Senator Joey Hensley, MD; Tennessee 28th District Capitol Hill Week in Review

Senate approves proposed civics institute at UT-Knoxville

The Senate continued to wind down its business as many important bills received final approval this week. The Senate passed Governor Bill Lee’s proposal to establish the Institute of American Civics at Tennessee’s largest public university. Senate Bill 2410 locates the institute within the Howard H. Baker, Jr. Center for Public Policy on the campus of the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Governor Lee announced the proposal during his State of the State address in January and has included $6 million for the project in his proposed budget.

There are seven objectives for the institute listed in the bill, including:

• Foster a deeper understanding of the structures and institutions of federal, state, and local government.

• Further the understanding of the principles that contributed to the foundation and development of the United States and the state of Tennessee.

• Enhance education in the fields of politics, economics, philosophy, American history, American government, and other related fields.

• Foster civic engagement through full and fair discussions that promote civil dialogue among those holding conflicting points of view.

The duty of any education to ensure we are creating a new generation of active citizens who can believe in and support American democracy. It’s designed to serve as a robust marketplace of ideas for all students and faculty.

Members of the board of fellows for the institute will include professors or administrators, former elected officials affiliated with different political parties, and members of the board of the Howard H. Baker, Jr. Center.

Senate votes to remove roadblocks to obtain a Commercial Driver License

Consumers everywhere have felt the effects of the backlog in moving freight across the country. The American trucking association currently estimates that the United States is 80,000 truck drivers short, causing supply chain issues across Tennessee and the nation. To address this issue, the Senate approved legislation this week, to help increase the number of Commercial Driver Licenses (CDLs) issued to Tennesseans by expanding eligibility, implementing a quicker turnaround for issuing CDLs and creating a program within the Department of Safety to train qualifying incarcerated individuals and prepare them for a job in the trucking industry.

Senate Bill 2399 creates a program to enable qualifying incarcerated individuals who will return to society to receive a CDL prior to or after their release. Inmates with certain criminal convictions will not be eligible for this training program.

This training program with the Department of Corrections will yield positive results for the trucking industry, formerly incarcerated individuals and public safety. Giving these individuals jobs prevents them from returning to a life of crime and steers them towards a life of productivity.

This bill will increase the resources and staff for the Department of Safety to allow for a quicker turnaround time for scheduling a commercial driving skills tests and will expand options for third party partners to conduct more commercial driving skills tests on the department’s behalf.

Because many local school districts are having a hard time obtaining school bus drivers, the legislation will also provide more flexibility for school bus endorsement testing and ensure safer school bus drivers as well.

Finally, it lowers the age for those who can receive a CDL in the state. Under the bill, Tennesseans ages 18 - 20 can receive a CDL to drive in the state.

Legislation to prohibit camping on local public property and protect public safety passes in Senate

Legislation enabling local governments to prevent homeless populations from camping on public property was passed by the full Senate. Senate Bill 1610 will encourage homeless individuals to relocate to safer areas and receive needed assistance, including mental and physical health care.

This bill focuses on public safety and human dignity. Allowing individuals to sleep under bridges and near roadways is not compassionate. It is unsafe. Through this bill we hope to give local governments the ability to protect public safety and connect homeless populations with the resources they need to restore their dignity and improve their living situations.

Similar to the Equal Access to Public Property Act of 2012 which prohibited camping on state public property, this legislation prohibits camping on local public property. It would give local governments a legal mechanism to remove homeless camps from local public land. If it becomes law, each local governing body could decide how or if they want to enforce the legislation.

Under the legislation, the penalty for camping on public property after an initial warning is a Class C misdemeanor offense punishable by either 20 to 40 hours of community service or a $50 fine. The bill lists camping on the shoulder, berm, or right-of-way of a state or interstate highway or under a bridge or overpass, or within an underpass of a state interstate or highway as punishable offenses.

In Brief…

Ensuring age-appropriate materials in school libraries - Legislation was approved this week that requires the State Textbook and Instructional Materials Quality Commission to issue guidance for local education agencies (LEAs) and charter schools to use when reviewing materials in a library to ensure that the materials are appropriate for the age and maturity levels of the students who will access them. Senate Bill 2247 will also ensure that the materials are suitable and consistent with the educational mission of the school. The measure also expands the Commission by adding two librarians appointed by the Speaker of the Senate and the Speaker of the House. Working together with Governor Lee’s Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022, this legislation will ensure students learn with materials appropriate to their age and grade level.

Teaching virtues of capitalism in Tennessee schools – Senate Republicans gave final approval Tuesday to legislation that requires students to be taught the virtues of capitalism and the constitutional republic form of government of the United States and Tennessee. Senate Bill 2728 calls for these forms of government to be compared to other political and economic systems such as communism and socialism.

Increasing transparency in sentencing - Passed by the Senate this week, Senate Bill 2183 will better inform victims and their families about how much time an offender will serve at the time of sentencing. The bill requires all Tennessee courts to place on the record the estimated number of years and months to be served before a criminal is eligible for parole. Currently, when a criminal defendant is being sentenced, it is unknown when that criminal defendant is going to be released unless they are required to serve a 100% sentence without credits.

Taking action against abortion advocacy in public schools - The Senate this week passed Senate Bill 2158, which I sponsored, prohibits an LEA or public charter school seeking assistance in teaching family life from knowingly entering into an agreement with a person or entity that performs abortions, induces abortions, provides abortion referrals, or provides funding, advocacy or other support for abortions.

Ensuring fairness in school sports - The Senate this week passed two bills aimed at ensuring fairness in school sports. Senate Bill 2153, which I sponsored, prohibits biological males from participating in girls’ sports in public K-12 education. Also sponsored by me, Senate Bill 1861 requires the Tennessee Department of Education to withhold a portion of state funds from public middle or high schools that fail or refuse to determine a student’s gender at the time of birth for participation in school sports.

Preventing anti-Semitism in schools - The Senate this week passed Senate Bill 2684 which codifies the prohibition of anti-Semitism in public K-12 schools. The bill defines anti-Semitism and directs schools to use that definition as a guideline when investigating complaints. The legislation also specifies that it does not prohibit the discussion or use of instructional materials regarding the history of Jews, Judaism or the state of Israel that is part of a larger academic instruction.