2023 Tennessee Code › Title 6 - CITIES AND TOWNS (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-59-107) › CITY MANAGER-COMMISSION CHARTER (§§ 6-18-101 — 6-23-101) › Chapter 19 - POWERS UNDER CITY MANAGER-COMMISSION CHARTER (§§ 6-19-101 — 6-19-105) › Section 6-19-101 - General powers

(a)
Every city incorporated under chapters 18-22 of this title may:
(1)
Assess, levy and collect taxes for all general and special purposes on all subjects or objects of taxation, and privileges taxable by law for municipal purposes;
(2)
Adopt such classifications of the subjects and objects of taxation as may not be contrary to law;
(3)
Make special assessments for local improvements;
(4)
Contract and be contracted with;
(5)
Incur debts by borrowing money or otherwise, and give any appropriate evidence thereof, in the manner provided in this section;
(6)
Issue and give, sell, pledge, or in any manner dispose of, negotiable or nonnegotiable interest-bearing or noninterest-bearing bonds, warrants, promissory notes or orders of the city, upon the credit of the city or solely upon the credit of specific property owned by the city, or solely upon the credit of income derived from any property used in connection with any public utility owned or operated by the city, or solely upon the credit of the proceeds of special assessments for local improvements, or upon any two (2) or more such credits;
(7)
Expend the money of the city for all lawful purposes;
(8)
Acquire or receive and hold, maintain, improve, sell, lease, mortgage, pledge, or otherwise dispose of property, real or personal, and any estate or interest therein, within or without the city or state;
(9)
Condemn property, real or personal or any easement, interest, or estate or use therein, either within or without the city, for present or future public use; such condemnation to be made and effected in accordance with the terms and provisions of title 29, chapter 16, or in such other manner as may be provided by general law;
(10)
Take and hold property within or without the city or state upon trust; and administer trusts for the public benefit;
(11)
Acquire, construct, own, operate and maintain, or sell, lease, mortgage, pledge, or otherwise dispose of public utilities or any estate or interest therein, or any other utility that is of service to the city, its inhabitants, or any part of the city;
(12)
Grant to any person, firm, association, or corporation franchises for public utilities and public services to be furnished the city and those in the city. Such power to grant franchises shall embrace the power hereby expressly conferred, to grant exclusive franchises. When an exclusive franchise is granted, it shall be exclusive not only as against any other person, firm, association, or corporation, but also as against the city itself. Franchises may be granted for the period of twenty-five (25) years or less, but not longer, except as provided in §
65-4-107(b)
. The board of commissioners may prescribe in each grant of a franchise, the rates, fares, charges, and regulations that may be made by the grantee of the franchise. Franchises may by their terms apply to the territory within the corporate limits of the city at the date of the franchises, and as the corporate limits thereafter may be enlarged; and to the then existing streets, alleys, and other thoroughfares that may be opened after the grant of the franchise;
(13)
Make contracts with any person, firm, association or corporation, for public utilities and public services to be furnished the city and those in the city. Such power to make contracts shall embrace the power, expressly conferred, to make exclusive contracts. When an exclusive contract is entered into, it shall be exclusive not only against any other person, firm, association or corporation, but also as against the city itself. Such contracts may be entered into for the period of twenty-five (25) years or less, but not longer. The board of commissioners may prescribe in each such contract entered into, the rates, fares, charges, and regulations that may be made by the person, firm, association, or corporation with whom the contract is made. Such contracts may by their terms apply to the territory within the corporate limits of the city at the date of the contract, and as the corporate limits thereafter may be enlarged; and to the then existing streets, alleys and thoroughfares and to any other streets, alleys and other thoroughfares that may be opened after the grant of the contract;
(14)
Prescribe reasonable regulations regarding the construction, maintenance, equipment, operation and service of public utilities and compel, from time to time, reasonable extensions of facilities for such services, but nothing in this subdivision (14) shall be construed to permit the alteration or impairment of any of the terms or provisions of any exclusive franchise granted or of any exclusive contract entered into under subdivisions (12) and (13);
(15)
Establish, open, relocate, vacate, alter, widen, extend, grade, improve, repair, construct, reconstruct, maintain, light, sprinkle, and clean public highways, streets, boulevards, parkways, sidewalks, alleys, parks, public grounds, and squares, wharves, bridges, viaducts, subways, tunnels, sewers and drains within or without the corporate limits and regulate the use thereof within the corporate limits, and property may be taken and appropriated therefor under §§
7-31-107
- 7-31-111 and 29-16-203, or in such other manner as may be provided by general laws;
(16)
Construct, improve, reconstruct and reimprove by opening, extending, widening, grading, curbing, guttering, paving, graveling, macadamizing, draining, or otherwise improving any streets, highways, avenues, alleys or other public places within the corporate limits, and assess a portion of the cost of such improvements upon the property abutting upon or adjacent to such streets, highways or alleys as provided by title 7, chapters 32 and 33;
(17)
Assess against abutting property within the corporate limits the cost of planting shade trees, removing from sidewalks all accumulations of snow, ice, and earth, cutting and removing obnoxious weeds and rubbish, street lighting, street sweeping, street sprinkling, street flushing and street oiling, the cleaning and rendering sanitary or removal, abolishing, and prohibiting of closets and privies, in such manner as may be provided by general law or by ordinance of the board of commissioners;
(18)
Acquire, purchase, provide for, construct, regulate, and maintain and do all things relating to all marketplaces, public buildings, bridges, sewers and other structures, works and improvements;
(19)
Collect and dispose of drainage, sewage, ashes, garbage, refuse or other waste, or license and regulate such collection and disposal, and the cost of such collection, regulation or disposal may be funded by taxation or special assessment to the property owner;
(20)
License and regulate all persons, firms, corporations, companies and associations engaged in any business, occupation, calling, profession, or trade not forbidden by law;
(21)
Impose a license tax upon any animal, thing, business, vocation, pursuit, privilege, or calling not prohibited by law;
(22)
Define, prohibit, abate, suppress, prevent and regulate all acts, practices, conduct, business, occupations, callings, trades, uses of property and all other things whatsoever detrimental, or liable to be detrimental, to the health, morals, comfort, safety, convenience, or welfare of the inhabitants of the city, and to exercise general police powers;
(23)
Prescribe limits within which business occupations and practices liable to be nuisances or detrimental to the health, morals, security or general welfare of the people may lawfully be established, conducted or maintained;
(24)
Inspect, test, measure and weigh any article for consumption or use within the city, and charge reasonable fees therefor, and to provide standards of weights, tests and measures in such manner as may be provided pursuant to title 47, chapter 26, part 9;
(25)
Establish, regulate, license and inspect weights and measures in accordance with subdivision (24);
(26)
Regulate the location, bulk, occupancy, area, lot, location, height, construction and materials of all buildings and structures in accordance with general law, and to inspect all buildings, lands and places as to their condition for health, cleanliness and safety, and when necessary, prevent the use thereof and require any alteration or changes necessary to make them healthful, clean or safe;
(27)
Provide and maintain charitable, educational, recreative, curative, corrective, detentive, or penal institutions, departments, functions, facilities, instrumentalities, conveniences and services;
(28)
Purchase or construct, maintain and establish a correctional facility for the confinement and detention of persons who violate laws within the corporate limits of the city, or to contract with the county to keep these persons in the correctional facility of the county and to enforce the payment of fines and costs in accordance with §§
40-24-104
and
40-24-105
or through contempt proceedings in accordance with general law;
(29)
Enforce any ordinance, rule or regulation by fines, forfeitures and penalties, and by other actions or proceedings in any court of competent jurisdiction;
(30)
Establish schools, to the extent authorized pursuant to general law, determine the necessary boards, officers and teachers required therefor, and fix their compensation, purchase or otherwise acquire land for schoolhouses, playgrounds and other purposes connected with the schools; purchase or erect all necessary buildings and do all other acts necessary to establish, maintain and operate a complete educational system within the city;
(31)
Regulate, tax, license or suppress the keeping or going at large of animals within the city, impound the same and, in default of redemption, to sell or kill the same;
(32)
Call elections as provided in this charter; and
(33)
Have and exercise all powers that now or hereafter it would be competent for this charter specifically to enumerate, as fully and completely as though such powers were specifically enumerated in this section.
(b)
(1)
In addition to the general powers provided in subsection (a), any city incorporated under chapters 18-22 of this title may, upon the adoption of an ordinance by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the board of commissioners, impose a fee for the specific purpose of raising revenue to fund the construction and maintenance of a municipal fire station and fire department and for no other purpose.
(2)
Any city establishing a fee under this subsection (b) shall provide in the ordinance a system for the collection and enforcement of fees authorized and imposed pursuant to this subsection (b).
(3)
The amount of the fee shall initially be set by the city in the ordinance imposing the fee. The ordinance may provide for a means of increasing and decreasing the fee as determined by the board of commissioners. After the construction of the fire station for which the fee is initially imposed, the city shall reduce the fee to reflect only the cost of maintenance of the fire station or operation of the municipal fire department unless additional fire stations are needed.
(4)
If a city imposing a fee under this subsection (b) is in a county that imposes a fire fee:
(A)
The fees established under this subsection (b) shall not be set in excess of the rates imposed by the county at the time the city adopts the ordinance pursuant to subdivision (b)(1); and
(B)
The county shall not collect the fire fee from residents after the date the city adopts the ordinance pursuant to subdivision (b)(1).
Amended by 2017 Tenn. Acts, ch. 459, s 1, eff. 5/25/2017.
Amended by 2016 Tenn. Acts, ch. 645, s 3, eff. 3/23/2016.
Amended by 2014 Tenn. Acts, ch. 927,s 7, eff. 5/16/2014.
Acts 1921, ch. 173, art. 3, § 1; Shan. Supp., § 1997a131; Code 1932, § 3528; Acts 1972, ch. 740, § 4(31); 1977, ch. 344, § 1; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 6-1901; Acts 1989, ch. 175, § 3; 1995, ch. 13, §§ 8, 9; 2011 , ch. 453, § 6.