After a spokesman for Mayor Freddie O’Connell on Wednesday told The Tennessee Star the $735,000 item in his proposed budget for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) is actually a “grant” and subject to oversight from the city, the Metropolitan Clerk of Nashville told The Star his office does not have state-mandated appropriations records from the nonprofit.
Asked whether the proposed spending would be used to advocate or provide legal assistance to illegal aliens on Wednesday, a spokesman for the mayor’s office told The Star, “The Office of Financial Accountability conducts fiscal and programmatic monitoring of grants administered by the various Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County government agencies to ensure compliance with federal, state and local laws, regulations, stated outcomes and results, and specific requirements of the grant program.”
This response described the proposed $735,000 for TIRRC as a grant, though O’Connell’s budget calls it a “Contribution.”
If the item is a direct appropriation grant from Metro Nashville, then the expense is subject to Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA) 7-3-314(b), which specifically states nonprofits seeking financial support from a metropolitan form of government must file their request with the “clerk of the legislative body,” who in Nashville is the Metropolitan Clerk. The statute states the information must then be made available to the public for inspection:
Any nonprofit organization that desires financial assistance from a county with a metropolitan form of government shall file with the clerk of the legislative body a statement of the proposed use of the funds and the program that serves the residents of the county and a copy of an annual audit. The report will be open for public inspection during regular business hours of the clerk’s office. This subsection (b) does not apply to nonprofit organizations involved in the study, participation in and appreciation of the visual, performing or literary arts receiving grants from an arts commission or arts board created by the legislative body of the metropolitan government.”
Citing the statutory requirement to maintain and make available requests from nonprofits, The Star contacted Metro Clerk Austin Kyle on Thursday to ask about TIRRC’s filings related to the mayor’s proposed $735,000 contribution to the nonprofit.
After first indicating that such information may be held by the grants coordination division of the Nashville Finance Department, Kyle provided The Star with the 2022-2026 contract finalized between Metro Nashville and TIRRC. This contract will expire on June 30.
Pressed for information about the mayor’s budget, which will cover Fiscal Year (FY) 2027, Kyle confirmed that his office had no FY27 documentation from TIRRC at the time the inquiry was sent and indicated he would not receive such documentation until the budget was passed.
“If those records exist, I believe they would be with the Finance – Grants division,” wrote Kyle. “They would likely be filed with the Clerk’s office if/when the grant contract is approved and signed.”
The Metro Clerk confirmed, “The Clerk’s office does not have anything filed by TIRRC for an FY27 appropriation at this time.”
After communicating with the clerk, The Star sent inquiries to finance – grants coordination, asking the division for copies or information about how to inspect the filings the nonprofit would have submitted, as required under TCA 7-3-314(b), in order to be considered for a grant from the city.
Despite the statute stating that a report on this information “will be open for public inspection during regular business hours of the clerk’s office,” finance – grants coordination replied, in an unsigned email, with instructions for The Star to file a public records request pursuant to the Tennessee Public Records Act (TPRA).
“To ensure proper protocols and policies are followed, please submit a Public Records Request to Finance,” the division spokesperson wrote. The individual added, “The specific documentation you are requesting may be in Finance and other departments, but it is not housed in the Grants and Accountability Division of Finance.”
A follow-up inquiry from The Star, citing TCA 7-3-314(b), was not returned by the division prior to press time.
The budget proposal to fund TIRRC with $735,000 was first highlighted last month by The Pamphleteer, which noted that TIRRC’s political action committee (PAC), TIRRC Votes, endorsed O’Connell during his 2023 mayoral campaign.
Another financial document from Metro Nashville additionally reveals this grant will be new spending for FY 2027, with no similar expenditures from 2024-2026, meaning it was not part of the previous grant awarded to TIRRC in 2022, which was amended in 2024, and in total included about $3 million in stimulus funding sent to the city by the American Rescue Plan Act championed by former President Joe Biden.
In addition to the budget for TIRRC, O’Connell has proposed awarding $718,000 to Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors, another organization that provides legal services to aliens.
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Tom Pappert is a 2025 recipient of the Dao Prize and the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star. He also reports for the Star News Network. Follow Tom on X. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Freddie O’Connell” by Freddie O’Connell.
