Most Recent Action
Legislation was approved by the Senate on March 19 and by the House on May 18. It is waiting the governor’s signature to be signed into law.
Background
A distress warrant is a written order issued by an authorized person, typically a municipal or county clerk, directing a law enforcement officer to hold property in order to satisfy the payment of a delinquent debt.
Under Tennessee law, municipalities may issue distress warrants; however, only county law enforcement officers and designated personnel from the state Department of Revenue may execute such warrants. Consequently, a municipality seeking to execute its own warrant to collect an unpaid debt to the municipality must employ a sheriff, sheriff’s deputy, constable, or have a police officer sworn in as a special deputy.
Problem
The statutes authorizing the execution of distress warrants do not conform to current municipal authority and capabilities and, thus, create an administrative burden, delay enforcement, and increase the costs of collection borne by municipal taxpayers.
These underlying provisions were enacted at a time when taxing authority primarily rested with the state, and county law enforcement, as agents of the state, performed collection duties for the state. Since this time, municipalities have been granted the authority to levy and collect several municipal taxes.
Moreover, the capability of municipalities has dramatically expanded since these provisions were adopted. Today, more than 72 percent of the state’s citizens reside in urban areas, and municipalities maintain court systems and operate law enforcement departments.
It is illogical for a municipality to continue to be required to pay a sheriff to execute a municipal-issued distress warrant when the municipality has its own law enforcement personnel who are fully capable of executing the warrant.
Proposed Legislation
Update all relevant statutes to indicate that municipal law enforcement officers have the authority to execute distress warrants.
Benefit to Municipalities
Allowing municipalities to execute municipally-issued distress warrants will result in more efficient operation of municipal government and reduce the costs associated with the execution of such warrants that are presently borne by all municipal taxpayers.
