Tennessee Republican leaders threaten to withhold funds as Memphis preps to put guns on the ballot

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee’s top Republican leaders on Monday threatened to withhold tens of millions of dollars in state funding from left-leaning Memphis should leaders continue with plans to place three local gun control initiatives on the November ballot.

Earlier this year, Memphis’ city council approved asking voters in November if they wanted to tweak the city charter to require permits to carry a handgun, ban the possession of AR-15 style rifles and implement a so-called “red flag” ordinance, which allows law enforcement officials to remove firearms from those found to be an imminent danger to themselves or others.

The city council had been discussing the ballot measures for more than a year, acknowledging at times that they were potentially risking the ire of the Republican-dominant Legislature since the measures likely conflict with Tennessee’s lax gun laws.

Regardless, city council members representing the state’s most populous and Black-majority region said they were willing to “roll the dice.”

“This is an opportunity for citizens in Memphis to speak,” Councilman Chase Carlisle said during a committee meeting in 2023, when the measures were first being considered. “Whether it’s enforceable by the constitution or not, I think, is moot. I think it’s an opportunity for the General Assembly, whether they choose to listen or not, to understand where we are as a municipality. And to give voice to the people.”

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