Tennessee Capitol Building
Tennessee voters have approved Amendment 2, a measure referred to the ballot by Tennessee legislators that would constitutionally prohibit state taxation of property.
“Amendment 2 is a nice addition to the other constitutional amendments that Tennesseans have enacted over the past decade, such as their prohibition of a state income tax and the constitutional enshrinement of Right-to-Work,” said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. “It’s nice that Tennesseans will no longer have to worry about the prospect of a state property tax, something few states even have. Hopefully the overwhelming support for Amendment 2 will inspire legislators to pass legislation in 2027 that finally install a limit on the growth of property taxes, which have spike in many locales across the Volunteer State. Tennessee legislators and Governor-elect Blackburn should consider pursuing a property tax levy limit of the sort enacted by North Carolina voters this evening, or a local spending cap of the sort the Gov. Greg Abbott aims to install in Texas next year.”
The statewide property tax prohibition that is now part of the Tennessee constitution would also bar the prospect of a California-style wealth tax. Tennessee is one of only four states without any limit on property taxes, which are imposed by local governments. Property tax levy limit legislation failed to advance in the Tennessee General Assembly earlier this year.