April 4, 2003

Bill Lets U.S. Flags Fly in Neighborhoods 

NASHVILLE--Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) moved Senate Bill 987/House Bill 997 through the Senate Judiciary Committee to prohibit declarations and governing documents of common interest developments from limiting, prohibiting, or being construed to limit or prohibit, the proper display of a United States flag on an owner's separately owned real property or in an exclusive use common area.  Should the bill become law, it would award the prevailing party reasonable attorneys' fees and costs.

          "Some associations have tried to use their rules to prevent patriotic people from showing their support for this great nation of ours by flying an American flag in their own yard," stated Senator Beavers.

"This law will put a stop to that in a hurry.  Now more than ever, we need to encourage people to show their support for our troops, our country, and our flag."

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May our county executives doff their name?

Wherefore art thou county executive?

The chief executive officer of a county in Tennessee would no longer be a county executive, if a bill now moving through the General Assembly becomes the law of the land.  Rather the county CEO would claim the name of "county mayor" in all 95 counties instead of the handful of counties that already have changed their CEO's name to that designation.

Senate Bill 720 by Senators Tim Burchett (R-Knoxville), Ron Ramsey (R-Blountville, Ben Atchley (R-Knoxville), Bill Ketron (R-Murfeesboro), Micheal Williams (R-Maynardville) and Bill Clabough (R-Maryville), inter alios, passed through the Senate State and Local Government Committee to redesignate county executives as county mayors uniformly throughout the state.

          Back in the days of squires when the county legislative bodies or county commissions or whatever they be were designated as (quarterly) county courts, the comparable position was the county judge.  They became county executives beginning with a transition in 1978.

          But not everyone in the world knows what a county executive is, much less what county executives do.  The problem becomes more acute in translation into another tongue.  Generally though, the role of mayor is recognized by the majority of people round the world.

The bill may or may not be taken up soon after hitting a bump in the road to passage when it was rerouted Wednesday from Calendar Committee to Finance, Ways and Means.

          If a majority of members of both chambers ultimately agree, the name change would take effect on July 1.  As a cost-savings move, the bill would require the new baptized county mayors to exhaust their supplies of stationery and such containing the appellation du jour.

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What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other word would smell as sweet.
--From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet Act II, Scene 2

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Bills, Bills, Bills

All things considered:  As of 11:30 a.m. (CST) Thursday, April 3, the Senate has 2,012 Senate bills filed, while the House has 2,089 bills filed.  Senate Joint Resolutions now number 235; House Joint Resolutions 288; Senate Resolutions 26; and House Resolutions 100.  The Senate has used 26 days and the House has used 23 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 Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, and plan to convene in regular session on Monday, April 7, at 5 p.m.

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Senate Floor Actions

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SB 185/HB 303 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday in an amended form to require incoming students at public and private institutions of higher learning who live in on-campus housing to return a waiver form completed by a new student or the parent or guardian of the student as to whether or not the student has chosen to be vaccinated against meningococcal disease (meningitis).  Senator Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge), Senate Education Committee Chairman, co-sponsors the bill.

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SB 189/HB 1289 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday to remove private protective service contractors from the general contractor law when the private protective service providers are performing functions for which they are certified.

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SB 1938/HB 2042 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday to include third party payors or health insurance entities regulated by the Department of Commerce and Insurance and self-insured entities as entities authorized to share information regarding child immunization records.

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SB 1581/HB 1551 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Monday 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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HB 1262/SB 787 by Senator Curtis Person (R-Memphis) received the unanimous consent of the full Senate Monday to prohibit a non-supporting parent under a court order requiring the payment of support who intentionally refuses or neglects to pay child support for a two-year period from recovering monetary damages under the Tennessee Wrongful Death Act for the wrongful death of the child.   The bill also applies to a person who fails to contact under court-ordered visitation.

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SB 1750/HB 1673 received the unanimous consent of the full Senate Monday to require a presiding general sessions criminal judge of any county which appoints judicial commissioners to establish the qualifications and training necessary for the person to be appointed as a judicial commissioner.

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HB 1315/SB 1500 by Senator Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City) received the unanimous consent of the full Senate Monday to require a person applying to work or volunteer with children to submit fingerprint samples to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

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SB 1850/HB 1904 by Senator Crowe received the unanimous consent of the full Senate Monday to define "notice" for the purposes of notifying applicants under the "Adult-Oriented Establishment Registration Act" to include mailing by first class in U.S. mail and the receipt of notification to be presumed three days after mailing.  "Counties are having trouble getting mail to some of these establishments.  Right now they are having to send certified mail.  This change in the law will make it easier for local governments to take action regarding this type activity," stated Senator Crowe.

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SB 1465/HB 1338 by Senator Clabough received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Wednesday to remove the requirement that a person must own at least 50 percent fee simple interest in real property when a municipal charter provides for property rights voting in municipal elections and to clarify that no more than two persons can vote based on the ownership of an individual tract of property regardless of the number of property owners.

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HB 1314/SB 1501 by Senator Crowe received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Wednesday to clarify that a criminal history records check for persons working with children will include a check conducted by the FBI along with the TBI and to clarify that the FBI will be reimbursed for the cost of the check in the same manner as the TBI.

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SB 1936/HB 2008 received the unanimous approval of the full Senate Wednesday to authorize the state, in regard to provisions allowing securities or cash to be substituted for bond to secure a public contract, to accept certificates of deposits and letters of credits from state or national banks whose principal offices are in other states so long as such banks maintain a branch in this state.  The bill applies to public building construction contracts exceeding $100,000.

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Senate Committee Actions

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SB 31 by Senator Clabough passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to add certified public accountants to the list of those who are exempt from certification requirements for municipal clerks and recorders.

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SB 490 passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to clarify in the law that only certain fees from the registration of documents that are charged by registers of deeds are to be used to pay for computer expenses.

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SB 211 passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to allow local government to enforce a fair housing ordinance in the circuit court of the county where a violation is alleged to have occurred.  It was stated for the record in committee that, should the bill become law, it only applied to Knoxville and Memphis and does not impose any more cases on the Davidson County system.

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SB 120 passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to create a mechanism for certain voters to vote absentee who will not be in Tennessee during the early voting period nor on election day and who have no specific out-of-county or out-of-state location to which an absentee ballot may be sent.  The bill was brought by the sponsor at the request of a specific over-the-road long-haul truck driver who may be traveling at various locations for periods of over 30 days at a time.  The absentee ballot would be mailed to the voter's home.

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SB 124 passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to remove the requirement that a register of deeds include on a certification of record a written reference to where recorded instruments are noted in paper records.  Current law requires the number of the book and page or other reference where it is noted in the notebook which are considered no longer necessary due to technological changes.

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SB 449 by Senator Crowe passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to authorize counties to pay for a deceased pauper's cremation expenses and to require verification of financial need and no alternative source of funding by affidavit.  Current law only states that counties may pay for burial or funeral expenses.  Cremation expenses typically are less than those of burial and funeral expenses and the change may result in savings to a county that exercises this option.

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SB 630 passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to allow municipalities to pay the occupational privilege tax on behalf of their affected employees, subject to two-thirds vote of the municipal governing body.

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SB 731 by Senator Burchett passed through Senate State and Local Government Committee to authorize the sale of unused property of state developmental centers with deposit of proceeds in a special trust fund earmarked for purposes of planning and developing mental retardation services.

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SB 1927 passed through Senate Commerce, Labor and Agriculture Committee to remove the requirement that a professional boxing match be sponsored by a patriotic organization and to define amateur boxing match, and to make other revisions to boxing provisions in a rewrite of the Toughman and Badman law.

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SB 1929 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to allow the Commissioner of Commerce and Insurance to allow or require filing of documents with the commissioner through a designated filing depository, to create a fee for additional rate filings, and to make other various revisions to insurance provisions.

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SB 1930 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to include information on pre-need trust accounts in information that must be provided for transfer to the Commissioner of Commerce and Insurance prior to the sale or transfer of a cemetery required to be registered or the sale of a controlling interest in a cemetery company that owns a cemetery and to authorize the commissioner to deny or suspend a registration for a cemetery in violation of regulations.

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SB 1978 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to authorize the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development after notice and opportunity for a hearing to assess civil penalties for wage violations.

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SB 1979 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to make an order of the Commissioner of Labor imposing civil penalties of less than $10,000 in aggregate for violations of child labor laws a final order under the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act (UAPA).

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SB 1980 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to require the posting of workplace chemical list and review of such list by employees.  The change is intended to reduce the current paperwork load placed on employers.

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SB 836 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to require HMOs providing utilization review services for mental health and chemical dependency care for their own enrollees to comply with provisions of the law regarding utilization review services for such care.  As amended, TennCare appears to be exempt.

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SB 1149 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to provide for the payment of the emergency communications fee by certain mobile radio service providers or retailers.  The change is an attempt to collect from prepaid cellular phone service by closing a loophole.

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SB 603 by Senator Mark Norris (R-Collierville) passed through Senate Commerce Committee to allow dealers of liquefied petroleum gas to service gas installation or containers only after gaining permission from an owner, dealer, consumer of the container or installation, or from the consumer or property owner where the installation or container is located.  The bill clarifies who may service these tanks and refill them.

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SB 613 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to distinguish differences between demand drafts and other types of checks, to revise the standard for making a claim on lost instruments, and to clarify the statutory definition of "banking day" to mean only days on which the Federal Reserve processes checks.  The bill stems from an extensive rewrite of Uniform Commercial Code Articles 3 and 4.

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SB 1689 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to require architects and engineers to oversee the construction phases of buildings over three stories for purposes of assuring public health and safety.  Currently contractors can make changes for the person having the construction done which has led to subsequent problems.

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SB 411 passed through Senate Commerce Committee to permit insurers to give preferences or distinctions in insurance coverage, rates, premiums, benefits or conditions based on membership in a professional association with more than 5,000 dues-paying members residing or practicing in at least 80 counties.  Senator Jim Bryson (R-Williamson County) is a co-sponsor of the bill.

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SB 491 passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to require that a grand jury indictment be presented to the clerk of the court for filing.

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SB 1499 by Senator Crowe passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to require a prospective kinship foster parent to supply a fingerprint sample and submit to a criminal history records check conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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SB 879 by Senator Ramsey passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to provide that a person found not guilty of a criminal offense or charge, including a lesser included offense or charge, by reason of insanity is not entitled to have such records expunged by virtue of such finding.  The change is necessitated due to a Supreme Court decision.

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SB 395 by Senator David Fowler (R-Signal Mountain) passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to remove the Social Security number from information required to file a petition to appoint a conservator.  Senator Fowler has long championed privacy laws to prevent identity theft.

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SB 406 by Senator Fowler passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to permit subpoenaed telephone records to be transmitted to law enforcement officials by telephone or facsimile.

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SB 352 passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to provide that a sheriff does not receive commissions for the service of process for garnishments and executions.

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SB 353 passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to provide that notaries public must use a stamp which can be copied rather than the traditional impression seal which provides tactile proof of seal.  The bill grandfathers in current impression seals.

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SB 295 passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to clarify in the law that an order of expungement entered for any reason and for all classes of offenses must be sent by the court to the TBI for entry into the expunged offender database.

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SB 785 by Senator Person passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to impose a one-year moratorium on the creation of new municipal courts either by the General Assembly or home rule municipalities until a committee appointed by the Judicial Council studies the matter and makes recommendations to the General Assembly between now and next session.

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SB 526 passed through Senate Judiciary Committee to enact the "Power of Attorney for Care of a Minor Child Act."

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SB 272 by Senator Burchett passed through Senate Education Committee to permit institutions of higher education to release certain student records and student information if related to criminal activity or drug or alcohol possession or use by a student.

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