Nashville’s Metro Council calls on the state to continue accepting federal education funds

Nashville’s Metro Council passed a resolution Tuesday recommending that the state continue to accept federal education funding.

The move comes after a task force at the state legislature recently gathered to consider rejecting more than $1 billion in annual funding. Tennessee would be the first state to reject these funds.

The resolution cites Nashville’s designation as the “Athens of the South,” stating that education excellence has been integral to the city’s identity, and points out that “to reject this funding would send our federal tax dollars to support education in every other state in the Union except for our own.”

Initially, the resolution was a part of the council’s “consent agenda,” meaning that it could have been passed without discussion. But District 11 Councilmember Jeff Eslick opened debate and shared his hesitation about supporting the resolution.

“I’m not against this resolution but I believe our state leaders were elected and are going to make a good chip decision on this,” Eslick said. “I also think that the people at the state level have the information and have been given this duty to make this choice and I stand with them.”

Clay Capp, who sponsored the resolution, refuted the idea that the council had no say in the matter.

“As ourselves, the funders of the Metro Nashville Public School system, it’s appropriate for us to ask the General Assembly to continue receiving the federal money,” Capp said, “for the sake of Tennessee children, Nashville’s children and Nashville’s taxpayers, so that our federal tax money is not going to other states — which is what would happen if we didn’t take our own money back.”

The resolution ultimately passed, with no votes against and only Eslick abstaining.

Last month, the task force heard from Tennessee Department of Education, state researchers and representatives from out-of-state think tanks. The group is expected to produce a report of the issue by early January. So far, one leader of the legislative working group has said he doesn’t think the state will reject the funds.