What’s Changing in Knox County — And Why You Should Care?

Folks around here work hard — and we expect our government to do the same. But lately, things have been shifting at the county level. Here’s what’s going on.

The Power Shift: Over the last eight years, something’s been changing in Knox County government — and not many folks have noticed. Since 2017, one commissioner has been running the show. That’s a big shift from how things used to work, where leadership took turns among commissioners from the same political party.

All three commissioners have been from the same party since 2016, but only one has kept the title of President this whole time. Technically, the President’s job is just to run the meetings. But over time, that role seems to have grown — and so has the influence. What used to be more of a shared leadership deal has turned into one person calling most of the shots.

One Attorney-Two Jobs: Another big change happened around 2019 or 2020: the County Commissioners and the County Council decided to start using the same attorney. On paper, it might look like a good way to save money — one lawyer handling both groups.

But here’s the issue. The Commissioners and the Council aren’t supposed to be on the same team. The Council controls the purse strings — they decide whether the Commissioners’ ideas actually get funded. It’s a built-in system of checks and balances, so nobody gets too much power. But when both groups use the same lawyer, things can get muddy fast. If they don’t agree, how can one attorney give fair, independent advice to both sides?

Now, this kind of stuff might sound like boring government housekeeping. But these changes matter. They shift how decisions get made, who gets to make them, and how your tax dollars are spent. And if nobody’s paying attention, the balance of power can quietly tip too far in one direction.

Why this matters: As folks who live and work here, we’ve got a right — and a duty — to keep an eye on how our county is being run. Because even small changes in the system can have big consequences down the road.

This blog is run by a group of regular folks who may not agree on everything politically, but we all care about the same things: our families, our neighbors, and making sure our local government does right by us — especially when it comes to spending our hard-earned tax dollars.

 

• Got questions or something we should look into? Let us know — this blog is for you.