Annexation Legislation Continues Building Statewide Support

Legislation will give all citizens a voice in the annexation process

A package of pro-property rights legislation related to the annexation of land in Tennessee continued building support this week as Tennessean’s from across the state joined in to back the effort.

The trio of bills, which are currently making their way through the House committee system, seek to make the overall annexation process more fair and efficient for all interested parties.

As introduced, the legislation requires that:

• A local referendum vote be held to ensure property owners have a voice in the process of a city-initiated annexation;
• A municipality first annex all territory within its urban growth boundary before being allowed to expand further;
• A municipality must provide all promised public services to areas that it is already supposed to serve before annexing more property.

Currently, Tennessee is one of only three states in the nation that allows a city to seize the private property of an individual without that individual having any say in the process.