RUTHERFORD COUNTY, TN - Rutherford County commissioners voted Thursday night to move forward with posting a Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking independent, third-party reappraisals of parcels across the county... The decision follows a Tennessee Comptroller’s report presented in October, in which state officials told commissioners they identified numerous errors attributed to the Rutherford County Assessor of Property, Rob Mitchell. The county’s intent is to obtain an impartial reappraisal of local properties to verify or challenge the state’s findings. The move comes just two days after the county purchasing committee advanced the framework for the RFP.

Led by County Mayor Joe Carr, the purchasing committee outlined a phased approach for bids, requesting price proposals for independently reviewing 10%, 25%, 50%, and up to 100% of all parcels in Rutherford County. With the full Commission’s approval Thursday, Chairman Jeff Phillips told commissioners the RFP could be posted as early as next week, launching what may become one of the largest third-party reassessment initiatives in county history.

However, the vote comes amid growing pushback from State Representative Tim Rudd, who represents portions of Rutherford County. Rep. Rudd has challenged both the Comptroller’s figures and the audit process itself. In a detailed letter, Rudd alleges significant inaccuracies, legal misinterpretations, and a lack of transparency throughout the state’s review. He also questioned the integrity of the audit after learning that a former Assessor’s Office employee—continued participating in the state’s investigation. Rudd further noted that record deletions raised at a recent Commission meeting were performed at the direction of the Comptroller’s staff, not the Assessor.

Rudd sharply criticized what he suggested were attempts by the Comptroller and the Department of Property Assessors to classify single-family rental homes at a 40% commercial tax rate rather than the long-used 25% residential rate. He said the shift would violate Tennessee law, burden renters, and overturn more than five decades of precedent. 

The state representative also disputed the Comptroller’s reported 25% error rate, citing more than 300 errors the Assessor’s Office found within the state’s own findings, suggesting an actual error rate closer to 4.75%. Rudd emphasized that no written audit report was provided before the findings were made public, and that commissioners were denied access to the criteria used to calculate errors.

In closing his letter, Rudd urged commissioners to scrutinize the audit before spending tax dollars on third-party reappraisals. He recommended increasing staffing in the Assessor’s Office, maintaining residential tax classifications for rental homes, and called for investigations by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Attorney General into actions he believes may have violated state law. 

Previous to Full Commission Approval on Dec. 11, 2025: Earlier this week on Tuesday, the county’s purchasing committee moved quickly and voted in favor of their support to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) to hire a third-party firm to conduct reappraisals on an unspecified percentage of parcels across the county.

As the committee wrapped up discussions on the RFPs, the county attorney stated… County Mayor Joe Carr, chair of the purchasing committee, stated on Tuesday… The timing of the committee’s speedy action allowed for the RFP proposal to be sent to the full County Commission for a vote just two nights later on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025, a proposal that was passed by the commission.