Suburban TIFs: Public Good or Private Subsidy?
The Shelby County Board of Commissioners is expected today to once again perfunctorily approve Tax...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Dec 15, 2025 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government, Taxation | 0
The Shelby County Board of Commissioners is expected today to once again perfunctorily approve Tax...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Dec 8, 2025 | Criminal Justice, Shelby County government, State Government | 0
Just when we think there’s nothing worse than Sheriff Floyd Bonner’s management of the Shelby...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Nov 25, 2025 | Civil Rights, Criminal Justice, Shelby County government | 0
It’s déjà vu all over again, but when it comes to the crisis in the Shelby County Jail, there’s no...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Nov 10, 2025 | Criminal Justice, Shelby County government | 0
Frankie Dakin said it perfectly in a recent Facebook post: Shelby County Jail is now a human...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Sep 5, 2025 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government, Taxation | 1
Many of us have wished for a long time that our community had a website that allows us to test how...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Aug 28, 2025 | City of Memphis Government, Economic Development, Shelby County government, Taxation | 2
Nothing is certain but death and taxes, so says the proverb. Here in Memphis, it is just as...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Aug 18, 2025 | Criminal Justice, Shelby County government | 0
Few things provoke more suspicions than a project that arrives almost fully formed on a public...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Jul 28, 2025 | Education, Politics and Government, Shelby County government, Tennessee Legislature | 0
By Cardell Orrin A new Tennessee state law was passed that specifically targets Memphis-Shelby...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Jun 25, 2025 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government, Taxation, Tennessee Legislature | 0
The certified tax state law, the so-called “truth in taxation” law, mandates that local...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Jun 16, 2025 | City of Memphis Government, Education, Shelby County government, Taxation | 0
By Cardell Orrin This budget season, a quiet but significant divergence in fiscal policy has come...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | May 19, 2025 | City of Memphis Government, Shelby County government, Taxation | 0
State law forbids local governments from receiving windfalls from reappraisal but that doesn’t...
Read Moreby Smart City Memphis | Apr 28, 2025 | Criminal Justice, Shelby County government | 0
Shelby County Government’s path to pay for a new jail just got harder. The Tennessee Legislature...
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by Bill Day. Memphian Bill Day is two-time winner of the RFK Journalism Award in Cartooning. His cartoons are syndicated internationally by Cagle Cartoons. Cartoons Archive →
Since 2005, this has been Smart City Consulting’s blog with the aim of connecting the dots and providing perspective on issues and policies shaping Memphis. Editor and primary author is Tom Jones, City Journal columnist at Memphis magazine, author of two books and a museum exhibition, and consultant on public policy and strategic planning. He has written articles for MLK50, The Commercial Appeal, and USA Today. The blog was called one of the most intriguing blogs in the U.S. by the Pew Partnership for Civic Change; The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal said it “provides some of the most well-thought-out thinking about Memphis’ past, present, and future you’ll find anywhere,” and the Memphis Flyer said: “This incredibly well-written blog sets out to solve the city’s ills – from the mayor to MATA – with out-of-the-box thinking, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ideas.” If you have questions, submissions, or ideas for posts, please email Tom Jones, at tjones@smartcityconsulting.com.