Rules, Confirmations & Public Elections Committee approves consent proclamations, confirms appointments and defers music commission ordinance

The Rules, Confirmations & Public Elections Committee met in Nashville on Feb. 7, 2025, and approved a consent agenda of proclamations and recognitions, confirmed multiple boards-and-commissions nominees and voted to defer proposed changes to the Nashville Music, Entertainment and Film Commission for one meeting.

The committee approved its consent agenda — including resolutions honoring Larissa A. Jackson, recognizing the 60th anniversary of the Metropolitan Human Relations Commission, a Black History Month proclamation and a resolution recognizing National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day — by voice vote, with the chair announcing six in favor and none opposed. The panel also approved a late-file substitute to a resolution commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Sister Cities partnership with Belfast, Northern Ireland; the substitute added language provided by the Sister Cities delegation and was approved to allow presentation to visiting delegates in late February.

Why it matters: the committee handles confirmations and council procedural items that shape how city boards operate and who leads them. This meeting advanced several mayoral appointees and kept in place the timeline for a Belfast delegation visit that the committee said it would like to present a formal commemoration to while the delegation is in Nashville.

Appointments and confirmations

Frank Stephenson was confirmed to the Metropolitan Development and Housing Authority board for a term expiring Feb. 4, 2030. Stephenson, who identified himself as a Nashville native and former resident of the J.C. Napier (University Courts) housing development, told the committee he wanted to “pay it forward” by supporting policies that preserve affordable housing for working families.

Dr. Nzewe (identified in the record as a physician who has worked at National General and with Meharry Medical College) was confirmed to the Hospital Authority board after a lengthy discussion about potential conflicts of interest. Council members, committee counsel and the mayor’s office discussed that Dr. Nzewe’s employment with Meharry could require recusal from any board votes that present a direct or indirect financial interest; Derek (committee legal counsel) advised that a board member would be required to recuse in such circumstances. Dave Rosenberg of the mayor’s office said that many cities place an experienced representative of an associated teaching hospital on a safety-net hospital board and that most Hospital Authority votes are not directly Meharry-related. Dr. Nzewe told the committee his “guiding light” would be patient care and the hospital’s interest and that he is “used to working on both sides” of the hospital–academic relationship.

Kathy Varney was reappointed to the Nashville Public Library board for a term expiring April 6, 2032. Varney described the library’s Begin Bright early-literacy initiative and said the library plans a four-year study with Vanderbilt’s prenatal-to-3 team; she told the committee the program’s initial budget is $7 million for the first four years and that the board’s fund-raising committee has targeted $20 million to both launch and endow the program. “In 11 months, we’ve raised $20,000,000,” Varney said, and the transcript records that Dolly Parton committed to donate books for all licensed day-care centers targeted in the program.

Other confirmations that were approved by single-vote actions or unanimous voice votes included the Sustainability Advisory Committee appointment of Catherine Armwood (term to 03/14/2026), the zoning appeals board reappointment of Christina Carpenter (term to 12/15/2030), and a package vote confirming Kara Entz to the Human Relations Commission, Demita Beck Taylor to the Solid Waste Regional Board and William Allen Sloan to the Transportation and Licensing Commission.

Music, Entertainment and Film Commission ordinance deferred

A second-reading ordinance (BL2025-688) to amend the Metropolitan Code regarding the Nashville Music, Entertainment and Film Commission — a working-group recommendation — generated the most extended committee debate. The proposed ordinance would, over time, reduce the commission’s membership (proposed from 15 to 11), change the method for hiring the commission’s executive director (moving final hiring authority to the mayor with commission input, mirroring a recent contract-and-compliance board model) and tighten how subcommittees and vetting are handled. Supporters said the changes respond to working-group findings on board size, quorum and accountability; opponents, including Councilmember Stiles and the commission chair Max Baker, said the draft arrived with insufficient community engagement and risked removing industry representation that the commission’s formation had been designed to secure.

Councilmember Stiles offered a substitute that restores much of the commission’s original formation and proposed a one-meeting deferral to allow commissioners and stakeholders time to review the substitute. The committee voted to defer the item one meeting (the chair announced eight in favor, none opposed) so members can consult with commission members and review the substitute language.

Votes at a glance

- Consent agenda (resolutions honoring Larissa A. Jackson; recognizing the Metropolitan Human Relations Commission’s 60th anniversary; Black History Month proclamation; National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day): approved (voice vote; chair announced 6 in favor, 0 opposed). - RS 2025-1033 (Sister Cities Belfast 30th anniversary) late-file substitute: approved (voice vote; 6 in favor, 0 opposed) to allow presentation to visiting delegates. - BL2025-688 (amend code for Music, Entertainment & Film Commission): deferred one meeting (motion carried; chair announced 8 in favor, 0 opposed). - Frank Stephenson — MDHA appointment (term to 02/04/2030): confirmed (voice vote). - Dr. Nzewe — Hospital Authority appointment: confirmed after discussion about recusals for Meharry-related matters (voice vote). - Kathy Varney — Public Library Board reappointment (term to 04/06/2032): confirmed (voice vote). - Catherine Armwood — Sustainability Advisory Committee (term to 03/14/2026): confirmed (voice vote; chair recorded 7 in favor). - Christina Carpenter — Zoning Appeals Board reappointment (term to 12/15/2030): confirmed (voice vote; chair recorded 7 in favor). - Package confirmations (Kara Entz — Human Relations Commission; Demita Beck Taylor — Solid Waste Region Board; William Allen Sloan — Transportation & Licensing Commission): confirmed (package voice vote; chair recorded 7 in favor).

Discussion vs. decision

Committee discussion included (1) procedural questions about late-file substitutes and timing to align presentation with visiting delegations; (2) concern that shrinking the music commission could erode industry representation and that mayoral hiring could subject the office to changing administration priorities; (3) whether a hospital board appointee employed by Meharry could participate fully when contracts between institutions exist — legal counsel advised recusal where a direct or indirect financial interest exists; and (4) library board goals and the Begin Bright early-literacy rollout, including the library’s plan to pilot in licensed day-care centers and to measure outcomes with an academic partner.

What’s next

The committee’s deferral of the music commission ordinance will return at the next Rules, Confirmations & Public Elections Committee meeting after the one-meeting delay requested by members so commissioners and stakeholders can review substitute language. Confirmed appointments will move to the full council for final confirmation where required by council rules or, for those already placed, will take up their duties according to the board start dates in their confirmed terms.

Ending note: committee members emphasized that several of the confirmed nominees have specialized experience (housing, hospital medicine, library leadership and sustainability) and that the committee’s role is to vet qualification and, when necessary, preserve recusal and ethics safeguards for nominees who have existing institutional ties.