and Voting Requirements:

As noted earlier, for most business before the county legislative body, a majority of the actual membership and not merely a majority of the quorum is required for passage of a resolution or main motion. However, there are certain optional general laws that require a two-thirds majority for adoption locally, and when a private act calls for local approval by the county legislative body for its effectiveness this also requires a two-thirds vote. The appendix to this handbook provides an outline of the procedure for adopting a resolution of the county legislative body and a chart for the number of votes required for a regular majority or a two-thirds majority.

The county legislative body is usually required to follow procedures mandated by state law, but often the state law is silent on the procedures to be followed. Therefore, it is important for county legislative bodies to adopt rules of procedure to follow when the state law does not provide guidance. A set of sample rules may be found in the appendix to this handbook. These are basic rules and it is suggested, as the sample does in Rule 11, to adopt a provision that all matters not covered by state law or the adopted rules be governed by Robert’s Rules of Order Revised as contained in the latest copyrighted edition.

When electing county officers or filling vacancies in offices required to be filled by the county legislative body, after giving the notices discussed above, the county legislative body will meet to make the election or fill the vacancy. At such a meeting, the chair will announce the office to be filled and ask the members of the public in attendance if anyone is offering himself or herself as a candidate. T.C.A. § 5-5-115. Some counties have adopted local procedures to determine interested candidates prior to the meeting. This is an informational stage of the proceeding and does not necessarily make any candidate a nominee. It is important that the county legislative body establish rules of procedure to deal with the manner of voting and the paring of nominees when no one person receives a majority vote. The state law requires that the voting by the county commissioners be public; secret ballots are prohibited. The county clerk records the vote of each member and gives the result to the chair. Although T.C.A. § 5-5-116appears to call for a method of voting whereby each member votes aye or nay for each nominee as the name is given, this method has been held to be merely directory by Tennessee Supreme Court. State ex rel. Wolfe v. Henegar, 180 Tenn. 425, 175 S.W.2d553 (1943). Therefore, a county legislative body is not required to follow this method and may use the more common method of the clerk calling the county commissioner’s name and the county commissioner then by voice vote tells the clerk and chair the name of the person that is receiving the commissioner’s vote. Whatever method is used, an office is not filled until someone receives a majority vote of the actual membership.

Committees:

There are many committees, boards and commissions in county government. The laws that apply can be very confusing. It is important to distinguish between internal committees of the county legislative body and committees or boards established or made optional by general law or private acts. Internal committees of the county legislative body have no statutory requirements associated with them, they can be created or not according to the will of the county legislative body, they have no independent power to act and may only make recommendations to the full county legislative body. Therefore, the number, title, composition, method of appointment and other matters pertaining to these committees are determined by resolution of the county legislative body, either directly or through the adopted rules of procedure. See e.g., Op. Tenn. Att’y Gen. U91-48 (March 25, 1991). These internal committees may vary greatly from county to county and may change easily within a county. They exist simply to provide advice to the full county legislative body.

On the other hand, a county may have many boards and committees that have their basis in either general state law or private acts. These statutory boards and committees have to be dealt with according to the terms of the laws that created them or authorized their creation. These boards and committees may exercise the powers granted to them by law, but no other powers may be exercised. Some statutory boards or committees may exercise some limited powers directly, and in other matters they may merely make recommendations as would an internal study committee. This handbook will discuss several of the most important statutory boards and committees authorized by general law according to the subject matter of the chapter. The nature and authority of any particular committee or board in a county must be examined individually on county-by-county and committee-by-committee basis.

Budgeting and Levying Taxes:

The county legislative body assembled in session is authorized to act for the county. T.C.A. § 5-1-103. All funds to be used in the operation of the county must be appropriated for that use by the county legislative body, which can appropriate money only for expenditures sanctioned by state law. T.C.A. § 5-9-401.The county legislative body may appropriate funds for any lawful purpose. T.C.A. §5-5-118 (incorporating certain municipal powers in T.C.A. § 6-2-201). It is the duty of the county legislative body to adopt a budget and to appropriate funds for the ensuing fiscal year for all county departments and agencies. T.C.A. § 5-9-404. The county mayor who does not chair the county legislative body may veto the entire county budget but may not veto portions of it. T.C.A. § 5-6-107.

A county usually adopts a budget annually, but a county legislative body may prepare and adopt a biennial budget for such departments of the county as are authorized for the particular county by the comptroller of the treasury’s state director of local finance. However, such biennial budgets may not be used until changes are made to existing county law in county charters, private acts or resolutions that require annual budgets. T.C.A. § 4-3-305.

The budget adopted by the county legislative body must be balanced, meaning that estimated revenues must at least equal the amounts appropriated plus any reserves required by state law. The county legislative body must levy taxes sufficient to meet appropriations (with other revenues such as state shared taxes included in the determination) and to meet all debt retirement and interest obligations. T.C.A. § 9-11-115. The county budget must meet all state law requirements. The failure to meet these requirements can cause the loss or withholding of state shared funds, such as education funds. Besides the requirements of balance and meeting debt obligations, the budget must also meet several other requirements such as the maintenance of effort requirement for education funding, the five-year average requirement for highway funding, the requirement not to lower the funds available to the sheriff for personnel costs without the consent of the sheriff, the mandatory minimum salaries of county officials, any court decrees providing the number and salaries of deputies and assistants of county officials, the requirement to have adequate correctional facilities(alone or in conjunction with one or more other counties) and any other mandates that state law places on the county. Many of these mandates will be discussed in this handbook in the chapter dealing with the particular subject matter.

The county property tax is the only significant source of revenue that the county legislative body can levy without limitation as to rate and without being subject to referendum (directly or if an adequate petition is filed) or requiring the passage of a private act. The sources of county revenue are discussed in Chapter 10 of this handbook and more detailed information can be found in the County Revenue Manual, a CTAS publication that can be found at the CTAS Web site (www.ctas.utk.edu).

Private Act Approvals:

Private acts of the General Assembly are a source of authority for counties in areas not covered by the general law. Examples of private acts include those levying hotel/motel taxes and development taxes as there is no general law authority for counties to levy these particular taxes. Under Article XI, Section 9, of the Tennessee Constitution, private acts are not effective until approved locally by the county (or city) to which they apply by the terms of the private act. Local approval of a private act for a particular county can occur by a majority vote in a referendum by the qualified voters of the county who vote in the referendum, or by a two-thirds majority vote of the county legislative body. The method of local approval must be specified in the private act. Sometimes private acts provide that they must be approved by a certain date or they will not become effective. However, if there is not a deadline for local approval in the private act, general law requires that approval take place by December 1in the year that the private act passed the General Assembly. The approval or rejection of a private act that requires approval by two-thirds vote of the county legislative body is certified by the chair of the county legislative body to the secretary of state of Tennessee.

The county legislative body may request by resolution that members of the General Assembly representing the people of the county introduce and work for the passage of a particular private act. Such a resolution has no legal effect, but members of the General Assembly prefer to see such a resolution, particularly if passed by the number of votes that will be necessary to approve the private act, before they introduce the private act bill. However, members of the General Assembly are under no legal obligation to introduce the requested private act bill. Further, although this rarely occurs, they may introduce and work for the passage of a private act bill that provides for referendum approval against the wishes of the county legislative body.

Other Duties:

The county legislative body has important duties that are dealt with in other chapters of this handbook. For example, the county legislative body has duties with respect to the acceptance of county roads, the annual updating and approval of the county road list, and the closing of roads not deemed worthy of inclusion on the county road list. Chapter 5 of this handbook provides a more detailed discussion of these road-related duties. The county legislative body may adopt optional general laws in the areas of financial management, budgeting and purchasing. These matters are discussed in Chapter 12. The county legislative body has important duties with respect to approving the issuance of county debt instruments such as bonds and notes. These matters are discussed in some detail in Chapter 13. The county legislative body has a duty to provide courthouse space for the state courts and jail facilities (alone or in conjunction with one or more counties) as well as for certain county officials. These issues are addressed in Chapters 14, 15, and 21. The county legislative body may adopt comprehensive zoning for the area of the county outside the corporate limits of the municipalities. Planning and zoning issues are discussed in Chapter 17. The county legislative body has a duty to have a countywide personnel policy (although several offices may have their own policy separate from the general county policy). The county legislative body may provide medical and life insurance benefits to county employees and county officials through insurance or self-insurance. These matters are discussed in Chapter 19. The county legislative body has the authority to regulate dogs, cats and stray animals. The county legislative body may, by two-thirds vote of the county legislative body, adopt regulations to prevent public nuisances. Also, the county legislative body may determine whether or not to adopt a distance rule regarding the sale of beer at retail. These regulatory matters are discussed in Chapter 18. The county legislative body must determine how to deal with its liability risks through either insurance, self-insurance, or joint self-insurance through an insurance pool. These matters are reviewed in Chapter 20. Many of the records of the county are very valuable and the county legislative body has an important role with the county public records commission and other county officials to preserve records of permanent value and to manage the county’s records efficiently. Chapter 22 deals with county records.

The county legislative body has a role in either electing or approving the appointment of many county officials and department heads. Some of these are detailed in Chapter 6. Also, the county legislative body may decide to limit the duties of constables to process serving and take away law enforcement powers, or to abolish the office at the end of the terms of the incumbent constables. The procedure for doing this is detailed in Chapter6.
 

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COUNTY MAYOR

 

County Mayor Qualifications and Title:

The office of county executive was created by the 1978amendment to Article 7, Section 1, of the Tennessee Constitution, when county executive was added to the list of county officials named in the Tennessee Constitution. The list also includes the sheriff, trustee, register, county clerk, assessor of property and members of the county legislative body. In the implementing legislation, 1978 Public Chapter 934, the General Assembly chose to designate members of the county legislative body as county commissioners, but left the county executive with the title given in the constitution with the option of establishing a different title by private act. In2003 Public Chapter 90, this law was changed to provide that the chief executive officer of each county, excepting counties with a consolidated (metropolitan) form of government, would hereafter be entitled “county mayor.” This law was amended in 2004by Public Chapter 568 to provide that the title may be changed to “county executive” by private act for the particular county. T.C.A. § 5-6-101. The chief executive officers of metropolitan governments continue to use the title provided for them by their metropolitan government charter.

The county mayor is elected by the people of the county for a term of four years in all counties except those that provide otherwise in a consolidated government charter. T.C.A. § 5-6-102.   In order to run for the office a person must be a qualified voter of the county, at least 25 years old, and a resident of the county for at least one full year prior to filing a nominating petition for the office. T.C.A. § 5-6-104. After election, the county mayor must take an oath of office and execute a bond in the amount of $25,000 (in counties with a population of less than 15,000) or $50,000 (in counties with a population of 15,000 or more), although the legislative body may require a greater amount. T.C.A. § 5-6-109. A sample oath of office is found in the appendix to this handbook.

 

Compensation:

 

The position is full time, except in counties where the voters have determined by referendum that the workload does not necessitate a full-time mayor. If the county mayor’s office is determined by referendum not to be a full-time position, this must be done prior to the election of the county mayor or the county mayor will been titled to the minimum salary. T.C.A. §§ 5-6-105, 8-24-102(g). A minimum salary, determined by population class, is set by the General Assembly (T.C.A. § 8-24-102),although the legislative body may increase that amount. T.C.A. § 8-24-114. However, the compensation for the full-time county mayor must be at least 5 percent greater than the maximum salary payable to any other constitutional officer. T.C.A. § 8-24-102(g). As the sheriff is the next most highly compensated constitutional officer, the full-time county mayor's compensation must be at least 5 percent greater than the sheriff’s salary.

 

Relationship to County Legislative Body: 

The county mayor serves as a nonvoting, exofficio member of the legislative body. The county mayor or the county mayor's representative also serves as a nonvoting, ex officio member of each committee of the legislative body, except as provided by law or by the legislative body. T.C.A. § 5-6-106. 

The county mayor may be elected chairperson of the legislative body. A county mayor who serves as chair of the legislative body may cast a vote in the event of a tie. T.C.A. §5-5-109. However, if the county mayor becomes chair, the mayor's veto power is forfeited. T.C.A. § 5-5-103. If not chair of the county legislative body, the county mayor has veto power over legislative resolutions (not administrative or appellate resolutions) adopted by the legislative body. When a resolution is adopted by the legislative body, it should be submitted to the county mayor. Each resolution must be signed, vetoed, or allowed to become effective without the county mayor's signature.  If a resolution is signed by the county mayor, it becomes effective immediately or at a later date specified in the resolution.  If the county mayor vetoes the resolution, he or she must return the resolution to the legislative body for action on the veto, and the resolution becomes effective only upon subsequent passage by a majority of all legislative body members. Such passage must take place within 20 days of receiving the county mayor's veto or at the legislative body's next regular meeting, whichever is later. If the county mayor does not sign or veto a resolution or report the mayor's action to the legislative body within 10 days after the resolution is submitted to him or her, the resolution becomes effective without the mayor's signature after 10 days or at a later date if the resolution so provides.  T.C.A. § 5-6-107. The county mayor who does not chair the county legislative body may veto the entire county budget but may not veto portions of it. T.C.A. § 5-6-107. 

 

Fiscal Duties: 

The county mayor is the chief financial officer of the county and except in counties that have adopted the 1981 Financial Management System or that have a county charter that provides otherwise, the county mayor signs or co-signs county warrants, at least for general fund expenditures. The county mayor may examine the accounts of the county officers to verify each item of expenditure or revenue.  T.C.A. §§5-6-110, 5-6-112. The county mayor audits all claims for money against the county.  In counties not providing otherwise, the county mayor serves as the chief accounting officer for the county and maintains the general fund accounts. T.C.A. § 5-6-108.Although the exact role varies depending upon the particular county’s adoption of optional general laws, county charters or private acts, the county mayor generally has a strong role in the budgetary process and often presents the consolidated budget for each fiscal year to the county budget committee or county legislative body. A more detailed description of these fiscal duties is provided in Chapter 12 of this handbook. 

 

Other Duties: 

The county mayor or a designated representative of the county mayor serves as a nonvoting, ex officio member of each committee of the county legislative body and of each board, commission, or authority of the county government. T.C.A. §5-6-106. Except as provided by general law or private act, the county mayor appoints members of county boards, commissions, and department heads, subject to confirmation by the county legislative body. T.C.A. § 5-6-106. In actual practice, this exception to the county mayor’s appointment power is a large one since general laws or private acts provide for the selection of most department heads and membership of most boards. 

The county mayor has the care and custody of all county property, unless it is placed with another officer. T.C.A. § 5-6-108. However, the custody and security for the courthouse is placed with the sheriff if the county legislative body does not provide otherwise. T.C.A. § 7-108. The county mayor is under a duty to obtain a flag of the state of Tennessee from the adjutant general’s office and to fly it upon proper occasions. T.C.A. § 5-7-109. If there is no county attorney, the mayor may employ or retain counsel. T.C.A. § 5-6-112. The mayor may employ clerical assistants needed in the performance of his or her duties and set their compensation within the amount appropriated for that purpose by the county legislative body.  T.C.A. § 5-6-116. 

The county mayor may enter into letters of agreement with county “fee” officials regarding the number and salary of deputies and assistants if within the budget adopted by the county legislative body or if the fee official is paying the salaries of deputies and assistants from the office fee accounts. If no agreement is reached, the county mayor is a defendant in salary suits that may be brought by these officials. T.C.A. § 8-20-101 et seq. 

The county mayor has an important role in creating, modifying and merging utility districts as well as the service provided (water, sewer, gas) under the Utility District Law of 1937, as amended. T.C.A. § 7-82-101, et seq. The county mayor is authorized to hold hearings on such issues after receiving a petition from at least 25 property owners and the advice of the state’s utility management review board. The county mayor is authorized to issue orders concerning these utility districts if in accordance with the rather complicated set of statutes governing utility districts. T.C.A. § 7-82-202. 

The county mayor appoints members of the emergency communications district’s board of directors subject to confirmation by the county legislative body. If the county legislative body does not act to confirm or reject the appointment within 90 days or the conclusion of its next regularly scheduled meeting after the appointment is made, whichever is later, the appointments take effect without confirmation. T.C.A. § 7-86-105. 

The county mayor performs other duties and shares administrative tasks with the other constitutional and statutory county officials.  The powers and duties of each county official are specifically established through statute and covered in more detail in Chapter3 and other chapters of this publication. The county mayor has other duties and interacts with other county officials in almost every area of local administration.  The mayor's role in tax collection, county penal administration, investment of county funds, county health, and care for the poor, among other topics, will be discussed in other chapters of this handbook. 

The county mayor is a member of the board of directors of the development district and human resources agency of which his or her county is a part. T.C.A. §§ 13-14-104, 13-26-103.  In this and other ways, the county mayor is often viewed as a “representative” of the county or as the county’s leader in dealings with other governmental entities. 

Vacancies and Incapacities: 

Vacancies in the office of county mayor are filled by the legislative body, and the appointee serves until a successor is elected at the next general election.  T.C.A. § 5-1-104. Furthermore, a vacancy in the office of county mayor is filled temporarily by the chairperson of the county legislative body (or the chairperson pro tempore in circumstances where the county mayor had been the chairperson) as interim county mayor during the time between the beginning of the vacancy and the appointment of a successor. T.C.A. § 5-5-103(i). If a county mayor is incapacitated or absent from the job for more than 21 days, the legislative body must appoint the chairperson of the legislative body to serve as acting county mayor until the disability or absence is removed. T.C.A. § 5-5-103(g).

 

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