Friday Recap July 24th, 2026

My Comment

We just finished the first full week of early voting and as of the 24th this is where we stand.

So far, 6.5% of registered voters have voted. We have a full week of early voting left and if we continue on the same trajectory, we'll be at about 13% by next Saturday. If you haven't voted, may I encourage you to do so. As messed up as voter roles are in many places in the country, we do a good job here in Williamson County; Your vote counts. We are going to be electing 24 County Commissioners, six School Board Members, a County Mayor and more. We are also electing state representatives, a state senator and a new governor, as well as US Representatives.

There is a lot riding on this election and the people we choose for each position will be the decision makers for the next two to four years. For a sample ballot go here for voting locations, go here

Highlights from this week

Human Resources Committee

• The HR committee voted 2–2 on the resolution to amend the county mayor's office staffing structure and appropriate $64,756 from unappropriated county general funds — the resolution failed to pass out of committee
• Williamson Health's advisor Ebb LeMaster of Kaufman Hall, walked the Property Committee through the Ascension deal — the Williamson Health board's recommended transaction — covering valuation, capital commitments, employee protections, and next steps

Meetings Next Week:

No County meetings scheduled for next week

For Franklin BOMA, go here

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The AI program I use is pretty accurate, but it does make mistakes from time to time and I don't always catch them. I provide agendas and videos/audios when I have them available and recommend that you watch the video and follow along with the summary to get the most accurate report.

One of the limitations of AI is that if a participant's name is not called out, then they are listed as participant 1, 2, etc. A limitation with audio, as opposed to video, is that one cannot always identify a person by voice alone. As imperfect as these AI summaries are, they still give a pretty good account of a meeting.

Williamson County School Board

No meetings this week or next

Williamson County Commission Meetings

Monday, July 20th

The Human Resources Committee Resolution Video Committee members: Judy Herbert (C), Jennifer Mason (VC) Greg Sanford, Tom Tunnicliffe, Bill Petty, Brian Beathard. Commissioners Sanford and Beathard were absent.

AI Summary

Action Items

• [ ] Commissioner Tunnicliffe - Call directors about the senior advisor position before September commission meeting He committed to calling directors over the next two weeks to gauge their reaction to the senior advisor position, and said he'd change his vote and champion it at the September commission meeting if he's wrong.
• [ ] HR Director Cochran- Present vacation buyout program to Mayor-elect Marshall She mentioned a vacation buyout program she'd developed and wants to present it to the incoming mayor for approval.
• [ ] Sarah Bullock (Legal Counsel) - Look into commission's authority over convenience center hours Commissioner asked about the commission's authority over Mac's scheduling decisions for the convenience center; counsel said the best first step is to ask nicely before taking any formal action.
• [ ] Legal Counsel - Bring amended staffing resolution with updated numbers to budget committee and commission The resolution tied 2-2 and needs to go to the budget committee and then the full county commission — someone needs to bring it forward with corrected numbers for the September meeting.

Overview

• The HR committee voted 2–2 on the resolution to amend the county mayor's office staffing structure and appropriate $64,756 from unappropriated county general funds — the resolution failed to pass out of committee
• The restructure replaces two long-vacant positions (fire marshal, ~$91K; executive admin, ~$39K) with a senior advisor and a public information manager — the senior advisor is already fully funded from those repurposed funds, only the public info manager needs the additional $64,756
• Commission Tunnicliffe and Herbert voted against, citing optics with other department heads who've been told to hold new hires until January 1st; commissioner Petty and Mason voted in favor, arguing the incoming mayor needs support given a combined ~65 years of institutional knowledge leaving and an estimated $8M structural budget shortfall
• The resolution goes to the full budget committee and county commission — Commissioner Tunnicliffe committed to calling directors over the next two weeks and said he'd champion it at the September commission meeting if he's wrong.

Mayor's office staffing restructure

• The restructure moves the mayor's office from a linear two-person model (mayor + chief of staff) to three strategic roles: chief of staff (admin focus), senior advisor (strategic/fiscal), and public information manager (transparency/comms)
• Two positions that have sat vacant for years are being repurposed — fire marshal (vacant roughly a decade or more) and an executive admin position (vacant ~7 years) — rather than creating new headcount
• Leisa Niemotka, formerly an HR generalist/compensation specialist under Director Clairne Cochran, has been selected as chief of staff
• Andy Mar framed the senior advisor role as critical to addressing the county's structural budget deficit, estimating the county is roughly $8M behind before he takes office

Funding the $64,756 ask

• The senior advisor position is fully funded through the repurposed fire marshal and executive admin salary lines — no additional appropriation needed for that role
• The $64,756 from unappropriated county general funds covers only the public information manager position, which is the gap after repurposing those two vacant lines
• The shortfall grew larger than expected because outgoing Chief of Staff Diane Gettings's accrued vacation payout is coming out of the same budget — the committee initially estimated a ~$24K shortfall before accounting for that payout
• The $64,756 figure represents 12 months of cost; Participant 2 raised that if the position starts later, the number would be smaller, but no revised figure was confirmed

Senior advisor timing and committee debate

• Commissioner Tunnicliffe and Herbert are not opposed to the senior advisor itself — it's already funded — but want the public information manager delayed to January 1st, 2027 to align with the hiring freeze applied to all other departments
• Claire Cochran (head of HR) pushed back, noting the county gave similar structural support to Sheriff Hughes when he took over, and argued the incoming mayor is starting with an impossible budget and no institutional knowledge base
• Andy Marshall made clear he has a specific candidate in mind for the senior advisor and won't have that person available if the hire is delayed to January
• A motion to delay the public information manager to January 1st, 2027 with reduced funding numbers was made by commissioner Herbert and seconded by Commissioner Tunnicliffe, but both withdrew after it became clear the vote would deadlock 2–2 anyway

Resolution vote outcome

• The resolution failed 2–2 — commissioner Petty and Mason in favor, commissioner Tunnicliffe and Herbert against
• The resolution moves forward to the budget committee and full county commission, with a likely floor vote in September
• Commissioner Tunnicliffe committed to talking to department directors over the next two weeks and said he'd support the resolution at the September commission meeting if directors don't share his concern about the optics

Employee pay and 75th percentile

• The county has slipped below the 75th percentile for employee compensation — consultant Steve Thompson emailed that a 6–9% increase would be needed to get back to that benchmark, based on his current work with comparable counties and municipalities
• Participant 1 plans to bring a resolution in October to restore tax collections to 92% and a separate motion to bring pay back to the 75th percentile, which he acknowledged will require additional tax revenue

Vacation buyout program

• Claire Cochran has a vacation buyout program ready to present — employees could sell back up to a week of vacation — but hasn't had a chance to present it to the incoming mayor yet
• The program is designed to reduce large vacation payouts at retirement (like Diane Giddens payout, which contributed to the current budget shortfall) by letting employees cash out incrementally while employed
• Cockran noted the county now asks directors during budget season whether anyone is retiring to try to anticipate these costs, but said the process could be strengthened since vacation liabilities aren't formally accrued
• Vacation is currently capped at roughly 124 days before it rolls into sick leave, which then contributes to tenure

Convenience center hours

• Commissioner Mason raised that the convenience center cut its early morning and late evening hours, leaving Saturday as the only option for working residents
• Mason suggested closing midday on a weekday instead and reinstating the early/late hours, since those serve people commuting to and from work
• The committee isn't sure it has authority to direct the director on this — Sarah Bullock (legal counsel) suggested asking informally first before pursuing any formal action

Wednesday, July 22nd

The Property Committee Presentation Video Committee members: Ricky Jones (C), Jennifer Mason(VC), Barb Sturgeon, Brian Clifford, , Matt Williams. Commissioners Sturgeon and Williams were absent.

AI Summary

Action Items

• [ ] Ebb LeMaster - Review backup detail on Ascension vs. HCA tax NPV comparison when provided Commissioner Petty asked for clarity on the perpetuity NPV comparison between Ascension's $20M in-lieu-of-taxes and HCA's ongoing tax stream — confirmed he understood, but backup detail was offered.
• [ ] Commissioner Smith- Submit specific questions to Kaufman Hall on the rationale behind the Ascension recommendation Commissioner Smith offered to compile specific, succinct questions to help Kaufman Hall provide deeper analysis on why the partnership decision was reached (capital needs, CON impact, etc.).
• [ ] Ebb LeMaster - Send supporting detail on tax NPV calculations to commissioners Commissioner requested actual numbers rather than percentages to share with constituents comparing Ascension's in-lieu-of-taxes payments vs. HCA's perpetuity tax stream.
• [ ] Jesse Neal of Foley Lardner- Provide guidance on AG-acceptable uses of proceeds Commissioners asked for a framework on what the AG typically considers permissible for use of proceeds, to guide commission discussions before they debate internally.
• [ ] Jesse Neal - Attend preliminary meeting with the Attorney General's Office re: use of proceeds Jesse to join Bass, Berry and Sims at the AG's Office for a preliminary discussion about use of proceeds flexibility, given the unprecedented nature of this transaction.
• [ ] Jesse Neal - Draft resolution for commission to opt out of use-of-proceeds restrictions To be placed on the next Property Committee meeting agenda (August 26). Jesse offered to collaborate with county counsel to draft it.
• [ ] Phil Mazzuca - Send presentation slide deck to Diane for commissioner distribution Slide deck to be sent to Diane for distribution to commissioners, same process as last time.
• [ ] Phil Mazzuca- Coordinate insurance cost analysis for county employees under Ascension Commissioner Webb asked about county employee self-insurance costs under Ascension vs. alternatives; Phil suggested the county's insurer (Cigna) could run a black-box analysis.

Overview

• Williamson Health's advisor Ebb LeMaster of Kaufman Hall, walked the Property Committee through the Ascension deal — the Williamson Health board's recommended transaction — covering valuation, capital commitments, employee protections, and next steps
• The proposed purchase price is $700M, with a $235M capital commitment over 10 years (plus $15M for EHR), putting total consideration at $950M — at 2.02x revenue and 17.9x EBITDA, both above the 90th percentile of comparable transactions since 2016
• Estimated net proceeds to the county are $476M (Ascension), plus $188M in bond debt defeasance, for a total estimated benefit of over $660M
• The board chose Ascension over HCA primarily on cultural fit (nonprofit alignment) and Ascension's front-loaded capital commitment — $140M of the $195M strategic capital expected in the first 5 years vs. HCA's refusal to commit to any timing
• Key open items: local board appointment process, outsourced employee protections, county employee insurance cost analysis, and the opt-out resolution on use of proceeds
• Next Property Committee meeting is August 26th — the LOI is expected to be ready for review then, along with a resolution to opt out of use-of-proceeds restrictions (requires a 2/3 vote at full Commission)

RFP process overview

• Kaufman Hall ran a 3-round RFP process across 28 leading regional and national health systems, both for-profit and nonprofit
• Board of Commissioners' feedback was incorporated via Foley into a grid of roughly 20–25 community covenant items across the RFP letters
• Total consideration improved significantly through the process — Ascension went from $810M to $950M (+17%), HCA from $700M to $910M (+30%)

Deal valuation vs. market benchmarks

• At 2.02x revenue and 17.9x EBITDA (based on FY25 net patient service revenue of $347.3M and EBITDA of $39M), the implied valuation is above the 90th percentile of 144 comparable hospital transactions since 2016
• Kaufman Hall's benchmarks put "strategic" transactions above 1.0x revenue and 10x EBITDA — this deal is roughly double those thresholds
• The multiples above are based on purchase price alone and do not include the $235M capital commitment

Tax contributions: Ascension vs. HCA

• Ascension proposed $4M/year for 5 years in lieu of property taxes — NPV of approximately $15M at a 10% discount rate
• HCA estimated annual property tax of ~$1.2M to Williamson County (NPV ~$17M in perpetuity at 3% growth, 10% discount) and ~$0.7M in local option sales/use tax benefiting Williamson County Schools (NPV ~$8M)
• Commissioner Mary Smith raised that the long-term tax stream from HCA (a for-profit) could outweigh Ascension's $20M upfront payment; Kaufman Hall clarified the HCA NPV figures are perpetuity calculations, not capped at 5 or 10 years, and offered to provide supporting detail

Balance sheet, debt, and net proceeds

• The transaction is structured cash-free, debt-free — Williamson Health retains its ~$104M in cash but also retains responsibility for all debt
• As of May 31, 2026, approximately $188M in bond principal is outstanding; bonds that aren't immediately callable will be defeased using US Treasuries set aside at closing
• Estimated net proceeds at closing are $476M (Ascension) after deducting outstanding bonds and capital leases ($228M), escrow ($70M), and estimated contingency/transaction/wind-down costs ($30M)
• Ascension's $70M escrow is an 18-month hold — if no post-closing claims arise, those funds return to the county; HCA's $100M (half escrow, half foundation) would need to stay in the foundation for 6 years and, per AG guidance so far, permanently

EMS funding obligations

• EMS is projected to run a net operating loss of ~$14.5M in FY27 (budget), with the county already contributing $8.9M in FY26 and $12M budgeted for FY27
• Both Ascension and HCA are willing to continue operating EMS on behalf of the county, but both expect the county to fund the operating losses
• Over a 10-year horizon at 3% growth and 10% discount rate, the NPV of EMS funding requirements is approximately $99.7M
• Ascension verbally committed to maintaining the current level of trauma/EMS service, contingent on the county continuing to fund it

Employee and physician protections

• Both Ascension and HCA committed to retaining all employees for at least 1 year — HCA's guarantee for non-clinical staff covers any TriStar affiliate in Middle Tennessee, not necessarily Williamson Health specifically
• Ascension does not anticipate any changes to existing physician employment or affiliation structures; hospital-based independent groups (ER, anesthesia, radiology, pathology, pediatrics) are expected to continue unchanged, subject to change-of-control provisions
• All current clinical service lines are committed for at least 10 years, including the dedicated Children's ED and pediatrics unit
• Ascension's stated approach: "continuity first, integration where beneficial, and expansion aligned with community needs"

Ascension capital commitment breakdown

• Total minimum capital commitment is $235M over 10 years ($195M strategic + $40M routine), plus a separate $15M for EHR/ERP implementation
• Ascension expects ~$140M (72%) of the $195M strategic capital to be spent in the first 5 years
• Strategic capital is allocated across three buckets: at least $60M for acute-care enhancements at the main campus, ~$100M for new access points (ASCs, imaging, urgent care, clinics), and ~$35M of discretionary strategic capital

Executive comp and local governance

• Ascension intends to keep local leadership in place — the Williamson Health CEO would report to the Ascension St. Thomas Market CEO
• Employment offers will be made at comparable compensation, title, and benefits; no specific retention bonuses or change-in-control terms have been negotiated yet, and no commitments have been made to any individual executive
• Ascension proposed a local Williamson Health board of 9–13 members (community leaders, physician reps, the WH CEO, and the Ascension St. Thomas Market CEO), with one local board member also sitting on the Ascension St. Thomas Board
• The local board retains oversight of patient safety, quality, strategic planning input, service-line development, major capital priorities, and CEO performance evaluation — financial and borrowing authority sits at the Ascension St. Thomas level
• How the new local board will be appointed is still to be determined and will be worked out in the LOI phase

Why Ascension over HCA

• The board's primary factors were nonprofit/cultural alignment and Ascension's front-loaded capital — $140M of $195M strategic capital committed in the first 5 years vs. HCA's refusal to commit to any timing on its $200M
• Ascension's total capital commitment ($235M) is $35M more than HCA's ($200M)
• Ascension offered a $7M escrow deposit functioning as a break-up fee and covering regulatory legal costs from the point of signing the definitive agreement; HCA offered only $5M reimbursement, payable only upon successful closing
• Phil Mazzuca and Ebb LeMaster both said staff and physicians they spoke with independently were glad Ascension was selected over HCA
• Vanderbilt and other parties that did not proceed sent written notice they were not interested — no detailed explanation was provided

Williamson Health Foundation continuity

• Ascension confirmed the Williamson Health Foundation board continues unchanged — each Ascension hospital maintains its own local foundation, and funds stay dedicated to Williamson Health, not the broader Ascension system
• Existing named gifts and donations designated for specific purposes will be honored as-is

Outsourcing and employee job security

• Both Ascension and HCA outsource some support functions (revenue cycle, housekeeping, food services); all employees are protected for the first year regardless
• Ascension has a "socially just" policy requiring any outsourced entity working with Ascension to offer compensation and benefits comparable to what Ascension itself would provide
• Some of Ascension's outsourced departments are Ascension-owned; Participant 9 is still working to get specific answers on which departments at Williamson Health could be affected and plans to have Ascension address employees directly

Timeline and transparency concerns

• Commissioner Smith raised that Ascension signed an NDA on August 18, 2025, while the Commission was told in November/December that the hospital was still in a "strategic planning process" with no RFP yet — she sees this as a transparency gap
• Kaufman Hall said their engagement started around the same time as the NDA and offered to dig into specifics if she provides them, but did not dispute the timeline

County commission's role in the deal

• The Commission's role is to accept or reject the board's recommended proposal — it does not have the ability to negotiate between competing offers or select an alternative bidder without first declining the current recommendation
• Jesse said he has not seen a county body disregard the work done by hospital professionals in comparable transactions, and recommended the Commission leverage that work rather than re-run the process
• Commissioner Hayes asked whether the Commission needs its own independent consultant; Jesse said he feels comfortable with the current team and does not see a need for one
• Enforceability of commitments will be built into the LOI and definitive agreement — an oversight body will receive annual reports on capital spend, employment, and other covenants, and the Attorney General can also act if commitments aren't met

Use of proceeds and AG review

• State law was recently amended to allow the county to use proceeds for purposes beyond health and welfare, but only with an affirmative 2/3 vote at the full Commission — without that vote, the original private act restrictions apply
• The 45-day AG review is triggered once transaction documents are signed
• Jesse and Bass, Berry and Sims have already reached out to the AG's Office for a preliminary discussion and Jesse expects to meet with them within the next 1–2 weeks
• The committee agreed to put the opt-out resolution on the agenda for the August 26th Property Committee meeting so it can go to the full Commission in September if approved

County employee insurance costs

• Phil Mazzuca said Williamson Health is currently the lowest-cost provider in the market, with Ascension the next lowest — the delta for county self-insurance costs would be smaller with Ascension than with any other option
• Commissioner Hayes suggested the county's insurer (Cigna) could run a black-box analysis comparing projected costs under Ascension vs. other scenarios, and the committee wants that analysis as part of ongoing diligence

Next steps and LOI timeline

• Jesse's goal is to have a non-binding LOI framework ready for the August 26th Property Committee meeting for the committee to review and potentially recommend to the full Commission for signature
• The opt-out resolution on use of proceeds is also expected to be on the August 26th agenda
• Full process sequence: LOI → confirmatory and reverse diligence → definitive agreement → AG regulatory review → closing → post-closing integration
• The slide deck will be sent to Diane for distribution to commissioners
• Kaufman Hall agreed to provide supporting detail on the tax NPV calculations for Commissioner Smith

Franklin Board of Mayor and Alderman

For all meetings go here.

Election Commission

No meetings this past week or next

If not me, who?

If not now, when?

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb. 11:1)

“We work hard with our own hands. When we are vilified, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it; when we are slandered, we answer gently.” (1^st Corinthians 4:12-13)

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves" (Philippians 2:3)

Blessings,

Bill

pettyandassociates@gmail.com

Community resources

If you like Friday Recap, check out these other grassroots conservative projects!

• Grassroots Citizens of Williamson County Provides free tools and information to help grassroots conservatives exercise their citizenship here in Williamson County.
• Tennessee Voters for Election Integrity is helping restore confidence in Tennessee Elections.
• TruthWire Local news and commentary.
• Williamson County Republican Party is one of the most active parties in the state and captures the conservative heart of Tennessee.
• Mom's For Liberty Williamson County is dedicated to fighting for the American family by unifying, educating and empowering parents to defend their parental rights at all levels of government.
• Tennessee Stands produces video media, podcasts, and live events, and provides social commentary on relevant issues in our state.
• M4LU is a new site developed by the national Mom's for Liberty but generated right here in Williamson County. The mission of M4LU is to to inform, equip, and empower parents with knowledge, understanding and practical tools.

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