Chattanooga mayor Ron LittlefieldChattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield suffered two defeats Tuesday night when the City Council decided he could not have $75,000 for a gang study and also that he would have to wait six months to hire an administrative hearing officer.
The council unanimously agreed during its Budget and Finance Committee meeting that it would not redirect $75,000 earmarked for minority business development to fund a study on gangs in the community.
That night at its regular meeting, it also unanimously deferred an ordinance that would have created an administrative hearing officer, who would hear code and environmental violations.
The position is opposed by both sitting city judges.
Littlefield told the council the administrative hearing officer was needed because the state constitution only allows cities to levy fines of $50 or less. Many offenders ignore the $50 fine, the mayor said.