Tyler's Policy Priorities

• Women deserve bodily autonomy, a right to privacy, and should not be disenfranchised in any way.
• Single and low-income mothers should be given additional support to cover costs associated with food, clothing, school supplies, and general expenses associated with raising children.

• Residents that follow the law, are employed, pay taxes, and act in good faith to become a legal U.S. resident should be given a pathway to stay in Tennessee.
• All those with criminal histories, not attempting to seek U.S. legal residency, or act in bad faith to subvert the system forfeit their rights to remain in Tennessee.

• Tennessee tax dollars should not be used to subsidize private schools and religious institutions. Funding for public schools should be increased, teacher pay should be raised, and schools should provide healthy lunch options free to all students.
• Tax-based funding allocations should prioritize facility improvements, technology and material expenses that directly impact education outcomes while extracurricular activities should be funded solely through true surpluses of funding or local fundraising efforts.

• The Federal Minimum Wage has not been increased from $7.25/hr. since 2009, but the Poverty line for a single earner in 2025 is $7.52/hr. The legal minimum to pay an employee is below the poverty line which is unacceptable. The State Minimum Wage needs to be raised to at least $12.05/hr by 2030.
• 37% of Tennessee households are single-parent homes, and by 2030 a single-parent with one child would need to earn $12.05 just to be equal to the poverty threshold. This is the baseline by which we should dictate the State Minimum Wage for future increases to ensure that at the bare minimum a single parent can earn a poverty wage.
• The increase would be done through a gradual year over year increase to allow businesses time to adapt and prepare them for a potential Federal Minimum Wage increase that surpasses these numbers. If the Federal Minimum Wage remains stagnant, then we would continue to raise the State Minimum Wage every 2 years to maintain a single-parent, single-child household at the poverty level.

• Our primary focus should be onsmall business growth and local ownership of the companies that serve our communities.
• Local ownership improves the quality of life of our residents, creates new job opportunities, and builds an avenue to close the gap of wealth inequality in our country.

• A pivot to addressing the underlying issues that cause crimes is the best source of prevention. Stricter penalties for serious repeat offenders should be implemented to stop revolving door criminals.
• Lesser penalties and financial hardship for non-violent offenders as well as more community-based programs increases likelihood of successful criminal reformation.

• The Tennessee State minimum wage should be increased to $10/hr with a root-cause analysis of poverty in our state in each county to be conducted to understand which factors are most likely to impact a person’s socioeconomic status.
• County-Level plans to address economic disparity should be enacted to help improve the lives of our citizens and in turn provide a framework for a future generation to escape poverty.
• Substance Abuse and Mental Illness are often the driving factors behind homelessness and an evaluation of local resources in each county should be conducted to understand how these resources are utilized, which types of people take advantage of them, and how funded can best be allocated to support the areas that need it most.

• Addiction is a disease and must be treated as a mental illness and not just a lifestyle choice.
• All counties should be given grants for qualified professionals to provide access to accredited, evidence-based drug and alcohol treatment programs.
• Licensed Counselors, Case Managers, Probation Officers, and Court Staff should cooperate with one another to provide a holistic approach in treating addiction and ensuring an individual has an opportunity to reform and be a useful member within their communities.

• Tennessee has become a hub for healthcare companies, and is an industry we should continue to strive as leaders in.
• To ensure access to quality healthcare in more rural communities, Tennessee should create a program to incentivize new graduates in health fields to work in remote and underserved populations throughout the state in exchange for a stipend that multiplies each year based on time of service in these communities to offset the lower salary cost these areas tend to provide.

• Each state controlled or funded agency should participate in process audits with each sector having a subject matter expert dedicated to improving the departments.
• These personnel would serve as an advisor to the director of each department, but would bypass the bureaucratic chain of command through direct access to personnel at all levels ensuring all employees voices and ideas are heard.
• By identifying time and monetary waste we can promote policy changes, facility upgrades and investment opportunities that would increase efficiency and reduce overall costs to operate these agencies without requiring a reduction in staff.

• Water management systems should be evaluated to account for the projected growth of urban population areas to ensure these resources are not overexerted.
• Water and energy efficient appliances and fixtures should be mandatory for all new construction and renovations to help conserve resources and programs that offer rebates and incentives for energy efficiency should be expanded for both homeowners and contractors alike.
• LEED certified contractors should be given priority for obtaining government construction contracts and all government facilities should be evaluated for energy-saving upgrades.

• Public transportation needs to be evaluated for its current efficiency, use rates, and capacity for future growth and expansion.
• All roadway and public space projects should prioritize long term growth potential over immediate use, because lack of planning in the past has left us with congested roadways incapable of handling our increasing population.  
• A review of electrical grid and water management systems needs to be completed immediately to understand the impacts of population growth on aging infrastructure and a detailed plan to upgrade any outdated systems needs to be factored into future budgets to prevent costly maintenance and repairs.

• The 2nd Amendment is enshrined in the Constitution of the United States of America and should continue to be the right of capable, law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms and prioritizing firearm safety training for the general public can help prevent negligent discharge accidents as well as prepare citizens to engage in self-defense effectively should they ever find themselves in danger.
• Common sense laws can help ensure that those purchasing and carrying a firearm are capable of doing so in good faith such as; Universal Background Checks, Age Restricted Conceal Carry and Handgun Purchases, Violent Offender Sales Bans, and Extreme Risk Protection Orders.
• To protect Law Enforcement Officers from engaging in unnecessary high-risk encounters, public open-carry must never be allowed for rifles.