AN ACT to amend Chapter 833 of the Private Acts of 1949; as amended by Chapter 171 of the Private Acts of 1957; Chapter 28 of the Private Acts of 1957; Chapter 122 of the Private Acts of 1975; and any other acts amendatory thereto, relative to the charter of the Town of Sardis.
HB2654 is a private act amending the charter of the Town of Sardis, Tennessee. The bill updates multiple sections of the town’s charter to modernize and restate the structure and authority of municipal government, including the composition of the governing body, the mayor’s role, the recorder’s duties, employee management, and election procedures. It also preserves the town’s general municipal powers under state law.
Among the key changes, the bill provides that Sardis will be governed by a Mayor and five Aldermen, sets qualifications and vacancy-filling procedures, and authorizes the board to set salaries by ordinance. It clarifies that the mayor presides over meetings and votes only in the event of a tie. The bill also revises the recorder’s bond and compensation provisions, limits hiring to positions authorized in the annual budget except in emergencies, and gives the board authority over appointment, promotion, discipline, and removal of employees. It further establishes quadrennial municipal elections beginning in August 2026 and includes a property-owner voting provision for certain nonresidents owning taxable real estate in the town.
The bill’s impact is limited to the Town of Sardis and its charter, rather than statewide law generally. It amends a series of private acts governing the municipality and would change how local officials are selected, compensated, and managed, as well as who may vote in town elections. Because it is a private act, it becomes effective for all purposes only if approved by a two-thirds vote of Sardis’s legislative body, with local approval or rejection to be certified to the Secretary of State.
The available voting history shows strong support throughout the legislative process, with unanimous committee recommendations and unanimous or near-unanimous floor action. There is no recorded committee transcript indicating substantive opposition, and the bill appears to have moved as a routine local charter update. The overall sentiment is therefore favorable and noncontroversial in the legislature.
The main point of potential contention is the election provision allowing certain nonresident property owners to vote in municipal elections, which can raise questions about local representation and voting rights. Another possible issue is the broad authority given to the mayor and board over municipal employees and salaries, though the bill text itself presents these as administrative charter revisions rather than disputed policy changes.
HB2654 amends the private charter of the Town of Sardis by revising provisions on municipal governance, elections, employee administration, and official duties. It changes the structure and powers of the mayor and board of aldermen, updates the recorder’s office, authorizes salary-setting by ordinance, and establishes election timing and voter eligibility rules for town offices. The bill affects only Sardis and the private acts governing that municipality, not the general Tennessee Code, and it is contingent on local approval by the town’s legislative body.
The legislative sentiment appears strongly positive and routine. The bill received unanimous or near-unanimous support in committee and on the floor, with no recorded dissenting votes in the provided history. The absence of committee transcripts or recorded debate suggests the measure was treated as a noncontroversial local charter amendment.
The most notable substantive issue is the provision allowing nonresident property owners meeting a minimum taxable property threshold to vote in Sardis municipal elections, subject to a cap on voters per tract. That kind of rule can be controversial because it extends local voting rights beyond residents. A secondary area of concern could be the broad managerial authority granted to the mayor and board over hiring, discipline, and compensation, but the legislative record provided does not show organized opposition to those provisions.