Renovations funding bill gets OK from key committees
Measure itself would not change funding allocation
Funding Fedexforum renovations through hotel-motel tax changes is one step closer to reality after a bill passed through a Tennessee House subcommittee Wednesday morning and a Senate committee in the afternoon.
House Bill 2868, sponsored by State Rep. Kevin Vaughan, R-collierville, is the corresponding legislation for the hotel-motel tax changes that State Sen. Brent Taylor, R-memphis, filed in the Senate.
Both the House and Senate versions of the bill passed out of their committee meetings Wednesday.
The bill itself would not change the funding allocation but would allow Shelby County to make changes to the way the funding is allocated. It does not authorize Shelby County to increase the tax.
During the State and Local Government Senate committee hearing, Taylor asked that the bill be passed out of committee but said he would wait to move the bill to the Senate floor until a firm agreement was made on the tax.
“I would like to note, Mr. Chairman, that was a long weekend for a lot of people that worked on this and it’s my understanding that they have reached a tentative agreement in principle, and everyone is doing their due diligence,” Taylor said.
Taylor said he would hold the bill in the calendar committee until “such time that the agreement is agreed to,
and everyone signed off on it.”
Wednesday morning, Vaughan presented his bill which corresponds to the Senate bill Taylor filed.
Vaughan, in response to a compliment regarding the legislation securing renovations to Fedex Forum, said the credit goes to the “graciousness of the Convention and Visitors Bureau,” also known as Memphis Tourism and the work of Memphis Mayor Paul Young.
“(Young) and his staff put in an inordinate amount of hours to get with (the) Convention (and) Visitors Bureau to work something out, and I think they did a great job (to) come up with something that everyone can live with,” Vaughan said.
Rep. Dave Wright, R- Corryton, asked if all those involved were “on board,” with the legislation. Vaughan said yes but that details were still “working their way through the system.”
“But the handshake and the deal in principle has been agreed to and more should be coming out on that as the bill moves forward through the process,” Vaughan said.
The Senate bill is set to be heard Wednesday afternoon in the Senate State and Local Government Committee.
Previous Fedexforum funding developments
Changes to the hotel-motel tax were already passed at the county level, in hopes the state would pass corresponding legislation to allow the county to make changes. During a March 18 Shelby County Commission meeting, an add-on resolution was presented that changed the allocation of the tax to separate funds for Fedexforum renovations.
It passed overwhelmingly with only one Commissioner, Edmund Ford Jr., voting against it.
“It would be premature (for me to) vote up or down on this on this item because I do not have other people (here) that can tell me what the consequences good or bad would be,” Ford said.
The resolution the county passed would change the share of hotel-motel tax Memphis Tourism receives from 61% to 35.75% until the renovations to Fedexforum are complete.
Currently, Memphis Tourism receives a 5% increase on the tax yearly until the tax is almost entirely given to Memphis Tourism.
It also requires Memphis Tourism to add two individuals nominated by the Shelby County Mayor and approved by the Commission to the Convention and Visitors Bureau.
When the bill was first presented at the Local and State Government Senate Committee, individuals representing the Memphis hospitality industry said they had offered to give the county funds to partially cover the renovations.
Wayne Tabor, CEO of the Metropolitan Memphis Hotel and Lodging Association, said they offered $30 million but the county needed more.
Shelby County is, in part, responsible for funding related to the Fedexforum renovations.
Local and state officials have been trying to come up with money for the Fedexforum renovations, which are expected to cost at least $550 million. The Grizzlies have not publicly said how much money the renovations will cost. The arena is also home to the Tigers men’s basketball team.
Jonah Dylan contributed to this report.
Brooke Muckerman covers Shelby County Government for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at (901) 484-6225, brooke.muckerman@commercialappeal.com and followed on X, formerly known as Twitter @Brookemuckerman.