The Limestone County Water & Sewer Authority board of directors on Thursday formally approved the hiring of a new chief executive officer, pending the results of a background check and drug screening.

At its Dec. 7 meeting, the board voted to allow Chairman Jim Moffatt and board member Ty Smith to negotiate with Daryl Williamson, the human resources manager with Columbia Power & Water Systems in Columbia, Tennessee. The decision wasn’t unanimous, but the terms of Williamson’s contract did receive unanimous approval at Thursday’s meeting.

The board agreed to pay Williamson $130,000 per year. Moffatt said the amount was lower than the salary of former General Manager Byron Cook, who was fired by the board on Oct. 27.

Williamson won’t be issued a LCWSA vehicle but will receive a vehicle allowance of $700 per month. He will also begin employment with three weeks of accrued vacation time. He is scheduled to start work the first week of January.

Williamson can be fired with or without cause at any point by the board. If he is terminated without cause, the board would pay six months of his salary.

The employment agreement stipulates that if Williamson decides to leave the authority, he would provide a six-month written notice. If he leaves without giving a six-month notice or fails to continue his employment for a period of six months after he gives notice, Williamson has agreed to pay the LCWSA an amount equal to his gross salary prorated to the number of days from his last work day to the end of the six-month period.

Moffatt said the concept of Williamson paying the authority back if he left without notice was his idea and not the board’s.

The employment agreement also stipulates Williamson would agree not take take a job at a competing utility within 30 miles of LCWSA within one year after leaving his CEO post.

Raise for interim CEO

Following Cook’s termination, the board named LCWSA Customer Service Manager Tammy Smith as interim general manager. On Thursday, the board decided to compensate her for her extra work and time.

The board voted to give her a 3 percent raise over a four-month period, beginning with the day she assumed the role on Oct. 28. She will also receive a $450-per-month vehicle allowance over that time.

Moffatt thanked Smith for stepping up and added he didn’t know how many extra hours she had worked since taking the reins. He added the 3 percent raise seemed low for her added duties.

Board members Johnny Hatchett and Ty Smith also thanked her for her service to the utility.

“I feel like Tammy is someone who loves this water department more than anyone else in this room,” Smith said.