A planned Hamilton County Commission vote on a proposal moving private practice attorney Janie Varnell into the role of county attorney has been rescheduled for the third time in as many weeks.
The commission was set to vote on Varnell’s appointment during a Dec. 18 meeting. Amid questions about how the role would be structured and protests that the move would violate incumbent County Attorney Rheubin Taylor’s work contract, commissioners opted to postpone the vote until Jan. 8.
The break from December into January was designed to give commissioners time to consult with legal counsel and seek answers to questions about the shift from Taylor to Varnell.
Taylor last month told members of the commission that the proposal, which would have placed Varnell in a transitional role within the county attorney’s office, represented a breach of his contract, which gives him authority over his office’s personnel. Taylor’s contract with the county expires at the end of June.
The plan detailed a timeline for the handover of responsibilities from Taylor, who has held the attorney position since 1993, to Varnell, but did not include information about salary for Varnell during the transition. Under a proposal from County Mayor Weston Wamp’s office, Varnell would have worked in the office alongside Taylor from Jan. 1 until the end of Taylor’s contract. Afterward, according to the proposal, Taylor could have stayed on with the office in an advisory capacity until the end of the year.