Dr. Thornton Bryan, chairman of the executive committee, said they sent a letter to Governor Steve Beshear that recommended Allen as the new magistrate, out of the four people that the committee considered.
Allen said he is looking forward to being able to serve on the fiscal court, provided the governor pays attention to the committee’s recommendation and appoints him as Taylor’s replacement.
Taylor announced on Monday, March 9, that he was resigning from the Trigg County Fiscal Court, a resignation that was effective Monday, March 16. He accepted a position with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.
Taylor said at a press conference with his position he will work with the Department of Rural Roads Municipal Aid, a department that has direct involvement with fiscal courts and city councils in western Kentucky, so his being a magistrate could be seen as a conflict of interest.
Trigg County Judge Executive Stan Humphries said he thinks Allen would be a fine addition to the fiscal court, and added that while he hopes the governor will make an appointment before the fiscal court’s next meeting on Thursday, April 2, as he said the court “has a lot of work to do.”
However, Humphries has received no notification from the governor and doesn’t know when that appointment will be made.
Sarah Charles, Beshear’s spokesperson, said the governor will consider the committee’s recommendation when he makes the appointment, but there isn’t a specific time limit on when the governor has to appoint a replacement for Taylor.
Chappell Allen has been the president and Chief Executive Officer of Kentucky Machine and Engineering for the past 38 years, and for 12 years served on the Trigg County Board of Education. He was also appointed to the Trigg County Hospital Board and for 14 years has been on the board of directors at the Bank of Cadiz.
Allen has also been involved with the Trigg County Democratic Party for years and was the county’s co-chair for Marth Layne Collin’s campaign for governor. He has been a member of the Cadiz Rotary Club for 34 years and was president for a time.
