Image Credit: Freddie O’Connell / Facebook & Canva
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
After passing a $3.8 billion city budget including a 26% property tax raise, Nashville is using a nice chunk of those taxpayer funds to pay lobbyists to advocate for city interests at the state and federal levels despite the mayor’s office being only a short walk from the Capitol building.
A new report by the Beacon Center of Tennessee shows Nashville spending nearly a quarter million dollars on the taxpayer’s dime to hire private lobbyists instead of relying on staff to communicate with lawmakers just down the road, literally a five and a half minute walk.
In their first installation of a series of articles investigating these lobbying contracts across the state, Fox 17 reports Tennessee cities spent over $1.4 million on lobbyists last year to push for issues not usually chosen by taxpayers.
Nashville spent the third most amount at $219,000, putting the Capitol city behind Knoxville and Chattanooga, who spent $252,000 and $231,000 respectively. Only Cookeville, Lebanon, and Mt. Juliet were reported as spending $0 on city-sponsored lobbying.
The amount spent on lobbyists statewide seems to be growing as the Beacon Center’s 2022 Pork Report showed the cost to taxpayers was just over $1 million versus this year’s almost $1.5 million, marking a roughly 40% increase.
Nashville’s latest contract with lobbying firm Butler Snow is not set to end until 2030, with the city paying $676,000 over the five years.
Mayor Freddie O’ Connell defended the practice, saying, “This is not something new. We’ve always needed people to interact—not just with the legislature, but with Congress, the White House, and relationships outside the city.”
But Justin Owen, President of the Beacon Center believes that just because the practice is common doesn’t mean it’s a good one. “What can these lobbyists do that the mayor, the council, or the deputy mayor can’t?” Owen asked. “Probably the only real service they’re providing is keeping local officials updated on what’s happening. But that’s what the Tennessee Municipal League is for. You’re spending $200,000 a year hiring private lobbyists to represent you three blocks away. That’s $200,000 not going to police, not going to schools, not going to fill potholes or fund other basic services.”
Taxpayer-funded lobbying has been a significant issue in Tennessee for several years. The Beacon Center published an in-depth analysis of the “dangerous cycle” of the practice in 2009, and The Tennessee Conservative has reported on the issue extensively over the last several years.
A Beacon Poll from July of 2024 showed nearly all surveyed Tennesseans condemned taxpayer-funded lobbying on principle alone, even if they weren’t intimately familiar with the concept.
Of 1,200 registered voters surveyed, “a minuscule 5% agree that local governments should be able to use tax dollars to hire contract lobbyists to lobby at the federal and state levels, while a whopping 72% disagree.”
These results seem to correlate with results from The Tennessee Conservative’s own survey from last year wherein 98% or respondents agreed that lobbyists having familial ties to members of the General Assembly was a conflict of interest.
Though our survey was not specific to taxpayer-funded lobbying, it appears Tennessee voters do not see the ever-growing lobbying industry as particularly favorable in any context, especially when they’re paying for it without their input or consent.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
