AN ACT to create the Humphreys County Water Authority.
SB1566 creates the Humphreys County Water Authority as a public, governmental body and political subdivision of the state to plan, acquire, operate, and finance water and wastewater systems for Humphreys County and the surrounding region. The authority is structured with a five-member board of commissioners initially appointed by county and city officials, with additional board seats added if other utilities or local governments transfer their systems to the authority. The bill also sets out the authority’s governance, meeting procedures, officer roles, and the ability to hire staff and professional consultants.
The authority is given broad operational powers, including the ability to acquire, construct, improve, and operate water and sewer systems; enter into transfer and operating agreements with the county, cities, and other participating governmental entities; set rates and fees; issue notes and bonds; refinance debt; and, where authorized, use eminent domain. The act also establishes exclusive service areas for systems acquired by the authority, authorizes joint obligations backed in some cases by the full faith and credit and taxing power of the county or cities, and exempts the authority and its bonds from most state and local taxation. The act does not take effect unless approved by a two-thirds vote of the Humphreys County legislative body.
This bill would add a new special-law utility authority to Tennessee law for Humphreys County, creating a new governmental entity with powers similar to those of a local utility district or utility authority. It would affect county and municipal control over water and wastewater assets by allowing the county and the cities of Waverly, McEwen, and New Johnsonville to transfer systems, liabilities, and related property to the new authority, and it would authorize the authority to operate those systems and issue debt secured by system revenues and, if approved, local government backing. The bill also limits the authority’s taxation power, places it under state environmental regulation and the Tennessee Board of Utility Regulation, and makes the act contingent on approval by the Humphreys County legislative body.
The available voting history shows strong support in committee, with unanimous recommendations for passage in both the Senate Government Operations Committee and the Senate State & Local Government Committee. No committee transcript excerpts were provided, so there is no recorded floor or committee debate to indicate opposition or concerns in the supplied materials. Overall, the bill appears to have been treated as a local infrastructure measure with broad procedural support.
The main potential points of contention are the transfer of local water and wastewater systems to a new authority, the possibility of joint debt obligations backed by county or city taxing power, and the authority’s power to set rates and designate exclusive service areas. These issues could raise concerns for local officials or residents about loss of direct control, financial exposure, and service territory boundaries. The bill addresses some of that sensitivity by requiring local legislative approval, limiting the authority’s tax powers, and making any joint obligations contingent on approval by the affected governing bodies.