A Tale of Two Local Governments: A Property Tax Review of Davidson and Knox Counties
Rising property tax bills are not unique to the Volunteer State, but they are growing the fastest here. Beacon’s analysis of data published by the Wall Street Journal showed Tennesseans suffered the largest increases in property tax bills in the nation for the last six years. These increases have caused residents to consider leaving their homes, businesses to shut down, and properties to be sold just to cover tax bills. While larger city tax increases get well-deserved media coverage, double- and triple-digit tax hikes have happened all over the state, in both urban and rural communities. These levels of tax increases are allowed because we are one of just four states without some form of property tax cap.
Although opponents of a property tax cap claim such a taxpayer protection would prevent local governments from raising revenue for the most basic of services, there are local governments, like Knox County, that have not raised taxes in nearly 30 years and yet still manage to maintain core government services.
Unlike Nashville-Davidson County, which has raised property taxes by double digits twice in five years, Knox has adopted the certified tax rate since 1999, and yet has managed to bring in more revenue through population and property growth. Despite not increasing taxes like Davidson, Knox has better performance on many core government services: in education with higher graduation rates and more students on track, lower debt per resident, cash reserves to cover twice as many days as Davidson, and even a higher credit rating from Moody’s.
A property tax cap like the one introduced in the 2026 legislative session would not affect local governments like Knox County that spend conservatively and can still meet their residents’ core government services needs. Yet leadership changes and local elected officials come and go, meaning there is no guarantee that the Knox Counties of the state will continue to operate within their means forever. A well-designed cap can provide stability for future generations while immediately preventing the exorbitant increases too many Tennesseans have already experienced.