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Newport council appoints two aldermen to regional partnership board amid questions over interlocal agreement
Summary
The Newport City Council appointed Aldermen Mike Hansel and Louanna Oettinger to the Cobb County Partnership Board but several council members urged staff to locate an executed interlocal agreement and to review the census-based funding formula before finalizing structural changes.
Newport 999The Newport City Council on Monday voted to appoint two city representatives to the Cobb County Partnership Board while several members pressed for clearer documentation of the interlocal agreement that governs the partnership.
Mayor Mathis announced appointments to the revised partnership board, saying he would appoint "Alderman Mike Hansel and Alderman Louanna Oettinger." The motion to confirm the volunteer appointments was made, seconded and carried by voice vote.
The vote came after an alderman raised concerns that the interlocal agreement in the council's packet may not be fully executed and that the census numbers used to allocate funding could cause Newport to pay a larger share than intended. "If we're gonna do this agreement, I think it should be updated and filled out properly, instead of just what we've got here that's not really understandable by me," the alderman said, urging the council to review the underlying document and applicable Tennessee code.
City Administrator James told the council staff had received information that a signed copy may exist but that the chamber employee believed to possess it was on vacation; officials said they would wait for that person to return to try to locate an executed copy. "We started digging into this today," James said, describing staff's effort to confirm whether an executed version is on file.
Council members also discussed the long history of the partnership board. The mayor said the board "has been in effect for some 20 some odd years" and that the city has traditionally maintained representation. Several members said they wanted to avoid tilting representation toward the county or sacrificing city seats while the interlocal agreement is reviewed.
The council approved the appointments as volunteer positions; members noted that because the seats are unpaid they do not require the same formal salary vote as paid positions. Council asked staff and legal counsel to follow up by locating any executed interlocal agreement, confirming the intended board composition and reviewing the census-based funding allocation before any further structural changes are finalized.
The council then moved on to other appointments and agenda items.
