A measure by McMinnville officials to set term limits on specific boards is making its way back to the full board after being revised and approved in committee.
The measure will affect the Board of Zoning Appeals, the Board of Adjustment Appeals, the Historic Zoning Commission, the Board of Public Utilities, the Alcoholic Beverage Board, the County Tax Equalization Board, the Industrial Development Board and the Tri County Railroad Authority.
The original proposal was not specific and would have affected all board appointees, meaning any citizen appointed to a committee or board by the McMinnville Board of Mayor and Aldermen.
Tennessee Municipal League legal consultant Melissa Ashburn informed the city via email that it could not set term limits on every board and committee.
“Boards established under state law must comply with state law provisions concerning appointments and terms of office,” said Ashburn. “That being the case, the governing board may not limit the general law powers of the mayor to make these appointments.”
According to Finance Committee chairman Ken Smith, being specific has gained Ashburn’s support.
“Mrs. Ashburn has looked at this at MTAS and has changed her opinion,” he said.
Alderman Ben Newman is against setting term limits.
“I don’t want to limit any of these positions,” he said. “I understand taking this to the full board and seeing what it wants to do. We don’t have enough people really wanting these positions. Any limitations put on it just makes it more difficult to put people in them.”
The proposal to set term limits came from Alderman Mike Neal after a local resident was reappointment to the McMinnville Electric System Board for the ninth time. Under the revised plan, MES is excluded from term limits.
Neal says the policy is to prevent “serial appointments” of the same individuals.
“There is not a limitation on people,” Neal said to Newman. “This is a limitation placed upon this board and the appointing process. When I look at the list of people appointed to specific boards, I see many friends on there. But, this is a policy about serial appointments. As long as we are having the same names being presented, nothing is going to change.”
The revised policy also states “previous appointments by other entities (i.e. the county) will be considered in the total allowable appointment.”
When questioned what that meant, Neal stated, “That means that both the city and county appoint representatives to some boards. If they have already been appointed by the county or some other entity to sit on that board, that would count toward their total number on our side.”
Term limitations by the revised policy:
• To qualify or be considered to serve on a board with terms of four years, the nominee must not have previously served three terms without a retirement of at least one term. After serving three consecutive terms, the appointee must retire for the duration of one term and then would be eligible to serve two more terms for a maximum of 20 years.
• To qualify or be considered to serve on a board with terms of five years, the nominee must not have previously served two terms without a retirement of at least one term. After serving two consecutive terms, the appointee must retire for the duration of one term and then would be eligible to serve two more terms for a maximum of 20 years.
• To qualify or be considered to serve on a board with terms of six years, the nominee must not have previously served two terms without a retirement of at least one term. After serving two consecutive terms, the appointee must retire for the duration of one term and then would be eligible to serve one more term for a maximum of 18 years.
• Any board appointee to any other board or position that is not categorized above would be allowed to serve a maximum of 20 years with a retirement period of at least four years before  two-thirds of the maximum time of appointment has passed.
• In the event of a lack of interest by the citizens to accept positions of appointment, the mayor and the board, after due diligence, may reappoint a citizen who has previously served the maximum time of appointment allowed to fill the vacancy.
• This policy regarding appointees will take effect upon the boards approval and all future appointments and reappointments would be subject to these limitations.
• The mayor will adhere to public notice policies adopted by the board when making nominations for appointment.
Term limits pertain to how long an individual can serve on one of the specified boards. When an individual has served the maximum amount of time on one board, they can ask to serve on one of the other boards.
Finance Committee members Smith and Neal voted in favor of the revised policy and sent it to the full board for its consideration Sept. 10. Newman voted against it.