Music City Center defunding effort delayed

BY STEPHEN ELLIOTT

a primary care physician who serves on the boards of advocacy groups Forward Tennessee and Protect My Care. However, the elimination of the “good faith judgment” phrasing leaves the waters murky, she said.

“We’re at this next level of uncertainty in clinical care scenarios,” Bono said. “We’re trained to lean on our patients, practice patient-centered care. That’s a true downfall of what was passed. We’re looking to special interest groups like Tennessee Right to Life … we’re not respecting our patients as much as we need to right now.”

In a statement, Sen. London Lamar (D-Memphis) said the final draft of the bill had no input from doctors, nurses or people who had been pregnant.

“The legislation endangers the lives of women by perversely increasing legal protections for doctors the closer their pregnant patients get to death,” she said. “That’s an irresponsible and unconstitutional burden to put on women and healthcare providers. And it is exactly why doctors and women should be empowered to make life-saving decisions without government interference.”

In addition, a bill that would define “elective abortions” was put on ice yesterday in the House Population Health Subcommittee. Earlier this session, a bill that would add exceptions for rape or incest was shelved as well, despite support from GOP House Speaker Cameron Sexton.

This story was first published by our sister publication Nashville Post.

One effort to strip Nashville’s Convention Center Authority of its ability to collect taxes downtown to pay back the debt related to the Music City Center convention hall is off the table for now. Another, backed by Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson, is still under consideration but could see major changes.

Tennessee Republicans have pushed the effort as part of a wave of retribution against Nashville for the Metro Council’s decision last year not to support a bid for the 2024 Republican National Convention. Nashville officials (and GOP House Speaker Cameron Sexton) quickly pointed out that legislation was possibly illegal, as it threatened a revenue stream that has been committed to the $623 million downtown facility.

On Tuesday, one bill was taken off notice in the House and assigned to the general subcommittee in the Senate, both signs that the legislation is likely dead for the year. The

Johnson bill was rolled a week and is scheduled to be taken up by the Senate State and Local Government Committee next week. One possible change to the bill could leave the revenue stream in place while requiring that excess funds go toward paying off the debt rather than being redirected for other uses, as Mayor John Cooper has encouraged.

A portion of tax revenues from car rentals and hotel rooms — plus sales tax collected in the Music City Center and the Omni Hotel and excess sales tax revenues collected in a tourism development zone located within close proximity to the convention center — go to retire the debt for the building’s construction.

Mayor John Cooper has already informed national Republican leadership that the city plans to bid for the 2028 RNC, an attempt at easing tensions between the city and the state. Cooper will be out of office by the end of this year, though, and the Metro Council would still have to approve some aspects of a major national convention.

Some members of the Metro Council have identified the state’s push to defund the Music City Center as a reason to avoid working with the state on an even larger project, a proposed $2.1 billion enclosed stadium for the Tennessee Titans to which the state has committed $500 million.

Other legislative efforts aimed at Nashville include cutting the Metro Council in half — a bill for which has already been signed by Gov. Bill Lee and triggered a lawsuit by Metro — plus ongoing efforts to take over the Metro Nashville Airport Authority and transfer oversight of Lower Broadway bars to the state.

This story was first published by our sister publication Nashville Post.