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Claiborne County finance director Angelia Tucker has resigned her position effective March 31, creating a few disagreeable moments just prior to the close of the regular monthly Finance Committee meeting.

The appointment of Sue Tuttle to the position netted an outcry from county mayor Joe Brooks and committee chairman Whitt Shuford, who claim Tuttle does not have the knowledge or experience needed to oversee the county school system budget which encompasses about two-thirds of the entire countywide budget.

Brooks said he was told by Tucker that Kelly Harvey would oversee the school side while Tuttle concentrated her efforts on the county side of business.

Brooks says he and Shuford wanted to wait until Tucker’s plan was fully understood before moving to a vote on the issue.

“However, commissioner Mike Campbell stated there did not need to be an interim and a new finance director needed to be appointed before adjourning the meeting,” said Brooks.

Campbell made the motion to appoint Tuttle, with a second made by road superintendent Ronnie Pittman. The motion was adopted with a vote of 4 to 2. Those voting in favor were Campbell, Pittman, Mitchell Cosby and Anthony Rowe.

“I would like to note that since Claiborne County has been an 81 Act form of county government there has never been a finance director who did not, at a minimum, hold at least a bachelors degree in either accounting or economics. And, each of the three past finance directors have overseen the entire county budget,” said Brooks.

A public hearing will be held on March 9, beginning at 5:30 p.m. inside the small courtroom of the Claiborne County Courthouse. The meeting will be live streamed on The Big One 106.3 fm Facebook page so that the public may be able to attend virtually and pose questions via the stream.

The Claiborne Progress will have more on this controversial issue when new information becomes available.