Representative David Byrd; District 71 Capitol Hill Update

Transparency in Sentencing for Victims Act passes House chamber - The House of Representatives on Thursday unanimously passed the Transparency in Sentencing for Victims Act.

House Bill 2657 is designed to better inform crime victims and their families about how much time an offender will serve at the time of sentencing. The proposal would require all Tennessee courts to place on the record, either orally or in writing, the estimated number of years and months to be served before a criminal is eligible for parole.  Improving transparency in sentencing ensures victims and their communities will know precisely when an offender will be released from prison and improve overall public safety.

Republicans propose to waive registration fees for Tennessee drivers As amended, House Bill 2640 proposes to provide a tax reduction for Tennessee drivers by waiving the state’s portion of annual registration fees for a Class A or B motor vehicle from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023. The savings adds up to $23.75 per automobile for about 5 million registered Class B passenger vehicles in Tennessee and $16.75 for 170,000 Class A motorcycles and auto-cycles.

Republicans aim to attract more truckers, alleviate supply chain shortage - House Bill 2146 deregulates the process for obtaining a commercial driver license (CDL) in Tennessee. The bill is expected to be heard in Finance, Ways, and Means on March 23. It aims to address a shortage of drivers in the trucking industry by removing certain barriers on the state and federal level for qualified candidates to obtain a CDL. Some of these obstacles have made it more difficult for candidates to enter the trucking industry and caused serious delays in transporting goods around the nation. The bill will also expand options for approved third-party partners to conduct more commercial driving skills tests on the department’s behalf. It lowers the age of eligibility for a Class A or B license from 21 to 18 years when the applicant operates a commercial vehicle solely within Tennessee and meets other certain conditions. House Bill 2146 also authorizes the Tennessee Department of Correction and the Department of Safety to jointly create a CDL training program for offenders who, upon release from prison, may be suitable for careers in the transportation industry.

House passes legislation addressing K-12 staffing challenges - House Bill 2783 allows retired members of the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) to be reemployed as a K-12 teacher, K-12 substitute teacher, or as a K-12 bus driver without the loss or suspension of the retired member’s TCRS benefits. During the reemployment, retirement benefits would be reduced to 70 percent of the retirement allowance the member would have otherwise been entitled to receive. Currently, some retired members of TCRS can return to work but only for a maximum of 120 days. This bill removes that limit, allowing for 180 calendar days as long as each retiree that participates is 60 or more days past their retirement date.

State Parks Funding Act maximizes Tennessee’s investment in parks - The bill establishes the State Parks Hospitality Maintenance and Improvement Fund. If approved by the General Assembly, the bill would require at least 2 percent of the gross revenue created by park facilities to be deposited into the fund to be used for maintenance expenses each year. The bill replaces the present law priority list of excess revenue. Twenty-four of the state’s 56 parks are located in distressed or at-risk counties that depend on the parks to drive taxpayer dollars to those communities.  House Bill 2168 allows the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to designate the fund through self-funding rather than requesting regular allocations from the general fund. It would cover routine maintenance, replacement of furniture, fixtures and equipment as well as regular renovation.  The proposal is expected to be heard in the Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on March 23.

Committee advances bill allowing TEMA to use drones for emergency response - House Bill 2178 permits TEMA to use drones to survey the scene of a catastrophe or other damage, coordinate a disaster response, conduct damage assessments of property and infrastructure following a disaster and help with search and rescue efforts. The bill would allow images captured for damage assessment to be retained no more than one year unless the disaster has been declared a major disaster by the president of the United States, in which case the images may be retained for a designated period of time by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for data related to the assessment.

Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 gets House approval - House Bill 2154, also known as the Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022, requires local education agencies and public charter schools to adopt a policy for developing and reviewing school library collections that include factors such as the age and maturity of students. A current list of materials in each school’s library collection must also be posted on the school’s website beginning with the 2022-23 school year.

Bill requires parental consent for all vaccinations of minors - House Bill 2451, as amended, states that a parent or legal guardian must give written consent before their child receives a vaccination or injection from a health care practitioner. It would also require written permission before a student participated in a mental health screening. The legislation would replace the portion of the Mature Minor Doctrine which allows health departments to provide vaccinations to patients as young as 14 without parental consent if the individual provider determines that the patent meets the definition of a “mature minor.” Health care providers must already get written consent from a legal guardian before vaccinating a minor against COVID-19, according to legislation approved by state lawmakers last year.

The bill would not affect the manner in which a local education agency is required to provide educational services to a child as part of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or other federal law. It would also not apply to students who are 18 years of age or older.

Committee advances legislation protecting the unborn - House Bill 2779, also known as the Human Life Protection Act, would prohibit abortions except in cases where the mother’s life was at risk or if the procedure would provide the best opportunity for the unborn child to survive. A private citizen could file a civil lawsuit against an abortion provider in Tennessee that violated the law, as well as anyone who knowingly helped someone get the procedure, according to the legislation. Abortion patients could not be sued or criminally charged. The bill is modeled after a similar law approved in Texas last year, which resulted in a more than 50 percent reduction in abortions, according to a study published by the University of Texas at Austin in October 2021.

Bills protecting visitation at hospitals, long-term care facilities advances - House Bill 2778 would require hospitals to allow patients to have at least one family member or representative as a visitor if the individual agrees to follow all safety protocols established by the hospital. The requirement would not apply to patients who are in an intensive care unit.

Another piece of legislation, House Bill 2535, would require nursing homes and assisted-care facilities to allow visitors for a resident during end-of-life situations. Any visitor must not be exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 or any other communicable disease, and they must agree to follow all safety protocols established by the long-term care facility

Republicans strengthen punishment for evading arrest in a vehicle - House Bill 1886 would allow vehicles used to evade arrest to be seized by authorities and subject to forfeiture in accordance with existing state law. Only Peace Officer Standards and Training-certified or state-commissioned law enforcement officers would be authorized to seize a vehicle, according to the bill. The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security would be responsible for conducting the forfeiture proceeding of any seized property. Evading arrest while operating a motor vehicle is already a Class E felony punishable by a minimum 30 days in jail, according to state law. Anyone found guilty of the offence is also required to have their driver’s license suspended for a minimum of six months. House Bill 1886 now moves to the Finance, Ways and Means Committee for consideration.

Legislation bars foreign groups from interfering in elections - The House of Representatives this week unanimously passed House Bill 2203 prohibiting foreign influence from a corporation, charitable or nonprofit organization, foreign governmental entity or body, or interest group. The bill bans foreign interests from interfering with a federal, state, or local election, governmental entity, agency, or governing body by providing financial support for certain initiatives and referendums or through social media advertisements intended to disseminate disinformation. The Senate companion bill is still advancing through committees.

Property tax relief for disabled Veterans advances - A bill advancing through House committees would increase the amount of property value threshold for determining property tax relief for disabled veterans and their surviving spouses. Disabled veterans currently do not pay property tax on the first $175,000 of their home’s value. House Bill 1846 would increase that threshold to $200,000. The bill is expected to heard in the House Finance, Ways and Means Subcommittee on March 23.

Motor vehicle registrations - House Bill 1544 - would allow private, non-commercial vehicle owners and leases to renew their registration for a 24-month period rather than the current 12-month period with a fee to offset revenue that would have otherwise been collected. The legislation advanced out of the House Transportation Committee on March 15 and will go to the House Finance, Ways and Means Subcommittee for consideration. If approved by the General Assembly and signed by Gov. Bill Lee, the bill would take effect Jan. 1, 2023.

Residency requirement for congressional races - The Tennessee House of Representatives approved legislation on Monday that would add a residency requirement for Tennessee congressional candidates. House Bill 2764 which would require a candidate for U.S. Senate to have lived in the state for at least three years prior to the date of the election in order to qualify for the race. Candidates for the U.S. House would have to live in the district they are seeking to represent for at least three years in order to qualify. The House version of the bill would take effect Nov. 9 while the Senate version would take effect immediately. Both chambers will need to agree on an effective date before the legislation would go to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk for his signature.

Wakesurfing - The House of Representatives this week approved legislation designed to make wakesurfing on public waters safer in Tennessee. House Bill 2223 prohibits wakesurfing between sunset and sunrise, on a body of water that is less than 50 acres in size and within 200 feet of any shoreline, among other new rules. Wakesurfers must wear a personal flotation device approved by the United States Coast Guard.

Swimming pool rentals added to prohibited provisions for sex offenders - The House of Representatives passed legislation making it a Class A misdemeanor for a sex offender to rent or offer to rent a swimming pool, hot tub or other body of water located on property owned, leased or under the control of a sex offender. House Bill 1922 adds to the provisions governing prohibited activities by registered offenders. These provisions include pretending to be, dress as, impersonate the identity of a real or fictional person or character or a member of a profession while in the presence of a minor, being employed in professions that require direct and unsupervised contact with a minor, and operating a vehicle, such as an ice cream truck for the purpose of attracting a minor.

As always, I am truly humbled and honored to be your voice on Capitol Hill. If there is ever any issue I can assist with, please reach out to my office by calling 615-741-2190 or emailing me at [email protected]