The Memphis and Shelby County Charter Commission made a major change in the proposed consolidation charter Monday. The commission pushed back the implementation two years, from September of 2012 to 2014.
The change will be moot if voters in Memphis or Shelby County reject the charter in separate referendums on November 2nd.
I’m not sure whether the 15-member commission choked, had second thoughts, studied the election returns, or heeded the warnings of attorney John Ryder that a legal challenge was all but certain unless the “start date” was pushed back. It was the commission’s 30th and final meeting. About two hours after the start date was changed, the commission approved the proposed 48-page charter by a 14-1 vote, with Millington Mayor Richard Hodges casting the lone “no” vote.
