As Republican Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced his temporary sales tax suspension on groceries Thursday, state Democrats thanked him for following their lead on the idea they say the state GOP has blocked for a decade.
Lee’s proposal would cut the state and local collection of taxes on food for 30 days. The move is to battle what he called “historic inflation” with the “most effective way to provide direct relief to every Tennessean.” The proposal will be delivered in a budget amendment to the Tennessee General Assembly on Tuesday.
Tennessee’s grocery tax was cut in 2017 from 5 percent to 4 percent in 2017 thanks to the IMPROVE Act from then-Governor Bill Haslam. This rate does not apply to some prepared grocery items like fruit trays, bakery goods, hot soups, and more. Those are taxed at 7 percent. Shelby County and Memphis city sales taxes combined are 2.75 percent. So, Lee’s proposal would reduce a $100 grocery bill here by $6.75 for 30 days.
“Our state has the ability to put dollars back in the pockets of hardworking Tennesseans, and I thank members of the General Assembly for their continued partnership in maintaining our fiscally conservative approach,” Lee said in a statement Tuesday.
Lee announced the proposal as he met with leaders in Covington Thursday. There, among other things, he toured Naifeh’s Cash Saver grocery store to tout his proposal.
As the news spread across the state, Democrats were busy on social media thanking Lee for moving on a proposal they claimed they’ve tried to pass in the past.
“Had a press conference today thanking [Lee] for following our lead on our long-standing idea of temporarily removing sales taxes on groceries,” Tennessee House Democrats said in a tweet Thursday. “We’ve pushed 29 bills over the last 10 years (!!) on this, all rejected until now. We welcome relief for #tnworkingfamilies.”
Other notable Tennessee Democrats also took to Twitter about the issue:
Other non-politicos tweet-challenged the gravity of Lee’s proposal.
