NASHVILLE — After two would-be Hamilton County laws “fell through the cracks” in the Legislature and were voided, Secretary of State Tré Hargett’s office is revising how it notifies city and county governments about local legislation.
The office’s Division of Publications didn’t notify Hamilton County officials that Public Chapter 150, which authorized the retention of certain fees by Register of Deeds Pam Hurst, had passed. Public Chapter 296, which authorizes a $2 electronic filing submission fee, also passed but no notification was sent out.
Under state law, since the acts dealt with a specific county, they had to be approved by two-thirds majorities of the local legislative body by Dec. 1 or they’d be “null and void” despite being passed by the Legislature.
“To be quite honest with you, we had an administrative oversight and we did not notify the local” officials, said Richard Arnold, director of the Division of Publications.
The secretary of state’s office “apologized for not giving proper notice,” Ms. Hurst said.