September 2022 Hot Topic — Sidewalks, Trees & AirBnBs — Local Policy-Making in the Shadow of the USA’s 2nd-Most Preemptive State Legislature
Speaker: Angie Emery Henderson (Metropolitan Nashville Council District 34).
Councilmember Henderson provided insight about the intersection of various local legislative rulings with the Tennessee Legislature.
The preemption doctrine refers to the idea that a higher authority of law will displace the law of a lower authority of law when the two authorities come into conflict. Many may recall that in Tennessee, preemption has affected prevailing and minimum wages laws, LGBTQ rights, community oversight of police, and marijuana decriminalization to name just a few policy issues. Of late, Metro’s sidewalk construction bill, ride share (Uber, Lyft, etc.) regulations, and AirBnB restrictions have come under the preemption fire. Councilwoman Henderson pointed meeting attendees to the National League of Cities (nlc.org) which has produced a “Preemption Wheel” graphic to illustrate State and Local overlap and conflict while also sharing numerous examples from Title17 (Zoning) of the Municipal Code.
We also learned more about additional organizations that lobby State officials such as American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the Beacon Center of TN, part of the State Policy Network (SPN), that provide bill language and fund PR campaigns that in many cases undermine local voices and authority.
For more information, readers are also encouraged to visit Source Watch to understand how” model bills” reach into almost every area of American life, including those of Middle Tennessee residents.