Stewart for State Senate

Yesterday, SB0083 passed the Tennessee State Senate on a vote of 18 to 13.

While some will say that vote fell along party lines because of its stance on a “prevailing wage” (what some have referred to as a minimum wage), my “no” vote had absolutely nothing to do with a minimum wage but everything to do with letting local folks, not the legislature, do what they think is best for their community.  Let me explain.

In layman’s terms, Senate Bill 83 prohibits local governments from setting a prevailing or living wage in their communities that is higher than what has been set under state or federal law.  For example, the City of Memphis and Shelby County have created an ordinance that requires employers to pay a wage of $10.00 per hour.  Under Senate Bill 83, this will no longer be an option for Memphis, Shelby County, or any other local government in Tennessee.

Now, as far as my personal opinion, I don’t really know why any local government would want to get involved in setting a local wage scale.  It is hard to monitor, hard to enforce, and I can see where, in certain circumstances, it could negatively impact local economic development.  But then again, I don’t live in or directly represent Memphis or Shelby County.  And the sponsor of this bill, Senator Paul Stanley (R-Germantown) doesn’t live in or directly represent my seven counties in rural Middle and Southeast Tennessee.

I voted “no” on this bill, and I would have voted the same even if it had required local governments to set a wage scale that was higher than state or federal law.  I voted “no” because I believe very strongly in the principle that no one knows how to build a community better than the folks who live in it.  If Memphis wants to have a local wage scale, then they should have that option, if Warren County doesn’t want to have a local wage scale, then they should have that option too.  This and thousands of other issues should be debated locally, where the impact is felt.  And through this debate, I am certain that our local elected officials and our communities will make the best decision for the future of THEIR COMMUNITY.

For years, we have heard about more local control, less centralized government, and most of the time it has come from many of my good friends on the other side of the aisle.  And the case has been made so strongly that I even agree in most circumstances because again I believe in the principal that no one knows how to build a community better than the folks who live in it.

Yesterday, we went down a slippery slope, a slope that is paved with the idea that 132 people in the legislature know more and know better than the folks back home.  I admit, I don’t know if a local wage scale is good for Memphis and Shelby County or not, but your community should be built from your house to the court house. Those of us in the state house, even when we don’t agree, need to realize:

No one knows how to build a community better than the folks who live in it.