Committee narrows and clarifies powers of new oversight board amid debate on composition and costs

Committee debate focused on implementation details: whether the oversight board could contract out the comprehensive needs assessment and turnaround plan, how quickly the board would meet and act on contracts and budgets, and how members and staff would be compensated.

Senator Taylor and others asked legal counsel whether the board could subcontract the needs assessment; Casey Washburn said the bill currently obligates the oversight board to perform the functions and that explicit language would be needed to allow contracting. The committee voted to add language permitting the board to contract for assessments and to set policies and timelines for contract and budget submissions. Senator Ackberry and others pressed for clarity on compensation and whether the state fiscal office would provide additional funding; Washburn said members and staff could be paid from district funds or could petition a newly created state treasury account for disbursements to assist oversight boards.

Members also debated residency and removal criteria for board members. The committee adopted an amendment permitting one of the two speaker‑of‑the‑house appointees to reside outside the LEA county (but within Tennessee) to allow appointment of specialized experts; legal counsel said otherwise the only statutory residency requirement is that appointees live in the state and (for the majority of seats) reside in the county.