Archived story
As originally published
Stephens County commissioners unanimously approved a supplemental agreement with Tax Commissioner Dene Hicks on June 9, authorizing an added compensation arrangement connected to commissions from collecting county school taxes. The Board of Commissioners minutes record a motion, second and unanimous approval of the agreement, making the action complete even though the payment amount is not stated.
The decision matters because it changes the compensation structure for an elected constitutional officer by adding pay beyond Hicks’ existing salary. Instead of identifying a fixed public dollar figure, the arrangement described on the meeting agenda bases the supplement on commission revenue deposited in the county general fund, so the size of the payment depends on prior-year collections and cannot be calculated from the published materials.
Commissioners first placed the proposal before the public in the revised June 9 agenda. That agenda said Hicks’ salary would be supplemented by 5.25% of prior-year county school-tax collection commissions deposited in the general fund, with a lump-sum payment in fiscal year 2026 and 26 biweekly installments in subsequent fiscal years. Later that same meeting, the board’s minutes say commissioners approved the supplemental agreement unanimously.
Hicks is the elected official whose compensation is affected by the agreement. County commissioners supported the agreement unanimously, according to the minutes. The agenda framed the proposed terms as a supplement tied to school-tax collection commissions; it did not include a stated opposing position, public comment, or an explanation from commissioners or Hicks for selecting the percentage-based formula.
Board approval is complete, but important implementation details remain unclear. The agenda specifies a proposed 5.25% formula and payment schedule, while the minutes confirm approval of a supplemental agreement; neither document gives the fiscal-year 2026 payment’s dollar amount. The minutes also do not establish whether the executed agreement retained every agenda term, when any lump-sum payment was or will be made, or a numerical vote tally beyond describing the vote as unanimous.
The next public step is likely the appearance of a signed agreement or county compensation and payment record. Those records could establish the final contract language, the prior-year commission total used in the calculation, the resulting fiscal-year 2026 payment and the timing of later biweekly installments. Until then, the board’s decision is documented, but residents do not know the supplement’s precise cost or its final implementation details.