Serving Hohenwald, Lewis County Tennessee Since 1898
Serving Hohenwald, Lewis County Tennessee Since 1898
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Legislation passed to fight illegal immigration Tennessee stands with Texas in fight to secure our southern border Lawmakers passed a resolution supporting Texas in the fight against illegal immigrants flooding into the United States at the southern border. Because the federal government has failed to do its job to protect our border, Texas absolutely has the right to defend itself from this invasion. The overwhelming chaos at the border is enabling terrorists and drug cartels to invade our coun...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. This is some of the legislation that was passed during this session. Higher Education Policies for AI in higher education – Legislation, which I sponsored, passed this session requiring the governing boards of public colleges and universities, public charter schools, and local boards of education to regulate the r...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. This is some of the legislation that was passed during this session. Improving access to charter school facilities - Legislation passed to ensure public charter school students have access to the same quality facilities as other public school students. The new law requires school districts to regularly provide a list...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. This is some of the legislation that was passed during this session. Protecting Children and Family Values Protecting Children from Social Media Act - A new law restores parental authority online by requiring social media companies to verify the ages of account holders and obtain parental consent for minors to create...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. This is some of the legislation that was passed during this session. Dr. Benjamin Mauck Act – A new law, which I sponsored, increases penalties for assault in a healthcare facility. On July 11, 2023, Dr. Benjamin Mauck was shot point blank three times in his Collierville medical facility. One week prior, his life had...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. This is some of the legislation that was passed during this session. Illegal Immigration Strengthened Sanctuary City Ban / SB 2576 This year we passed a law to require all law enforcement in Tennessee to notify the appropriate federal authorities if an individual they come into contact with is found to be in the...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. This is some of the legislation that was passed during this session. Felony offense for repeat misdemeanors / SB 2155 We passed legislation this year that creates a Class E felony offense for certain repeat misdemeanor offenses. There are 37 qualifying misdemeanor offenses. After 5 or more convictions of qualifying...
The 113th General Assembly has adjourned for 2024, and it was a very successful year. We have taken measures for Tennessee to be a better place to live, work and to raise a family. I will go over the laws passed this session over the next few weeks. 2024 Budget Highlights This year lawmakers faced new budgeting challenges as state revenue collections slowed. Fortunately, years of consistent conservative budgeting from lawmakers enabled the state to be well-prepared to face declining revenues....
TN Senate passes penalties for abortion trafficking TN Senate this week reaffirmed their commitment to protecting the unborn and passed legislation to make abortion trafficking of a minor a Class A misdemeanor. Senate Bill 1971, seeks to protect parental rights and stop adults who attempt to circumvent the state’s current abortion law by helping to facilitate an abortion for a minor without parental consent. The General Assembly in 2019 laid the groundwork to ensure life is protected at c...
Senate advances constitutional amendments protecting right to bear arms in Tennessee The TN Senate is proceeding with two proposals to amend the Tennessee Constitution to strengthen Tennesseans’ Second Amendment rights. Senate Joint Resolution 904 advanced to protect citizens’ right to bear arms in the Tennessee Constitution and limit the legislature’s ability to pass restrictive gun laws. The measure proposes to replace the current constitutional provision that authorizes the legislature to “r...
Death penalty could be option for convicted child rapists The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced legislation to increase the penalty for child rapists in Tennessee. Senate Bill 1834, would expand the death penalty to defendants convicted of rape of a child. The legislation will strengthen existing state law by increasing the penalty for rape or aggravated rape of a child to death, life in prison without the possibility of parole, or life in prison. Current law classifies the offense as a Class...
Several bills advance to improve school safety This week, several measures advanced to continue efforts to improve school safety across the state for public and private K-12 schools as well as at higher education institutions. Those school safety bills are highlighted below. School de-escalation training – The Senate Education Committee advanced school safety legislation to require de-escalation training for teachers and administrators in Tennessee. Senate Bill 1721, which I sponsored would e...
Senate takes major steps to protect children from danger online This week, lawmakers prioritized legislation to protect children from harmful online content, as well as protect the religious freedom of foster and adoptive parents in Tennessee. Other legislation advanced this week to crack down on the opioid crisis by punishing distributors of deadly drugs and expanding the ability for providers to treat opioid addiction. Protecting Children from Social Media Act - It is vital to ensure the...
Senate advanced legislation to crack down on crime and hold criminals accountable This week, the Senate advanced several bills to increase penalties for criminals, specifically repeat offenders and criminals who target children. Dr. Benjamin Mauck Act The Dr. Benjamin Mauck Act advanced this week to increase penalties for assault in a healthcare facility. On July 11, 2023, Dr. Benjamin Mauck was shot point blank three times in his Collierville medical facility. One week prior, his life had been...
Legislation to prohibit political flags in classrooms advances A bill which I sponsored to keep controversial or political flags out of the classroom advanced out of the Senate Education Committee this week. Senate Bill 1722, would prohibit certain flags from being displayed in public schools. At public schools, students should be focused on learning academic skills and not be distracted by displays of political beliefs that might go against the values their parents are teaching at home. This...
School safety and education highlight the week On Capitol Hill this week, Senate committees were in full swing. In the first week of budget hearings from state departments and agencies, Senate committees approved eleven of sixty-three total budgets. Lawmakers also advanced many important bills to protect children, improve school safety and increase educational opportunities. Legislation advances to change fire alarm protocols for improved school safety The Senate Education Committee this week...
Governor emphasizes fiscal responsibility and education in State of the State address On Monday, February 5, Governor Bill Lee delivered his sixth State of the State address on Monday evening in a joint session of the General Assembly, where he laid out his 2024 budget priorities. Lee’s proposals include strategically investing in economic and educational opportunities, strengthening families and preserving Tennessee’s natural resources. Legacy of fiscal responsibility In his speech, Gov. Lee...
On the Senate floor, lawmakers expressed support for a lawsuit filed by Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for violating federal antitrust laws by placing anticompetitive restrictions on the ability of current and future student-athletes to benefit from their name, image and likeness (NIL). The AG’s action is consistent with legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2021 to push back against unfair NCAA policies and e...
Because of large amounts of ice and snow across the state last week, the legislature postponed our meetings, so we will be going full force on Capitol Hill this week. During the first week of session, the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee, on which I sit, heard testimony from experts on the state’s budget and economy. Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Jim Bryson laid out new budgeting challenges but reassured the committee that Tennessee is well-prepared to address t...
Tennessee sees improvements in k-12 education K-12 education has been a top priority of the General Assembly in recent years and historic investments, innovative programs and effective legislation are generating impressive results. Tennessee is seeing dramatic improvements in student literacy as well as job readiness, school choice and school safety. Tennessee has championed early literacy of late by focusing on instruction that is rooted in the science of reading and ensuring both teachers and...
The 2nd session of the 113th General Assembly will be convening January 9, 2024. These are a few of the issues that were addressed in the first half to the 113th General Assembly. Cracking down on TikTok use at Tennessee College Campuses - This law prohibits the Chinese-owned social media platforms TikTok and WeChat from being accessed on Tennessee public higher education institutions’ internet networks. The State of Tennessee and the Federal government have taken similar steps to mitigate t...
Christmas Is Legal I’ve been publishing this information for many years and every year it seems to reach more than it did the year before. My hope would be that it will serve as a reminder to everyone what Christmas is truly about and that each year it reaches someone new. I hope you enjoy it. As Christmas approaches and we all look forward to celebrating the holiday season, many begin to wonder just what the law says about religious expression. I would like to offer some clarification about wha...
In an effort to curb foreign influence of potential bad actors in the state of Tennessee, in the General As+sembly we passed a law this year that prevents non-resident aliens, foreign governments, businesses and non-citizens from countries on the U.S Department of Treasury’s sanctions list as well as China from purchasing or acquiring real estate in Tennessee. There are currently 38 countries on the sanctions list. In the new law, China was singled out to ensure Chinese foreign nationals are p...
Last week, Governor Bill Lee announced the Education Freedom Scholarship Act of 2024, his administration’s legislative proposal to establish statewide universal school choice. The legislation aims to provide every Tennessee parent with the opportunity to choose the right education for their child, while prioritizing families with the greatest need. While the details of the legislation, including its financial impact, will be carefully vetted in the upcoming legislative session, I do support t...
Tennessee sees improvements in k-12 education K-12 education has been a top priority of the General Assembly in recent years and historic investments, innovative programs and effective legislation are generating impressive results. Tennessee is seeing dramatic improvements in student literacy as well as job readiness, school choice and school safety. Many of these accomplishments were discussed at a recent hearing on the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget. Tennessee has championed early literacy of...
