This year has been interesting in Tennessee.
First, we saw the state legislature pass a law overturning the GLBT non-discrimination ordinance in Nashville. This also prevented all other cities in Tennessee from enacting similar measures.
Now, with the Occupy message gaining traction, they have proposed a newly onerous measure.
Join me below the squiggle...
Proposal Would Prevent TN Cities from Requiring Living Wage
A new proposal would prevent any city from implementing living wage measures. Living wages are important in bigger cities as the costs of living are typically higher than rural areas. Now legislators from rural areas want to exert control over the cities.
"What we don't want is for our towns to start implementing a hodgepodge of laws that would keep the small businessman from expanding within the state of Tennessee," said Rep. Glen Casada, R-College Grove.
Last year, Casada passed a bill that prohibits cities from requiring companies it does business with to include sexual orientation in its nondiscrimination laws. Now, he wants to expand that to stop living wage requirements.
This would essentially strip a measure enacted in another liberal leaning area of the state.
Right now, only Memphis requires its contractors to give employees a living wage of $10 to $12 an hour.
This would nullify that ordinance and prohibit any other cities from ever following suit.
Why do these people complain about federal overreach in one breath, while stealing local elected power in the other?
I love Tennessee, but this type of measure has got to stop.