Absentee commissioners
LISA HOBBS - News Editor
The Warren County Commission is within hours of voting on a resolution aimed at increasing the monthly stipend amount for future commissioners. Warren County Way was prompted to delve into attendance after being told that one commissioner missed half those meetings in fiscal year 2025-26.
While some commissioners have a perfect record for their presence at the monthly sessions, from July 2025 through June 2026, others do not. The following information was provided by Warren County Clerk’s office:
Eight commissioners had perfect attendance. Michael Bell, Steve Glenn, Scott Kelly, Ron Lee, Christy Ross, Tommy Savage, Phillip Stout and Blaine Wilcher were at all 12 meetings.
Seven commissioners missed one meeting each. Attending 11 meetings were Charles Dotson, Randy England, Gary Martin, Kenny Moffitt, Gary Prater, Scott Rubley and Donna Smith.
Three commissioners missed two meetings. Attending 10 were Carlene Brown, Brad Hillis and Cole Taylor.
Ken Martin, who was appointed in July 2025, has attended 9 of the 11 meetings.
Four commissioners have missed four meetings. Carl Bouldin, Steven Helton, James Hines and Cam Montgomery attended eight meetings.
Commissioner Chris Rippy missed half. He attended six meetings out of 12 during last fiscal year.
Years ago, commissioners voiced a desire to admonish members who missed the monthly sessions by making it a salary requirement. At that time, the county’s legal counsel stated that they could not because the stipend was compensation for what commissioners did during the month, such as fielding questions from constituents, and not just one single night of attendance.
Commissioner Ross informed Warren County Way that she plans to broach the possibility of tying attendance to the stipend at tonight’s meeting to see if it’s now possible, given the lack of attendance by some members and at least one member missing half.
The current stipend is $260 per month, with consideration being given to increasing it to $417 and tying it to the county executive’s salary. The executive’s salary is set by the state.
The monthly stipend does not include the $30 given to commissioners who are assigned to committees. However, if they do not attend the committee meeting, they are not paid.
If approved, the stipend won’t go into effect until 2030.