CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Erinne Hester, incumbent Montgomery County Assessor of Property, has announced her campaign for re-election.
Hester has served as Assessor since 2013. Under her leadership, the Assessor’s office has employed a multi-tiered strategy to provide common-sense solutions, from education to technology, to better serve their wide customer base. Hester implemented an assessment education policy for all employees, which includes classes that are comprised of both State of Tennessee specific, and International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO) curriculum. All employees must achieve a minimum State Board of Equalization certification. Currently, more than half the team have completed the minimum certification and six employees are candidates for an IAAO professional designation.
Another focus has been to expand the website to provide resources for the public. Tools and applications added under Hester include: Stratum, Community, online address maintenance, proration and tax calculators, and GIS shapefiles. In January 2020, the Assessor’s office implemented online Tangible Personal Property filing, allowing the office to maintain twice the number of accounts while keeping staff size the same.
Hester and her team have received multiple awards over the last decade to include the annual Three Star Certification. Hester has been awarded Board Member of the Year (2015) and Assessor of the Year (2016). The entire office was awarded Excellence in Operations (2017) for implementing policies & standards that have been adopted by multiple assessment offices across the state. Lastly, Derek Flanigan, Chief Deputy, was awarded Chief Deputy of the Year (2017). The office has earned clean audits from the Comptroller of the Treasury in both real property and tangible personal property each year under Hester’s leadership.
As president of the Tennessee Assessor’s Association in 2022, Erinne worked with the state delegation to pass the “Unlisted” bill, which allows property owners to suppress the ownership of their primary residence on all Assessor online property search functions.
“I am honored to have served as Montgomery County Assessor for the past ten years, and I am excited to continue working on behalf of the residents of this great community,” said Hester. “Throughout my tenure, I have strived to bring fairness, transparency, and accountability to the assessment process. I am committed to ensuring that all residents receive accurate and equitable assessments, while providing exceptional customer service and support.”
Prior to being elected Assessor, Hester served as the Montgomery County Director of Accounts and Budgets from 2008-2013, where she earned the Certified Governmental Accounting Manager designation.
Hester has a degree in Accounting from APSU; serves as Immediate Past President of the Tennessee Assessor’s Association; serves on the United Way Budgets and Allocations committee; was recently invited to serve on the Accounting Program Advisory Board of the APSU College of Business; is a graduate of Leadership Clarksville and Leadership Middle Tennessee; served on the Custom’s House Museum Guild; a founding member of the Clarksville-Montgomery County 100 Women Who Care giving circle; and serves on several committees at her church in addition to teaching middle school Sunday School. Erinne has been married to Bryce Hester for over 20 years and they have two sons, Hayden and Ethan.
Information from Erinne Hester campaign.