KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Nick McBride took over the Knox County Trustee’s Office on Sept. 1.
About a month later, property-tax bills are supposed to go out.
That leaves little room for a ceremonial transition.
In written answers provided Sept. 10 through Executive Administrator Brad Hair, McBride said his first 100 days will focus on transparency, a review of how the office operates and keeping taxpayer services running while he begins looking for changes that could last beyond the opening months of his term.
The immediate test, McBride said, is whether he can change the office without disrupting the work it already has to do.
“The greatest challenge will probably be balancing change with continuity,” McBride said.
That gives the public a fairly specific scorecard.
Start with the money
McBride said his first priority is to strengthen public trust through greater transparency and accountability.
The Trustee’s Office handles more than $1 billion in public funds each year, McBride said, and he believes taxpayers should be able to see how that money is being managed.
His first measurable commitment is monthly financial reporting.
McBride said he intends to publish financial reports from the Trustee’s Office online each month, similar to a transparency practice he said he followed while serving as Knox County Register of Deeds.
That is a promise the public will be able to check.
The question after 100 days will not simply be whether McBride says the office became more transparent. It will be whether those reports were actually published, what information they contain and whether taxpayers can use them to understand the office’s finances.
Then comes the internal review
McBride’s second priority is aimed inside the office.
He said he plans to examine staffing, expenses, policies and procedures to determine whether the Trustee’s Office can operate more efficiently.
That review, McBride said, will include whether staffing levels are appropriate, whether unnecessary expenses can be eliminated and whether internal expectations are clear for employees responsible for public funds.
McBride also pointed to vehicles used by the office as an example of spending he discussed during the campaign.
But there is an important timing distinction.
McBride said all six leased pickup trucks identified during the previous administration were returned before he took office.
That means the returned trucks should not be counted as an efficiency McBride completed during his first 100 days.
His test begins with what the review produces next.
If McBride identifies additional savings, staffing changes or procedural reforms, those decisions — and the dollars attached to them — will provide a clearer measure of what his efficiency pledge actually means.
Property-tax season arrives first
Before those longer-term changes develop, McBride said the office has an immediate operational responsibility.
Property-tax bills need to go out on time.
McBride said maintaining taxpayer service during that process is one of his three primary first-100-day goals. He said taxpayers should continue to receive assistance and have access to the office’s existing locations and payment options while the transition occurs.
That makes continuity measurable too.
Either the tax-billing cycle works as expected or problems emerge.
McBride said the office will also begin evaluating technology that could make transactions easier for residents and potentially reduce costs.
He did not identify a specific new system that has already been selected.
Instead, McBride described the first 100 days as an evaluation period.
Modernization comes with limits
McBride said technology modernization will extend beyond the initial 100 days.
He said his experience in county government has shown him that technology can streamline work, improve access and increase transparency, and he wants to evaluate whether similar changes could work in the Trustee’s Office.
But McBride also identified limits on how quickly that can happen.
Any new technology, he said, has to be evaluated for cost, security, compatibility with Knox County systems and ease of use for taxpayers.
That turns “modernization” from a broad promise into a series of questions.
What system needs changing? What will a replacement cost? What savings would it produce? How will taxpayer information be protected? And will the new process actually be easier for the people using it?
McBride said his goal during the first 100 days is to establish a plan, not necessarily complete the implementation.
Another clock involves tax sales
McBride also identified tax sales as a longer-term priority.
He said he has committed to holding at least one tax sale each year.
That work cannot be done by the Trustee’s Office alone, McBride said. Tax sales require coordination with the Clerk and Master, attorneys, courts and other parties.
McBride said similar coordination is necessary throughout the Trustee’s responsibilities. The office receives information from the Property Assessor and works with the county Finance Department and other offices.
Those relationships, he said, will affect how quickly some changes can move.
What 100 days will actually measure
McBride’s stated goals include broad ideas: trust, accountability, professionalism, modernization and efficiency.
His own answers also provide more concrete tests.
McBride said he will consider the opening 100 days successful if property-tax bills go out on time, monthly financial reports become publicly available, staffing and spending receive a meaningful review and the office develops a clear plan for technology and taxpayer service.
He also said he wants residents to see the office as accessible and responsible with public money.
Those outcomes will not answer every question about his tenure.
They do provide a starting record.
One hundred days from now, the most useful comparison will not be between McBride’s administration and the language of a campaign.
It will be between what he said would happen and what the public can see actually changed.
I am a retired detective and criminal justice / government educator based in Tennessee. I founded The Redemption Project, as a place to focus on civics, rebuild non-partisan trust, and provide educational and emotional grace while learning about the news. I also have a column in Knox TN Today. My reporting and commentary have also appeared in other outlets including; Governing, The Arizona Capitol Times, South Florida Sun Sentinel, Police1, among other state and regional outlets.
Source Library
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1. Written responses from Knox County Trustee Nick McBride, transmitted by Executive Administrator Brad Hair to Brandon Burley on Sept. 10, 2026 — DIRECT SOURCE CLAIM / PRIMARY SOURCE.
