@startleseasily is a fervent observer of the Metro government's comings and goings. In this column, "On First Reading," she'll recap the bimonthly Metro Council meetings and provide her analysis. You can find her in the pew in the corner by the mic, ready to give public comment on whichever items stir her passions. Follow her on Twitter here.
At a Steve Glover-less meeting on Tuesday, Metro Council considered additional license plate reader legislation and established a pre-budget public comment period.
All Politics Is Local
Tuesday’s meeting began on a somber note, with a resolution expressing solidarity with the people of Ukraine. Councilmembers spoke passionately, at times even tearfully, in support of the resolution. It was an unusual move for a body that normally declines to address international events.
Let’s take the 2019 Turkish invasion of northeastern Syria as an example. Hundreds of Kurdish people were killed, and hundreds of thousands were displaced. Nashville, as the Scene's own Stephen Elliott has written about, has the single largest Kurdish population in the United States. Were there any such Council resolutions then? Nope.
CM At-Large Bob Mendes called the resolution “well worthwhile” but asked colleagues to also remember “our Somali and Kurdish neighbors who have fled war zones and have families and home villages that continue to be in a war zone.” I’ll let you all draw your own conclusions about why we haven’t seen any similar resolutions for these groups.
Glover Out
In a surprise twist, CM At-Large Steve Glover resigned on Tuesday, citing health concerns. Glover has been one of the Council’s loudest conservative voices — literally and figuratively — since his election as a district CM in 2011. I’ll miss his trademark polo shirt + cellphone belt clip combo and his constant sparring with CM Mendes. I won’t miss his politics or his rants about how awful it is that the cost of providing basic governmental services falls “on the backs of the taxpayers.”
Learned Helplessness
A well-intentioned but hastily formed resolution setting up a “pre-budget public comment period” on March 15 drew concerns from CMs and the administration alike over timing of the hearing and the ability to incorporate public comments into the budget. CM At-Large Burkley Allen, who currently serves as chair of the Council’s Budget and Finance Committee, sponsored the legislation in an effort to expand opportunities for public input on budgetary issues. The resolution passed with two no votes who were concerned that March 15 is during Metro schools' spring break.
CM At-Large Sharon Hurt seemed particularly dismayed at the idea of giving people another chance to speak in a public forum, lamenting the fact that folks may feel like their opinions don’t matter and that the budget doesn’t reflect their priorities. If only we had some sort of representative body with the power to make changes to the budget in response to community concerns …
This limited two-hour hearing will not take the place of the charter-mandated public hearing on the budget, which usually happens in early June. Each speaker will have two minutes, and organizations will be limited to 10 minutes total, though I’m not sure how that could possibly be enforced. Honor system, I guess. If you want to speak, sign up by Tuesday, March 8.
You Thought I Was Finished?
If you thought you’d heard the last from me about license plate readers, think again. CM Mendes recently filed a series of bills that would clarify the Council’s intent regarding license plate readers, and they were up for discussion on Tuesday. CM Russ Pulley, who I hadn’t pegged for a conspiracy theorist, was on high alert, convinced that the bills represent a covert attempt to kill LPRs. Pulley, a former FBI agent who’s staunchly pro-LPR, questioned Mendes during the Public Health and Safety Committee meeting, seemingly in the hopes that Mendes might be like, “Whoops, you got me!” Mendes foiled Pulley’s attempts to bust him on conspiracy to commit a public service, noting that, in fact, all three bills have co-sponsors who voted in favor of LPRs last month.
Two of the bills — one that would define “personally identifiable information” and another that would prohibit the use of LPRs to assist with immigration enforcement — were deferred for two meetings. The third, which would ensure that the Community Oversight Board has the same ability as the district attorney and public defender to review audit trails and investigate complaints of misuse, passed unanimously on second reading. It will be considered for final passage at the next Council meeting.
As planned, I made my triumphant return to the Historic Metro Courthouse on Tuesday. And as expected, it was a rough transition off the couch. Lucky for me, I had the drum section of the TSU Aristocrat of Bands there to celebrate.
