WKNO TRANSCRIPT
CHRISTOPHER BLANK (HOST): In the wake of Tennessee Republican lawmakers passing a $1.5 billion dollar tax refund for businesses, it's come to light that some beneficiaries include those same lawmakers. At a time when the state's poorest residents could be hurting from funding cuts to food subsidies and health care, some of the richest, like Gov. Bill Lee, are getting taxpayer money. With us to talk about that and other issues is political analyst Otis Sanford. Welcome back.
OTIS SANFORD: Thank you, Chris.
BLANK: Otis, one of the main controversies when this bill was being considered was about transparency. The Senate did not want people to know who got these refunds. Why was that?
SANFORD: Primarily because they didn't want the scrutiny. They didn't want to have to answer any questions about why they were favoring businesses over people in Tennessee with lesser means. And they certainly didn't want to have to answer questions about why they were reaping the benefits of their own vote.
BLANK: And ultimately, the state House did agree that at least some of that information should be public, and it's public for a short time. But this raises a new ethical question, I think, and that is for voters to answer. At least 13 senators disclosed conflicts of interest before approving this bill. One of them was our local Sen. Brent Taylor, but he did not apply for the refund. And here's a quote from him.
He says, "I just didn't think it was appropriate for me to have voted for the franchise tax cut and then go out and benefit from it because I knew I'd have reporters calling and wanting to know if I thought it was appropriate to take the refund and also vote for it." But Otis, some lawmakers did take the refund. And I wonder if you might be one of those reporters who have questions about appropriateness.
SANFORD: Let me say, I do applaud Sen. Taylor for not taking the refund, but it shouldn't be because a reporter would be coming around asking questions. It should be because it was just the right thing to do. As a matter of fact, I think even the more right thing to have done would have been not to approve it in the first place. Let me also say, Chris, that posting the businesses on the website for 30 days is not enough. And also there should be more specificity on that website about how much money these businesses are getting. And let me also say that shame on Gov. Bill Lee. His company is reaping the benefits of this and he pushed this bill. And it's not enough to say that, well, he has put his interest in the Lee Company in a blind trust because he's not a blind governor. He should not be turning a blind eye to what's going on here with favoring big business over ordinary Tennesseans.
BLANK: Well, while we're talking about good use of money, here in Shelby County, there are a few big expensive projects that are being debated. One of them is the new Regional One Health Center, a project that could cost over $1 billion. And city council member Jeff Warren -- he is a doctor -- and while the city council is not involved in this project, he has proposed an alternative. He says there's plenty of room for expanding Methodist University Hospital. So, given the belt tightening in the next few years, is this something that should be considered? And do we even need a new hospital?
SANFORD: I think we do need to have a conversation about it. But I think there are some issues here that it's going to be difficult to deal with. First of all, he's he's suggesting that all of the health care systems in this community come together and agree on how to operate this thing. Well, that's tough when you have competitors Baptist, Methodist, St. Francis, UT, all working together to try to make this happen. That's going to be very problematic. And there are some people who still think that that old Commercial Appeal building where you and I work for many years, Chris, is the right place for this new Regional One. But I just think that Jeff is being a little unrealistic about the problems that would crop up trying to get this done.
BLANK: Well, finally, the City of Memphis now is trying to improve its convention center accommodations. And this is a deal that started last year to buy the Sheraton Hotel Downtown, which is next to the convention center. And the city did this because it essentially wants control of this property. But we've learned that they've now hired a Maryland-based company at $4,000 a month to consult on this deal. What are some things the public needs to ask about this project as it moves forward?
SANFORD: The first thing they need to ask is why hasn't the deal to close on the project been accomplished as of yet? That hotel is going to need a lot lot of work. And where's the money going to come from? All of those questions have to be answered. And while it is true that Memphis definitely needs a first-class convention hotel, we've pumped a lot of money into the Renasant Convention Center. I mean, I'm talking about hundreds of millions of dollars. So, I just think that the mayor and the leadership of the city have to be very creative in order to try to get what they're trying to get done, because it looks shaky right now.
