GENERAL ADMINISTRATION

The General Administration Department is under the direction of the City Recorder. Many responsibilities fall under the control of the general administration department including: finance, property tax collection, business license administration, municipal court fines/fee collection, beer taxes, city accounts payable, purchasing, human resources, records management and cemeteries. The general administration department is located on the first floor of City Hall, inside the front door to the right. Office hours are Monday – Friday 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

Contact Information:

Jim E. Garland, City Recorder
jgarland@ci.henderson.tn.us
Henderson City Hall
121 Crook Ave
P.O. Box 68
Henderson, TN  38340-0068
Phone (731) 983-5000
Fax (731) 983-5050

Property Taxes:

The current property tax rate for the City of Henderson is $1.36 per $100 of assessed value. City residents must also pay property taxes to Chester County at a rate of $2.13 per $100 of assessed value. City taxes are payable at Henderson City Hall while County taxes are payable at the County Trustee’s Office at the County Office Building at 159 East Main Street. Property taxes must be paid by the end of February following the year of assessment (2009 must be paid by February 28, 2010). Penalty and Interest is added at a rate of 1.5% per month for each month or a portion thereof that taxes are past due. To contact the tax office call (731)983-5005 or (731)983-5000.

Business License:

Anyone interested in opening a business in Henderson must first complete an application for a business license at the City Recorder’s Office and pay an initial fee of Twenty Dollars ($20.00). The business must also have a Chester County Business License which is purchased in the Chester County Clerk’s Office at the County Courthouse. The city and county will mail each business an annual business gross receipts tax report that must be completed and returned to the city with the amount due prior to the delinquency date on the form. This is required by both state and local regulations. Failure to pay the amount due will result in late fees and penalties and can result in a collection order by the City/County and the Tennessee Department of Revenue.

Municipal Court and Fine Collection:

The City Recorder serves as the Municipal Court Clerk (City Court Clerk) and fines levied in City Court are collected by the recorder’s office staff. Persons issued citations or tickets by the Henderson Police Department will normally be scheduled for either City Court or General Sessions Court depending on the charges. Please refer to your citation for your specific court and court date. City Court is normally held on the third Wednesday afternoon at 1:30 PM in second floor Council Chamber of City Hall. 
Citations issued for City Court can be paid prior to the court date on the citation either in person at the Recorder’s Office at City Hall or by mail. Mailing address is: 

Parking Tickets are issued for violation of parking regulations and can be paid in the Recorder’s Office.

The cost for a non-contested parking ticket is $20.00. Parking tickets are not reported on a driver’s record.

The City Judge is appointed to serve by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen and shall preside over City Court. Charles E. Patterson now serves as City Judge, a position in which he has held for more than twenty years. The judge can not discuss any citation except when in court session.

Beer Permits:

The City of Henderson allows the sale of beer for off-premises consumption only. No on-premises consumption is allowed or is there any sale of packaged liquor within the city limits. 

Businesses that desire to sell beer for off-premises consumption must complete the appropriate application though the city recorder’s office and pay a non-refundable two hundred and fifty dollar ($250.00) application fee. Applications must be on file at the recorder’s office for a minimum of thirty (30) days before they are considered by the Henderson Beer Board (the Board of Mayor and Aldermen). No beer permit will be issued to any business that is located within one thousand (1,000) feet of any school (public or private), daycare or church. The distance is measured using the straight line method.

The Henderson Board of Mayor and Aldermen also serve as the Henderson Beer Board and is composed of six members and a Chairman. The chairman only votes in the case of a tie. The Beer Board meets as needed on the second Thursday night of each month immediately following the meeting of the Board of Aldermen. Meetings are held on the second floor of City Hall, 121 Crook Ave in the Council Chamber. All meetings of the Beer Board are open to the public.

Human Resources:

The City of Henderson is an Equal Opportunity Employer. It is the policy of the City of Henderson not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, sex or disability in its employment practices, programs, services or activities. 

Department Heads in each department are responsible for recruitment and hiring of their own employees under a uniform set of rules and regulations. General Administration serves as the central department that is responsible for payroll, employee benefits, employee records and it also maintains personnel policies and procedures. The city currently has 63 full time and 4 part time employees.

Job Openings: The city only accepts applications when vacant positions are available. All vacant positions that are not filled by promotion are duly advertised in the “Chester County Independent” newspaper and on this web site >>Job Openings.  Applicants must complete an approved City Application. Resumes may be required for some positions in addition to the application. Applications and Job Descriptions may be obtained at City Hall during regular office hours. A deadline for applications is set for each vacant position. Applicants must make a separate application for each position they have an interest in. 

City Records, Ordinances, Documents and City Board Minutes:

The City Recorder is the custodian of most City Records. Anyone that needs help in locating or obtaining city records should contact the City Recorder’s Office.   

Minutes of the meetings of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen are available on this site by clicking the following link >>Meeting Minutes.

The City of Henderson Charter and Municipal Code is available at the following site:

Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS)

Cemeteries:

The City of Henderson maintains two cemeteries: The Henderson City Cemetery located between North Church Ave and North Franklin Ave and the Dean Cemetery located on Baughn Street Extended.   

The city records on the Henderson City Cemetery are fairly accurate back to approximately 1940 as they pertain to lot ownership, but prior to that the records are unreliable. The cemetery was originally a church cemetery of the First Baptist Church that was located on the site facing North Franklin Ave. The city took over the cemetery sometime in the 1930’s. Records were not reliable until longtime City Recorder Lyman Cook began keeping the records in the 1940’s. Limited lots are still available for sale in the Northeast section of the cemetery. For more information contact: City Recorder Jim E. Garland.

The Dean Cemetery is only maintained by the city. The city does not have any records of the burials or ownership of the lots. For more information contact:  John L. Welch at (731)989-4993.