Legislative Update, March 17, 2024

Tennessee General Assembly information, click HERE. For information on State Senators, including phone numbers and email addresses, click HERE; for House members, click HERE. For information on legislation, click HERE.

Don’t forget that you can now watch the Senate committee meetings and floor sessions online by going HERE; House committee meetings and floor sessions online HERE.

Phone calls can go to the legislative Switchboard at 615-741-3011 or to the Toll Free number 1-800-449-8366+1 last four digits of office phone number (available online).

DON’T KNOW WHO YOUR SENATOR OR REPRESENTATIVE IS? Just go HERE and you can find out!!

America is like a healthy body and its resistance is threefold: its patriotism, its morality and its spiritual life. If we can undermine these three areas, America will collapse from within.
Josef Stalin

FOR YOUR PRAYER LIST:

As more committees start closing down and the pace of the legislative session picks up, we definitely need to be praying that the proposals that come before the lawmakers will be thoughtfully and thoroughly considered.

JOEL’S CORNER

This Tuesday was a whirlwind. We are getting to the part of the session when all the bills are getting pushed through committees at the same time, and there is little time to meet with the legislators. Despite the craziness, it was an encouraging day with lots of good discussion and helpful progress for bills.

NICK’S CORNER:

Nick is out of town with his family this week.

US CONSTITUTION REQUIRING TERM LIMITS

HJR 0005 by *Todd, Sparks, Warner, Zachary, Bricken, Hawk, Lynn, Richey, Garrett, Powers, Capley, Carr, Vital

Constitutional Conventions – Makes application to Congress for the purpose of calling an Article V convention to propose an amendment to the United States Constitution to set a limit on the number of terms to which a person may be elected as a member of the Congress of the United States.

BACKGROUND: Last year HJR0005 passed the House floor 66-27-3.

STATUS: HRJ0005 was heard in Senate State and Local on January 23, and moved to the Final Calendar. The video is available HERE.

HJR0005 is scheduled in the Senate State and Local Committee on Tuesday.

NOTES:

Believe me, we FULLY understand what a temptation this legislation is with all that is going on in DC now, but holding an Article V Convention and amending the US Constitution is a very serious issue and I URGE you to check out these articles to learn more about what this really means:

“[T]here is no way to effectively limit or muzzle the actions of a Constitutional Convention. The Convention could make its own rules and set its own agenda. Congress might try to limit the convention to one amendment or one issue, but there is no way to assure that the Convention would obey.”
WARREN BURGER, CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE U.S. SUPREME COURT (1969-1986)

THE PROBLEMS WITH ARTIFICIAL TERM LIMITS

Don’t Be Fooled by Article V Conventions

ACTION: Please contact the members of the committee and urge them to OPPOSE this Resolution.
Sen. Richard Briggs – (615) 741-1766 – sen.richard.briggs@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Page Walley – (615) 741-2368 – sen.page.walley@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Mark Pody – 615) 741-2421 sen.mark.pody@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Ed Jackson – (615) 741-1810 – sen.ed.jackson@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Sara Kyle – (615) 741- 4167 sen.sara.kyle@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Adam Lowe – (615) 741 -1946 sen.adam.lowe@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. John Stevens – (615) 741-4576 – sen.john.stevens@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Ken Yager – (615) 741-1449 – sen.ken.yager@capitol.tn.gov
Sen. Jeff Yarbro – (615) 741-3291 – sen.jeff.yarbro@capitol.tn.gov

“EDUCATION FREEDOM SCHOLARSHIP ACT”

SB 0503 by *Johnson – Lamberth- HB 1183

by *Lamberth , WHITE, CEPICKY, MOODY, SLATER, GARRETT

Education – As introduced, extends from October to November, the time within which a public institution of higher education that receives funds from the distribution of credit cards to students or any percentage from the use of cards bearing the college or university name or logo must report the amount of such funds or percentage received as well as how the funds were expended during the previous fiscal year to the education committee of the senate and the education administration committee of the house of representatives. – Amends TCA Title 4; Title 8 and Title 49

Well, here we are again!!

STATUS: With AMENDMENT 1, AMENDMENT 2, and AMENDMENT 3, SB503 passed Senate Education 7-1-1: Sens. Haile, Lundberg, Pody, Powers, White — 7; Sen.voting no were: Akbari — 1; Sen. present and not voting were: Hensley — 1. Then it was referred to Senate Finance Ways and Means. I checked with Sen. Johnson’s office about the three amendments and it seems that Amendment 3 is the one that ‘sort of’ combines one and two and will be used.

STATUS: HB1183, with AMENDMENT 1, is scheduled in Government Operations Committee on Monday at 1:30pm. There is another amendment to the House bill that removes home school students from the bill, but it does not yet show up on the website. We shall see.
If you want to contact some of the committee members, you can do that here:

RIGHTS FOR PARENTS?
SB 2749 by *Haile – HB 2936 by *Faison
Children – As introduced, enacts the “Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act.” – Amends TCA Title 33; Title 36; Title 37; Title 49; Title 63 and Title 68.

This is a bill that has generated a number of questions from various people. I have three test rules that I have found helpful in judging legislation:

1. Who gets to define the terms?
2. What could be the unexpected consequences?
3. How could my worst enemy use this against me?

SENATE STATUS: On February 27, SB2749, as AMENDED and AMENDED, passed the Senate Judiciary Committee 6-2:

Senators voting aye were: Gardenhire, Lundberg, Roberts, Stevens, Taylor, White — 6.
Senators voting no were: Kyle, Lamar — 2.

HOUSE STATUS: HB2936 is scheduled in Children & Family Affairs Subcommittee on Tuesday at noon. I understand that a NEW, DIFFERENT amendment will be offered in committee. You can WATCH the meeting HERE, and I URGE you to do that (and you can watch the video later) as we try to determine what will be in the final version:

These are some of the committee members if you want to get in touch with them:
Rep. Mary Littleton rep.mary.littleton@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Rush Bricken rep.rush.bricken@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Andrew Farmer rep.andrew.farmer@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Ron Gant rep.ron.gant@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Johnny Garrett rep.johnny.garrett@capitol.tn.gov
Rep. Robert Stevens rep.robert.stevens@capitol.tn.gov

LIMITING GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY:
SB 1641 by *Pody, Haile, Hensley – HB 1883 by *Capley

Hospitals and Health Care Facilities – As introduced, creates the right of an attorney in fact designated to make healthcare decisions under a durable power of attorney for health care to conduct at least one in-person visitation with the principal for each day the principal is in a hospital; permits the hospital to require the attorney in fact to submit to non-invasive health and safety protocols; prohibits the visitation right from being terminated, suspended, waived, or otherwise limited during a declared disaster or state of emergency. – Amends TCA Title 34; Title 63 and Title 68

Sen. Pody: “I don’t want to have to take a shot to visit someone in the hospital’.

STATUS: SB1641, as AMENDED, has passed the Senate 29–3-1. As AMENDED, HB1883 is scheduled on the House Floor on Thursday.
ACTION: Please find your house member HERE and urge him or her to vote for this legislation.

WE ARE A CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC:
HJR 0717 by *Hakeem , Freeman

Constitutional Amendments – Proposes amendment to allow people to propose laws by initiative petition.
We hold elections every two, four and six years to ELECT men and women to present potential laws for discussion and debate, and then a vote. Nothing keeps the public from bringing legislative ideas or needs to lawmakers right now and, in fact, that happens all the time. This process invites outside groups with a lot of money to come into TN and impact our politics and our elections. This is unneeded and has the potential to be problematic. Judging from the number of bills that are filed in any given year, I don’t think the lawmakers need any help coming up with ideas.

FIRE ALARM ACTIVATION:

SB 1679 by *Haile – HB 1644 by *Lamberth , SLATER, SHERRELL

Safety – As introduced, requires each LEA, public charter school, private school, and church-related school to develop a procedure to determine the cause of a fire alarm activation, including the potential of an active shooter event; requires each LEA to coordinate with appropriate safety teams to incorporate the procedure; specifies that the procedure must be implemented no later than July 1, 2024.

STATUS: So glad to report that SB1679 as AMENDED, was signed by the Governor on March 12th.

HUMAN TRAFFICKING VICTIM

SB 0181 by *Walley – HB 1384 by *Ragan

Criminal Offenses – As introduced, deletes the criminal offense of aggravated prostitution and permits a person to have a prior conviction for aggravated prostitution that was the result of the person’s status as a human trafficking victim expunged if the person meets certain conditions

STATUS: So glad to report that SB181 as amended, was signed by the Governor on March 11th.

REDESIGNED TEMPORARY DRIVER LICENSES

SB 2568 by *Taylor, Rose, Johnson, Yager – HB 2034 by *Barrett , RICHEY, CAPLEY, FRITTS, GRILLS, TODD, DOGGETT, FAISON, ZACHARY, COCHRAN, MARTIN B, BRICKEN, BUTLER

Driver Licenses – As introduced, requires the department of safety to redesign temporary driver licenses and permits and temporary photo identification licenses issued to qualified noncitizens so that the licenses may be easily distinguished from driver and photo identification licenses issued to residents of this state who are United States citizens; reduces from eight years to two years the maximum period of time for which a temporary license or permit may be issued. – Amends TCA Title 55, Chapter 50

STATUS: I am VERY DISAPPOINTED to say that the Senate Transportation Committee sent SB2568-HB2034 to Summer Study. That is normally a ‘nice’ way of defeating a bill. In a hot election year, I would doubt that a ‘study’ would be held. We will see.

Legislative Update, March 17, 2024

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