Claiborne County Commission votes to join Tennessee opioid abatement plan; County Mayor issues veto
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Summary
On Dec. 20, 2021 the Claiborne County Commission voted unanimously to join the Tennessee State-Subdivision Opioid Abatement Agreement and amended the resolution to authorize the county attorney to sign settlement documents. County Mayor Joe Brooks issued a veto on Dec. 29, saying the amendment removed the mayor’s signature authority.
The Claiborne County Commission on Dec. 20 voted to join the Tennessee State-Subdivision Opioid Abatement Agreement and to approve related settlement documents, then amended the resolution to authorize the Claiborne County Attorney to execute the plan and settlement paperwork rather than the County Mayor.
Commissioner Mitchell Cosby moved to approve Resolution 2021-116, with Commissioner Charlton Vass seconding. Commissioner Kim Large then moved to amend Sections 3–5 of the resolution to authorize the Claiborne County Attorney to execute the Tennessee Plan and related settlement agreements; Commissioner Brent Clark seconded the amendment. The roll-call vote on the amendment was 21 for, 0 against. The commission then voted 21 for, 0 against on the original motion as amended.
The adopted language authorizes the county attorney to sign the state-subdivision agreement and any formal agreements necessary to implement a unified plan for allocating opioid settlement funds, including settlements associated with distributor defendants and Janssen/Johnson & Johnson. The meeting record also includes the statewide agreement text describing allocation formulas that weigh three-year fatal and nonfatal overdose counts, morphine milligram equivalent (MME) sales and population, and states that the Tennessee Attorney General approved the state-subdivision agreement on Nov. 22, 2021.
Nine district allocations and other mechanics for distributing abatement funds are set out in the statewide agreement that the resolution references. County materials in the record show the agreement contemplates an Opioid Abatement Fund and county allocations updated periodically based on statutory requirements and data reviews.
County Mayor Joe Brooks issued a written veto of the amended resolution on Dec. 29, 2021. In his veto letter Brooks said the amendment that assigned signature authority to the county attorney "usurps the authority granted to me by the state constitution." He added that he did not object to the county participating in the opioid abatement program itself, but objected to the amendment that removed the mayor’s authority to sign county documents.
The commission’s minutes record the amendment, the unanimous roll-call votes, and the mayor’s subsequent veto letter filed Dec. 29. The minutes do not include a further action recorded on the veto; next procedural steps would be determined under county rules for overriding a mayoral veto or reconsideration by the commission.