(The Center Square) – Tennesseeans approved a constitutional amendment that will bar the General Assembly from enacting a statewide property tax.
The state does not levy a property tax. Municipalities, counties and school boards do. The amendment only bars the state from property taxes.
Tennesseans approved a constitutional amendment 12 years ago that bars the state from enacting an income tax.
The state relies on sales taxes to fund its coffers. Tennessee's overall sales tax is second only to Louisiana's, according to a report from the Tax Foundation.
The statewide sales tax is 7%, but local governments can add up to 2.75%. The average sales tax rate for the state is 9.61%, according to the Tax Foundation’s report.
An amendment that gives judges the discretion to deny bail for certain offenses also passed. Lawmakers differed on the amendment's fiscal impact.
Rep. Vincent Dixie, a Democrat representing Nashville, says the cost of housing the additional inmates would fall on local counties.
"Somebody has to bear the cost of housing, food and medical treatment or in healthcare," Dixie said in an interview with The Center Square. "Who is going to bear that cost? The counties are. And how do the counties pay for this? They have to pay it through the property tax and sales taxes here in Tennessee."
Supporters of the bill say the real cost is to the victims and their families.
"Several weeks ago, a violent criminal was let out on bail in west Tennessee, then killed four innocent people," House Speaker Cameron Sexton said in an email to The Center Square. "What was that cost? Playing this game of cost at the expense of the victims is why blue cities are least safe cities in Tennessee and in America."
Voters also approved a constitutional amendment that expands crime victims' rights, including the right to be present at court hearings.