Vote NO on Metropolitan Charter Amendment 1

Davidson County Republican Party - After a thorough review, the Davidson County Republican Party urges the citizens of Davidson County to vote NO on Charter Amendment 1 concerning the creation of a Community Oversight Board for law enforcement.

There are currently at least 8 different layers of accountability in place for our local law enforcement agencies, several made up of civilians. These include local agencies such as the Office of Professional Accountability as well as state and federal agencies such as the TBI and FBI. Our local officers are currently held to a higher standard of accountability than other departments nationwide. Also, there is no mandate in the current legislation that would require the perspective of someone who is well-versed in current law enforcement policy, procedure and training. Nor is there a requirement for anyone on the board to have a comprehensive understanding of local, state and federal law. 

Furthermore, the proposed amendment to create the Community Oversight Board would not only be redundant, but would add another $2 million annually to the Metro Budget. In a time when the metro government cannot keep its promised raises to employees and is cutting tens of millions of dollars out of the budget to stay solvent, Nashville certainly cannot afford this redundant, expensive layer of bureaucracy.

The current language in the proposed amendment also causes concern:

Section 11.1301
1. “7 of the 11 Board Members will be nominated by community organizations or private petition signed by 50 Davidson County Residents and approved by majority vote of Council.
2. “At least 4 of the 7 members must reside in economically distressed communities.”
Not only is the term “economically distressed community” not clearly defined, but there are many other vague descriptions throughout the proposed amendment.
Most importantly, nowhere in the proposed amendment is there language that any board members appointed are required to be United States Citizens. This is in direct violation of the sanctuary city legislation passed by the state legislature. How can we require our law enforcement officers to be citizens but not the individuals who have oversight of their livelihood?
It is for these reasons that we encourage all Davidson County Voters to vote NO on Charter Amendment 1 to allow our police force to continue protecting Davidson County residents.

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