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Steering committee approves law‑firm engagement to assist assessor with appeals and State Board matter
Summary
The committee approved sending to budget an engagement letter allowing a law firm to handle property assessment appeals and assist the assessor’s office in a pending State Board of Equalization noncompliance matter; funds were reported as already budgeted but the engagement must go to budget committee.
Rutherford County’s steering committee voted to approve an engagement letter to retain a law firm to handle property assessment appeals and to assist the assessor’s office with a pending State Board of Equalization matter, and to send the agreement to the budget committee for review.
Property Assessor Rob Mitchell told the committee that the county’s longtime outside counsel for assessment appeals, attorney Bobby Lee, recently died and the assessor sought a firm to continue that work. Attorney Stephanie Coleman introduced herself and said her firm has worked previously with Lee and will assist the county in assessment appeal work.
Nick (county staff) told the committee the engagement includes two limited prongs: representing the county in assessment appeals and assisting the Property Assessor’s Office in a pending proceeding before the State Board of Equalization regarding a report of noncompliance issued by the Division of Property Assessments under the Comptroller’s Office. Mitchell said the contract would function similarly to past arrangements and would give the assessor an additional set of legal eyes on the matter.
Commissioner Beverly moved to approve the engagement and send it to budget; Commissioner Johnson seconded. Beverly said she supported retaining counsel for assessment appeals but voiced skepticism about representation in the State Board matter and stressed the need to preserve county interests. Nick said the firm’s representation would be of the assessor’s office in its professional capacity and that the county would retain discretion to terminate the agreement.
Mitchell said the costs were already included in his office’s budget. The steering committee’s roll call recorded affirmative votes by Commissioners Kush, Beverly, McAdoo, Rather, Johnson and Reid; the county attorney confirmed the engagement will also need to be presented to the budget committee before finalizing payment arrangements.
