Behind the Headlines Podcast · WKNO/The Daily Memphian

1638: The latest version of the sales tax rub between the state and local governments

·27 min·1 clip

Regional One's hospital plan needs about $900 million now, with the whole campus closer to $2 billion.

1. Behind the Headlines Podcast episode 1638 focuses on Memphis sales-tax distribution, population loss, and local-government pressure around Mayor Paul Young's budget arguments. 2. Host Eric Barnes is joined by Sam Hardiman, Sophia Surrett, and Bill Dries, all reporters for The Daily Memphian, so the discussion is built around recent reporting rather than a guest interview. 3. The episode asks how House Bill 780, population decline, and major development projects could affect Memphis revenue, housing, and city priorities. 4. Sam Hardiman explains that Memphis had about 650,000 people at the turn of the 21st century and now is estimated at roughly 600,000 to 615,000. 5. He says that House Bill 780 will replace the 2020 census as the base for Memphis sales-tax allotments with a special census every year. 6. Sam describes the current system as a per-capita allotment in which sales tax is collected in Shelby County, sent to Tennessee, and then returned to municipalities. 7. Bill Dries says the sales-tax fight is a long-running flashpoint between state government and local governments. 8. He adds that population growth was already a political issue during Jim Strickland's 2015 campaign and through his time as mayor. 9. The conversation turns to Paul Young's approach, including his emphasis on new housing and the city goal of building 10,000 homes. 10. Sam notes that the University of Tennessee, Knoxville's Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research will now produce the annual city counts by formula rather than by census mailer. 11. One striking point is that the formula may reward or punish Memphis not only for losing residents but also for shrinking as a share of Tennessee's total population. 12. The panel also links the population and tax discussion to XAI, with the Shelby County assessor and trustee projecting about $28 million in tax revenue from the company. 13. Sophia Surrett then shifts to small-business reporting, including the former Palladio site, Memphis Water Gardens, and the Market Central project. 14. She also says Ford's BlueOval direction has changed, with gas-powered trucks replacing the original electric-truck emphasis. 15. Bill Dries describes Frayser as a place where memories of a former suburb collide with present-day change, prompted by the fire at Skateland. 16. He says the point of his Frayser piece was that communities keep moving even when longtime residents think they have declined. 17. The Regional One segment adds tension around a near-$1 billion hospital build and the lack of state funding. 18. Eric Barnes notes that few people want to speak on the record about Regional One, which gives the discussion a restrained but skeptical tone. 19. Listeners who follow Memphis government, local development, and city budgets will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners looking for a light entertainment discussion or a single-topic deep dive may skip it.

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