Tennessee Legislature’s Plan to Cut Nashville Council in Half Temporarily Halted by Court

Judges from a Nashville Chancery Court made a ruling in favor of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (Metro) on Monday. They filed a lawsuit against the state to block a bill signed by Gov. Bill Lee earlier this year that would have cut the city council in half, at least temporarily.

The judge wrote that the law’s “last minute changes in district boundaries and voting locations create confusion for voters and candidates.”

The Nashville Mayor John Cooper was pleased with the court’s decision and praised it at a special meeting and on Twitter. He said, “I am grateful that the court protected the integrity of an election process that has already begun. The people of Nashville should decide how our city is governed, as they did when they formed Metro sixty years ago.”

The legal director of Metro, Wally Dietz, also spoke out in a press conference on Monday. He stated he sensed Nashville residents feeling powerless and hopeless and that the council received support when they filed the suit. He added that the legislation appeared to attack Metro’s ability to govern effectively.

A Victory for Nashville—for Now

Since 1963, the Metro Council has consisted of 35 district members and five at-large members. In 2015, voters rejected a ballot measure that would have reduced the council to 27 members. Four-year terms of the present 40 members end this year on August 31, with a general election scheduled for August 3.

Candidates have launched more than 40 campaigns, and they have reported over half a million dollars in campaign receipts based on 2022 year-end financial disclosures.

The court documents state that “there currently are three metropolitan governments in Tennessee, but the only affected metropolitan government that is required under the act to reduce the size of its council is Metro” due to House Bill 48/Senate Bill 87, which only affects Metro. Two lawsuits have been filed to challenge the new legislation, claiming that it violates Tennessee laws about home rule. The Home Rule Amendment specifies that the General Assembly does not have the authority to pass laws applicable on a local level unless approved by local voters.

The court concluded that for now “there is a compelling public interest in preserving the integrity of the Metro election process that is already underway.”

A status conference will take place next week, and the Tennessee Attorney General will represent the state in the case.