Jefferson County Mayor Alan Palmieri has called a special meeting of the Jefferson County Commission to discuss a school construction plan the body had already approved 11-9. Commission Chairman Phillip Kindred has said that the Mayor is "wasting the Commissioners' time" by calling a meeting that he believes to be needless under the circumstances. For his part, Palmieri has engaged in secrecy of his own, coming to a series of agreements with the Norfolk Southern Railroad about the construction of an inter-modal facility in secret-in a blatant violation of Tennessee law. The County Commission and the School Board have generally been at an impasse over education funding, particularly as related to the construction of new school buildings and the repair of old ones. Jefferson County has some of the lowest teacher pay in the State, and facilities in dire need of upgrade. Meanwhile, many county residents are retired or already have lower incomes and can't afford a further significant increase in property taxes.
County Commission is often viewed as being unable to deliberate, and many of its members seem to residents to be blissfully unaware of many of the issues about which they are called upon to make decisions. The county mayor would like to reduce the size of the commission, ostensibly so that he can then have a legislative body which will be more likely to agree with his own plans for the county and its future-a kind of reverse "packing" of the legislative branch of county government with yes-men for the executive.
In neighboring Knox County, the public was convinced to amend the county charter to reduce the size of the Knox County Commission from 19 members to 11 after nearly four years of conflict and chaos in Knox County Government over a term limits amendment to the county charter adopted in 1994 but ignored on the advice of the State Attorney General, who at the time said that the relevant charter amendment was unconstitutional. The Tennessee Supreme Court didn't hear the case until 2006, at which time the Justices declared that the amendment was valid and constitutional. The insuing chaotic mess first had Chancellor John Weaver ruling that the entire Knox County Charter was invalid, then the Tennessee Supreme Court saying that it was. After which the then-Knox County Commission felt compelled to replace the removed Commissioners on January 31, 2007, in a meeting where the Open Meetings Act was summarily violated and the County was subsequently sued by the Knoxville News-Sentinel et. al. People reading this from outside of East Tennessee should know that for the sake of brevity, this is the very short version of what actually happened.
Now, a group of citizens along with two Knox County Commissioners are once again suing the county, this time saying that the Knox County Charter Amendment passed in November of 2008 to reduce the size of the county commission is not valid because it contains language which contradicts Tennessee State Law, as well as language about conflict of interest rules which is nearly identical to language in another amendment defeated on the same day. Most importantly to voters, the suit alleges that the redistricting plan which was adopted in response to the amendment's passage violates the principle of "one man, one vote" and effectively disenfranchises many Knox Countians. On all of these points, it seems that the Plaintiffs are very likely correct, whether the courts see it that way or not. However, the reality remains that the offending charter amendment was passed in response to corruption and secrecy in county government.
Whether it is infighting in Jefferson County, possibly illegal government in Knox County, or internecine political wars in many counties over issues as basic as road funding or education, the question is forced upon us: Are Tennessee county governments effective? Under our State Constitution, the General Assembly-the body which created all of our counties-has the final authority over the function of government within them. In 92 of Tennessee's 95 counties (the exceptions being Knox and Shelby Counties with charter forms of government, and Davidson County, which has a metropolitan government), no major action can be taken without a corresponding private act from the Legislature. In those counties with home rule, State oversight is still often a matter of necessity. Perhaps it is time for the General Assembly to examine all of our county governments to determine whether these governments actually work, and if not, what needs to be changed to make them work.
Comments