County Consolidation Committee

If a petition to consolidate a county or a portion of a county with one or more adjoining counties is signed by the qualified voters of any one county in a number equal to at least 25 percent of the number of votes cast in the county for governor in the last general election, then the state consolidation committee created by T.C.A. § 5-3-101 is required to appoint a county consolidation committee for the petitioning county. The county consolidation committee is composed of the county mayor and county trustee of the petitioning county and the county mayors of the adjoining counties and five signers of the petition designated by the governor. T.C.A. § 5-3-102. The state consolidation committee and the county consolidation committee act as a joint committee to consider the request for consolidation and hold hearings within the petitioning county. The joint committee reports its findings within 90 days of receiving the petition. If favorable to consolidation, the joint committee recommends the county or counties with which the petitioning county should be consolidated and sets new proposed boundaries. T.C.A. § 5-3-103.  After proper publication in a newspaper or newspapers of general circulation in the affected counties, the proposed consolidation is subject to referendum called by the county election commission. T.C.A. § 5-3-104. The consolidation plan is approved if two-thirds of the qualified voters in the petitioning county vote in favor of the proposed consolidation. T.C.A. § 5-3-105.