By AP
Clarksville, TN – The former mayor of Clarksville has taken over the cable television arm of the city's electric department, drawing fire from a councilman who questioned the appointment. The Clarksville Electric Department voted recently to hire ex-mayor Johnny Piper as the new superintendent of CDE Lightband. Councilman Jeff Burkhart says the appointment is improper because of a law barring the mayor from leaving office and taking another city department job within a year. An attorney for CDE says the department is governed by the Municipal Electric Plant Law of 1935 and isn't under the same restrictions as other city departments.