Henry County Commission Chair Carlotta Harrell abruptly fired County Manager Cheri Hobson-Matthews without taking the issue before the full Board of Commissioners for a vote.
Harrell notes that she had the authority to remove the county manager, though under new legislation that is awaiting the governor’s signature, that decision would require a majority vote by the board.
In a statement, Harrell said the decision to remove Hobson-Matthews “was made with the support of the majority of the board,” though at least one commissioner said he did not know the firing was coming.
Commissioner Johnny Wilson of District 1 said he was stunned and “devastated” when he learned about the firing Wednesday from a county press release. He posted on social media that the firing was “news to me” and called it “a sad day in Henry County.”
In an interview Thursday, Wilson said the issue should have been discussed publicly and brought to a public vote by the board, even though he acknowledged Harrell had the authority to fire the county manager.
“I think it’s a bad look for the county Board of Commissioners,” Wilson said. “The county manager, all of a sudden, is released with no explanation.”
On Thursday, Harrell said no vote was necessary.
“I’m the chair,” she said. “I can make that decision on my own.”
In a statement on Thursday, Harrell tied the decision, at least in part, to an action taken last week — to remove the county’s financial services functions from under the county manager’s supervision and place it under the administrative and operational oversight of the Board of Commissioners.
In the statement, Harrell said all commissioners were informed about the financial services change during executive session at the April 14 board meeting.
“While discussions held in executive session are confidential under Georgia law, the Board also recognizes its obligation to ensure the public is aware of actions that strengthen accountability and protect the County’s financial integrity,” the statement added.
Asked to elaborate in an interview Thursday, Harrell added: “We have been behind on our audits and so just trying to understand why that was the case, and you know, just trying to understand the breakdown of communication between that department and why certain things weren’t getting done.”
The move to “relieve” Hobson-Matthews of her duties was “part of this transition and the board’s move toward a more strategic and transparent governance approach,” Harrell’s public statement said.
Hobson-Matthews could not be reached for comment on Thursday.
Deputy County Manager Kevin Johnson has been named interim county manager, Harrell said Thursday.
In an interview, Johnson said Hobson-Matthews’ exit comes as the county is facing a projected 4% decrease in property tax revenue for the fiscal year that starts July 1, which he said would be an impact of $12 million to $14 million.
“We also have to be mindful of the current economic environment,” Johnson said. “There’s an active war going on. Gas prices are going up, and our budget is set, so we have to be prepared for any kind of shift in cost of gas or utilities or whatever that looks like.”
In an email to all county employees on March 26, Deputy Chief Finance Officer Joy Robinson asked staff to carefully evaluate their departments’ needs and “defer any non-essential expenditures until further notice.”
“Due to current budgetary concerns, effective immediately, all departments are required to limit spending to essential needs only, i.e. fuel, equipment, paper, department services, etc.,” Robinson wrote. “At this time, only purchases that are critical to maintaining core operations will be approved.”
When the firing was first announced, many residents seemed stunned by the news and took to social media to praise Hobson-Matthews, try to make sense of why she was fired, and to speculate on the subject.
Even Johnson, the new interim county manager, said Thursday he did not know why Hobson-Matthews was fired and knows of no major disagreements between the manager and the chair.
He said Hobson-Matthews and Harrell had a meeting on Wednesday and that he was “shocked” to discover that the county manager had been “relieved of her responsibility as county manager” from an email and county press release.
“Cheri Matthews has done an excellent job holding this county to a very high standard for over 20 years,” Johnson said. “Out of respect for the dedication and the service that she has provided to Henry County, this entire leadership team is going to continue to move forward, to do the best that we can, to provide the highest level of service.”
Hobson-Matthews started working for the county as a planner in 2002 and had served as county manager since 2017.
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