Councilman JB Smiley Jr. Calls on Memphis Mayor and City Council to Reject MLGW Rate Hikes: “Memphis Families Cannot Afford Another Increase”

MLGW wants the Memphis City Council to approve higher utility bills. But Memphis families can’t afford another increase! My position is clear. Now is not the time to consider another rate increase. Memphis families deserve relief, not another financial burden.

54 DAYS. TWO DELAYS. STILL NO VOTE. Memphis has waited long enough! 54 days of discussions. 54 days of questions. 54 days of residents demanding action. We can’t keep delaying the vote while allowing data centers to move forward. NO MORE DELAYS Oct 20th 4 PM Council Chambers 125 N Main St

The vote was put on pause. The data centers weren’t. Let that sink in.

I hear Elon Musk and his lobbyists are in town trying to stop the data center moratorium. They’ve got money. I’ve got Memphis. And we’re not for sale.

Here’s a snippet from my official statement regarding the data center moratorium I am sponsoring: “When discussions about expansion occur without notifying elected officials or the communities we represent, it becomes difficult for us to effectively serve as the voice of the people.”

Just wondering if the “seat at the table” helped out with the gerrymandering of our community. While they were at the “table”, we were on the menu.

It doesn’t take a genius to recognize why Republicans are suddenly taking aim at majority Black communities with their redistricting efforts. They see our participation in democracy as a threat to their power.

Democracy is a threat to a Republican Party more interested in securing power than the will of the people. Redistricting is an excuse for them to dilute all of our political power for the sake of their interests.

Tennessee’s radical Republican supermajority is trying to erase our 9th Congressional District and silence Shelby County. This is a power grab to dilute our voices and rig the map because they cannot win the people. We will not be erased. We must fight this.

There’s no excuse for maintaining the same old status quo anymore. We’ve seen where that gets us. We need change from the bottom up with leaders who understand what working families need and how to get them what they deserve. That’s the leader I promise to be.

When our communities are underfunded, people leave. If we want future generations to develop real roots in the places we’ve called home for so long, we have to invest in them every step of the way and give them a future worth fighting for.

We’re getting closer to Election Day, and closer than ever to charting a positive, pro-community future for Shelby County. I’m excited to hopefully win, and in doing so start doing the work that working families need to prosper.

MAGA has no home in Memphis.

If we want the best possible teachers in our communities then we need to pay them what they’re worth.

Gas prices are continuing to climb because Donald Trump is more focussed on getting us into a new forever war than he is actually providing for the American people.

Shelby county faces real threats to the wellbeing of the people who call it home from rising prices, underinvestment in critical resources, and more. If we don’t take bold action now, we may not be a community for us to come home to.

How can we expect our next generation to root themselves into our communities if we’re not investing in their schools and doing nothing to make housing affordable for when they finally step out on their own?

Donald Trump and his movement have no place in Memphis. We deserve a mayor that will remind him of that every single day.

Far too often the profits from data center development fall into the hands of a few while the consequences of their operations—higher electricity costs and pollution—are borne by all of us. We can’t let Memphis be another example of that if we want to build a better future.

A month ago, the average cost of gas in Memphis was $2.58/gallon. Thanks to Trump and the GOP, it’s up to $3.90. This is what happens when you let people who only care about the donors lining their pockets into office. We deserve better.

We spend an unbelievable amount of time at our jobs. A huge part of most of our lives is spent working, so it’s only right that we all be able to organize for better pay and conditions in the places that time is spent. I want to be a leader who helps workers do just that.

Shelby county deserves leadership that will bring costs down, bring wages up, and help the people who call our communities home live the dignified, prosperous lives they deserve.

Why do the American people always end up paying the price of Trump’s mistakes? Why do we have to foot the bill?

No Kings protests and the continued mobilization of so many people in protests across the country are a sign of how ready this country is for a change in the status quo. Trump’s agenda has created nothing but hardship for Americans across the country.

Our small businesses have the chance to play a major role in the education of working folks throughout our communities. We have a chance to work with them and others to develop apprenticeships, fellowships, and on-the-job training roles that give people the skills they need to succeed in any market.

Investing in workers today is how we build our local economy for years to come.

Our educators shouldn’t have to spend their already lower than deserved pay on classroom supplies and other resources for students. We should have an education system that is well funded enough to cover what our kids need in the classroom.

How are we supposed to build thriving communities if people can barely afford to live?

Republicans are perfectly comfortable with our food costs going up, our gas cost going through the roof, our housing costs becoming unaffordable, and every other cost that makes our lives harder continuing to increase, all while standing against any measures that would put more money in our pockets.