March 21, 2003

A Half-a-Loaf-for-Some Lottery Scholarship Bill Moves to Finance

NASHVILLE--Senate Bill 437/House Bill 787, a Lottery Scholarship Bill, moved out of the Senate Education Committee Wednesday in a straight 5-4 party-line vote for a version of the bill that fails to keep faith with what voters thought they approved in last November's lottery referendum.  The bill now goes to the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee.

Senate Republican Leader Ben Atchley (R-Knoxville), Senate Education Committee Chairman Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge), and Senators Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City) and Bill Ketron (R-Murfreesboro) strongly disagree with this particularly punitive version of the bill that discriminates against otherwise qualified students based both on family income and on the choice that a student makes as to which school to attend.  For this reason, all four Republican Senators on the Senate Education Committee voted against the doubly discriminatory bill.

Earlier, the same Republican members of the committee had presented their Full-Loaf-For-All Amendment and tried in vain to solicit support for universal fairness from the other members of the committee so that the measure would be in keeping with what voters expected from the Lottery Scholarship Bill when they approved the measure in the fall.

In its current form, the bill penalizes those students who choose to attend a private college or university by giving them only a half a grant instead of a whole grant, as well as penalizing home-schooled children by requiring a much higher standard of ACT achievement than is required of private and public school students.

Other disparities and inequities exist in the alternative version of the measure which passed out of committee on Wednesday.  Senate Republicans look forward to working with the governor and all the members of the full Senate to bring the bill into much closer compliance with the people's expectations for fairness in how the lottery scholarships will be distributed.

Senator Ketron stated, "Voters want a fair bill that does not discriminate by giving some students a half a loaf and other students a whole loaf.  The people thought they were voting for a whole loaf when they voted for a lottery.  Why are some being shortchanged now?"

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Senate gives nod to Norris Resolution Saving State Money

Senate Resolution 13 by Senator Mark Norris (R-Collierville) passed unanimously through the full Senate Monday to urge the TennCare Bureau and the state Department of Education to submit a Medicaid Administrative Claim Program Implementation Plan to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).  The state is losing at least $18 million a year in federal funds if the plan is not submitted.  In the last two years, at least $23 million has been lost.  The federal government only allows looking back for adjustments for a two-year period.

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Norris Seeks to Curb Drivers Sharing Dirty Flicks

'It'll be Curtains for Rolling Porno Movies'

Senate Bill 176/House Bill 591 by Senator Mark Norris (R-Collierville) received unanimous approval of the full Senate on Monday to prohibit the exhibition of an obscene or patently offensive movie on or within a motor vehicle if it is visible to other drivers.  Punishment would be a fine of from $2 up to $50 which is the same as the current penalty for similar offenses.

More and more vehicles, from stretch limousines to little lemons, are being equipped with television, VCR, DVD, and other electronic equipment which allows the showing of movies on TVs or screens.  Many of these vehicles have bright displays which easily distract other drivers.  In some cases, children and other unwilling viewers are subjected to these vehicles which are sometimes projecting raunchy and pornographic materials among other creative celluloid distractions.

"If the House will just do the right thing and pass this bill, it'll be curtains for rolling porno movies in Tennessee," said Senator Norris.  "We really don't care how these thoughtless people decide to hide their offensive movies that distract other drivers.  They can use curtains, tinting, or just keep them turned off when other people are around."

House Bill 591, the companion bill to SB176, is now scheduled on next week's calendar for the Civil Procedure and Practice Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee for Wednesday, March 26.

The bill is opposed by the ACLU.

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The Buzz: Beekeepers Sweet on Honey Bill

SB 280/HB 251 -- a Honey of a Bill -- sponsored by Senator Micheal Williams (R-Maynardville) passed unanimously through the full Senate Monday to exempt any person who makes infrequent casual sales of honey or who sells less than 150 gallons of honey per year from the regulations applicable to other food service establishments.  Specifically, amateur beekeepers would not be subject to inspection by the Agriculture Department and an annual permit fee that is $40 this year and which rises to $50 as of July 2003.  An amendment sweetened the bill in committee for opponents by clarifying that this bill was for mom-and-pop beekeeping operations and not for commercial ventures by specifically excluding retail food stores from the exemption.  The bill in this form attracted all members to sign on as sponsors.  Bees are a very beneficial part of the environment and are an aid to agriculture.

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Bills, Bills, Bills

All things considered: As of 11:00 a.m. (CST) Thursday, March 20, the Senate has 2,002 Senate bills filed, while the House has 2,080 bills filed.  Senate Joint Resolutions now number 191; House Joint Resolutions 173; Senate Resolutions 23; and House Resolutions 81.  The Senate has used 21 days and the House has used 19 days of the 90 regular session days allowed every two years under Article II, Section 23 of the Constitution for a regular session. The Senate and the House recessed Thursday and plan to convene in regular session on Monday, March 24, at 5 p.m.

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Senate Floor Actions

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Senate Joint Resolution 190 by Senator Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) received the unanimous approval of the full Senate on Thursday to express the support of the Tennessee General Assembly for the men and women of the United States Military, especially those deployed in the Middle East.  All Senate members signed on as co-sponsors.  The resolution is available online at http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/bills/currentga/BILL/SJR0190.pdf.

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SB 291/HB 670 received the unanimous consent of the Senate Monday to revise regulations governing safety standards for passenger contract carriers.  According to the bill summary, present law imposes minimum safety standards for contract carriers regularly transporting passengers within or through Tennessee who operate vehicles with a seating capacity of less than eight passengers, excluding the driver, and employ more than five drivers.  Such standards govern areas such as the number of hours worked, vision and hearing examinations, and drug testing.  Under this bill, any failure to comply with such minimum standards would be a Class C misdemeanor.  This bill would also require drivers to maintain and keep current a daily log book detailing the hours worked and make the log book available for inspection. Drivers would be required to have in their possession at all times while on duty the log book for the past 30 working days.

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SB 579/HB 804 by Senator Williams received the unanimous consent of the Senate Monday to repeal obsolete or federally pre-empted statutes governing railroads, such as the authority for the Department of Transportation to set the location of freight and passenger train depots, taking the conditions of the road, safety of freight, and public comfort or convenience into consideration.  Additionally, it deletes the provisions governing streetcars and interurban railroads.  Streetcars have not been in use here for about five decades or so.

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SB 1047/HB 1383 by Senator David Fowler (R-Signal Mountain) received the unanimous consent of the Senate Monday to subject hospitals that fail to file a timely and adequate joint annual report with the Department of Health to a deficiency that requires a corrective action plan or additional possible disciplinary action.

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SB 1690/HB 882 received the unanimous consent of the Senate Monday to add International Building and International Fire codes to the lists of building construction and fire prevention codes which may be adopted by local governments as part of building construction safety standards.  Senators Ketron and McNally are co-sponsors on the measure.

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SB 991/HB 678 by Senator Williams received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday to authorize a physician serving as a U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Officer who is trained as National Health Service Corps Ready Responder to practice medicine at federally qualified health centers while pursuing licensure to practice medicine in Tennessee.

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SB 1452/HB 1344 by Senator Bill Clabough (R-Maryville) received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday to remove the requirement for Tennessee registration for motor vehicles covered under the Lemon Law which would allow vehicles purchased in Tennessee, but registered in another state with  similar title provisions, to be covered under the Lemon Law.  It would also remove antique vehicles from the Lemon Law and add definitions of "motor vehicle" and "person."  All members signed on as co-sponsors of the bill.

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SB 1580/HB 1699 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday to permit chiropractors and physicians to form and own shares in the same professional corporation or same professional limited liability company so long as such persons conform their practice to the profession's ethical standards and accurately state their professional credentials in any public advertising.  Senator Williams is co-sponsoring the bill.

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SB 374/HB 1474 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Wednesday to enact the "General Patton Act of 2003."  Republican Senators Curtis Person, Ketron, and Williams co-sponsor the bipartisan measure along with the Democratic sponsors of the bill.  The measure comes in reaction to the adverse publicity generated by the Smoak Incident in Cookeville in which a dog, "General Patton," was summarily shot at a traffic stop that was processed as a felony stop.  The bill would require law enforcement training to include a course of instruction in animal behavior generally and canine behavior specifically.  Further, the bill would bump up certain animal cruelty offenses to a felony status.  As amended on the floor in the Senate, the bill would be discretionary for local governments, being permissive legislation rather than a state mandate.  The Chiefs of Police supported the cost-efficiency factor of this amendment that was introduced on the floor by Senator Norris and accepted by the full Senate.

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SB 742/HB 1094 passed out of the Senate State and Local Government Committee and then received the unanimous approval of the full Senate on Thursday to allow municipalities to issue revenue bonds to purchase electrical power from Tennessee Valley authority.

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SB 764/HB 1091 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Thursday to permit a dentist licensed in Tennessee and certified by the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology to be a lab director without obtaining additional medical laboratory licensure.

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Senate Committee Actions

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Committees worked fewer bills this week as the focus has been mostly on the budget.  Hearings for a number of departmental and agency budgets were held and several budgets moved forward for more detailed inspection in the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee.

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SB 1887, a clean-up bill sponsored by Senator Bill Clabough (R-Maryville), passed out of Senate Commerce, Labor and Agriculture Committee to exempt financial institutions from the provisions of a bill passed last year governing the manufacture and installation of manufactured homes.

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SB 1901 passed out of Senate Commerce Committee to revise the Residential Lending, Brokerage and Servicing Act with respect to home improvement contractors and other persons who supply materials and render services in the improvement of real property.

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SB 200 by Senator Ron Ramsey (R-Blountville) passed out of Senate Commerce Committee in a 5-2-2 vote to prohibit local governments from requiring a private employer to pay its employees any wage not required to be paid to an employee under state or federal law.

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SB 1509 by Senator Ramsey passed out of Senate Commerce Committee to authorize any apprentice auctioneer who is also a broker or affiliate broker to conduct or offer to conduct auctions of real property as long as the auctioneer for whom the apprentice auctioneer is employed for such purposes is on the premises of the property during an auction.  Senator Ramsey is an expert in the industry and is a licensed professional auctioneer.

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SB 614 passed out of Senate Commerce Committee to enact the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act. The bill redefines some the provisions for the determination of whether a person was fraudulently attempting to hide assets from creditors.  According to the bill summary, SB 614 would reflect many provisions of the present fraudulent conveyances law but would clarify the law by providing more comprehensive provisions. Under SB 614, a debtor who is generally not paying his or her debts as they become due would be presumed insolvent.  See details at http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/bills/currentga/Summary.asp?BillNumber=SB0614 .

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SB 1581 passed out of Senate Commerce Committee to decrease the time period an issuer must wait to presume a gift certificate is abandoned property from more than five years to the earlier of two years or the certificate's expiration date and to prevent any gift certificate issued after December 31, 1998, from being abandoned property if the issuer does not impose a dormancy charge and a certificate expiration date is not effective or applicable.  The bill is co-sponsored by Senator Clabough and is brought at the request of the state Treasurer.

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SB 1582 passed out of Senate Commerce Committee to set a new time period when the treasurer may sell certain types of abandoned property, to establish the procedure for sale of marketable securities, and to limit the amount of a claim to the sales price when claim is made subsequent to property's sale. The bill, limited to securities of $500 and less, is co-sponsored by Senator Clabough and is brought at the request of the state Treasurer.

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SB 1847 passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee to authorize clerks of any circuit court and clerks of any court exercising juvenile jurisdiction to solemnize the rite of matrimony in any county of Tennessee, as well as adding former speakers of the House of Representatives, all members of the Senate and former members of the Senate, all members of the House of Representatives and former members of the House of Representatives to the list of those who can lawfully perform marriages.

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SB 430 passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee to permit a police officer working as private security to wear the uniform of the officer's primary jurisdiction, if that jurisdiction has authorized and assumed the responsibility for wearing such uniform.

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SB 1783 passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee to establish certain policies and procedures pertaining to the grandparent visitation law regarding where suits may be filed when the child's parents were never married.