Swift Budget, Slow Clap from MNPS

Good afternoon, everyone. Council swiftly passes substitute budget; MNPS sweats over pending audit... Mayor O’Connell’s grocery tax cut is not a cut... East Bank only has 40 months to prepare for Super Bowl LXIV... And much more!

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Metro Council passes substitute budget as MNPS sweats over pending performance audit.

From Megan Podsiedlik

Last night, the council made quick work of passing its substitute budget put together under the guidance of Budget Chair Kyonzté Toombs.

The biggest changes include an additional $1 million to the Barnes Housing Trust Fund, a $2.1 million increase in Eviction Right to Counsel funding, additional support for homelessness services, and investment in more violence prevention and community safety initiatives.

As is typical every budget season, the council largely adhered to the mayor’s original proposal, given the limit on time and resources it takes to implement any major adjustments once the administration’s agenda is put forward.

“I think it's important for everybody to also understand that the way it works, it's a mayoral budget,” said Councilmember Zulfat Suara. “Think about it, it's a $3.8 billion budget, the chair is only able to move less than $9 million, and so if people really want to make an impact on the budget and they want the conversation to start, they start with the mayor before it's published in May. Everybody comes to the council and everybody wants the council to perform magic.”

MNPS Audit The council’s substitute budget also includes $800,000 for an independent performance audit of Metro Nashville Public Schools—an initiative originally sparked by Councilmember Jason Spain.

The Metropolitan Nashville School Board appears a bit taken aback by the initiative. During public comment, School Board Vice Chair/Budget Chair Dr. Berthena Nabaa-McKinney and Chair Freda Player appeared defensive about the pending performance audit.

“I'm coming to have a conversation with Metro Council to talk about the spirit of collaboration throughout this budget process,” said Nabaa-McKinney. “I think we have missed an opportunity of collaboration and conversation to learn more about what Metro Nashville Public Schools does, what our board is responsible for as elected members of the body, and how we can come together as a body between Metro Council and Metro Nashville Public Schools to work together for the children of Nashville.”

“The school board was not aware of any of the Metro Council's previous request for performance information, nor return on investment details. Moreover, it's not been articulated precisely what the performance audit will evaluate,” said Player, who requested a joint committee that includes MNPS representation to oversee the proposed performance audit.

USD/GSD Study In addition to securing the funds to execute an MNPS audit, Spain thanked his colleagues and the mayor for supporting his efforts to research the tax rates and services within the Urban Services District and General Services District to ensure all taxpayers in Davidson County are treated equitably.

“I share the concerns that my colleagues have expressed about the impacts of changes we made in last year's budget cycle, shifting expenses between the USD to the GSD,” said Spain. “I appreciate the council's overwhelming support of a resolution to continue that study and continue that conversation. I appreciate the mayor including funding for that study in his budget, and Chair Toombs for maintaining it in her substitute.”

The $3.8 billion budget passed by the council includes a local grocery tax cut but leaves the overall property tax rate unchanged.

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✹ THE RISE OF SPENCER PRATT

The Rise of Spencer Pratt Filmmaker Gabriel Mann, a California native who fled to Nashville in 2021 and made his name with the wildfire documentary Hotshots, has been behind the scenes for Spencer Pratt's improbable rise from reality-star-turned-aggrieved-homeowner after the Palisades fire destroyed his home to a competitive candidate in LA's mayoral race.

Mann witnessed Pratt's transformation firsthand, starting in the aftermath of the fires, and has produced every one of the groundbreaking campaign ads that've captured the nation. Join us Thursday, June 18, at Bungalow Studios for the inside story.

Buy Tickets

This event benefits The Pamphleteer, Nashville and is priced with that in mind. Bard-level subscribers receive free admittance.

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BLURBS

💰 Tax On, Tax Off I eat five hamburgers a week. Two weeks ago, I decided to up it to six, but gained a pound in the process. So, I cut back down to five, and lost the extra pound. Did I lose weight? Can I share photos about my weight loss journey?

Probably not. You’d all laugh at me.

By the same measure, if the mayor of your city increased your grocery tax for two years before decreasing it back down again, would you say he “cut taxes”?

Probably not.

Mayor O’Connell’s grocery tax cut is not a cut. The 2024 transit referendum applied a 0.5% sales tax increase across the board, bringing Nashville’s effective grocery tax rate from 2.25% to 2.75%. The transit surcharge is technically not a grocery tax. But when you get your bill for 15 pounds of ground beef, the rate doesn’t distinguish.

In the mayor’s promotional materials advertising his grocery tax cut, he proclaims that the grocery tax rate in Nashville is currently 2.25% and that his cut will bring it down to 1.75% and save you about $70 per year. But with the conveniently omitted transit surcharge, his cut brings the effective rate right back to where it was sixteen months ago.

O’Connell wants you to celebrate him for increasing a tax and then reducing it to where it started, and he wants you to believe that he deserves credit for making Nashville “more affordable” for his effort.

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✹ METRO COUNCIL WATCH

New Council Watch Features We've added additional features to Council Watch. In addition to who's funding your council member, you can now see how they vote and who they vote with most frequently. (Take a Look)

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HEADLINES

🏈 Nashville’s East Bank faces 40-month deadline to prepare for Super Bowl LXIV. The East Bank Development Authority is facing an accelerated timeline to complete major infrastructure projects around Nissan Stadium ahead of Super Bowl LXIV in 2030. This includes roads, utilities, pedestrian/cyclist connections like the Seigenthaler Bridge Connector, a new hotel, and other developments such as East Point Flats. Officials describe the deadline as “very tight” but are confident about hosting the event, with most work wrapping up by the end of 2029. (WKRN)
💰 Shelby County Clerk Tami indicted by DOJ for using $44k in public funds for personal use. Shelby County General Sessions Court Clerk Tami Sawyer was indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice on public corruption charges for allegedly scheming to misuse over $44,000 in county funds for personal expenses. Prosecutors claim she used county credit cards for items like alcohol and Uber Eats, and routed money through PayPal accounts to a friend who transferred it back to her. Sawyer, a Democrat elected in 2024, pleaded not guilty and faces up to 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine. (Lookout)
🗳 Blackburn co-sponsors election security bill offering bonus funding to states that verify voter citizenship. Senator Marsha Blackburn is co-sponsoring the Election Security Partnership Act with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), which offers up to a 10 percent bonus in federal election security grants to states that submit voter rolls to DHS’s SAVE program for citizenship verification. The bill appropriates $20 million and incentivizes use of the free system to identify non-citizens on voter lists. Blackburn cited an example where Texas found 2,700 non-citizens registered to vote and noted that 26 states already use the system. (TN Star)

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