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June 21, 2005 For more details on bills, visit the legislative website at http://www.legislature.state.tn.us Protecting the Integrity of Our Elections The rising number of illegal aliens attempting to vote, as well as others who have lost the privilege but do so illegally, may threaten the integrity of our elections. Just this week, the Election Commission for Nashville and Davidson County reported that five convicted felons voted there in the November presidential election. State Coordinator of Elections, Brook Thompson, will forward the information to the district attorney for examination. The felons apparently indicated on their voter registration cards that they had not been convicted and could vote despite a warning on the card listing consequences including one to six years imprisonment and a fine. These individuals disregarded the warning, signed the registration card and cast their ballot. Is this happening with illegal aliens? In years past, voter registration cards required additional documents to prove citizenship in order to vote. Today, applicants simply check a box and sign the form. The issue of immigration and its impact on the vote is important. As we witness the influx from foreign lands, now is the time to act to ensure the legitimacy and integrity of our elections. Proof of U.S. citizenship should be a requirement to register and vote in this country. That is why I sponsored the “Tennessee Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act” requiring those seeking voting privileges to offer initial, documented proof of valid citizenship when registering. Senate Bill 1595 would also require state and local employees to ensure identity and citizenship status for benefits and makes it a misdemeanor for failure to report immigration violations to federal authorities. Under this proposed legislation, the county administrator of elections could reject any application for voter registration not accompanied by evidence of United States citizenship. Satisfactory evidence would include the applicant’s birth certificate, pertinent pages of the applicant’s United States passport, United States naturalization documents or other documents or methods of proof acceptable pursuant to the Federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. There are no real safeguards in place to restrict non-citizens from registering to vote in elections. Currently, all that’s required to claim U.S. citizenship for voting purposes is checking the box on the voter form. I will continue to push for passage of this bill in the second part of the 104th General Assembly to protect the integrity of our elections and the future of our democracy.
* * * * * In upcoming issues, I’ll tell you about some of the specific issues and legislation I passed during this session. As noted below, our party made significant progress on our key initiatives for the 104th General Assembly. Senate Republican Majority Made a Difference in 2005 This year, the Senate Republican Majority made a big difference on Capitol Hill in a number of key areas. Pre-K From both a fiscal and education standpoint, the Senate Majority played a major role in shaping the final form of the Pre-K Bill, as additional ideas were developed and advanced through the Senate Education Committee chaired by Senator Jamie Hagood (R-Knoxville). The Senate put an amendment on the Appropriations Bill to make the $25 million Pre-K funding from lottery excess funds on a non-recurring basis since it is not known yet whether there will even be any excess funds in the future. Sales Tax Holiday The Senate passed the Sales Tax Holiday Bill to allow a three-day back-to-school “Sales Tax Holiday,” starting the first weekend of August 2006. Long a Republican initiative, the Sales Tax Holiday Bill idea was adopted by the governor and he was willing to fund it in the budget. Charter Schools Major improvements in Public Charter Schools law will make public charter schools more accessible and accountable, with the primary focus now being the child and not on a failing school. The measure passed with strong bipartisan support in a 21-10 vote in the Senate. The changes will strengthen Tennessee’s current public charter schools program by expanding enrollment opportunities for more at-risk students and by granting administrators more control in managing their public charter schools. The changes contained in the bill will be the first to Tennessee’s law since approval of the Public Charter Schools Act of 2002. These changes were prompted by state test results that show students in Memphis’s first three public charter schools last year outperformed their peers across the Memphis City Schools district in major subject areas. The Democratically-controlled House added two amendments and passed it 58-31-4, limiting the number of schools more than we would have liked and adding additional restrictions. The Senate accepted the House amendments as a step to improve education. Charter schools will be limited to 50 statewide until 2008 at which time the issue will be readdressed. Meth Bill The Senate Majority overwhelmingly passed the comprehensive Meth Bill, emphasizing punishments for those who manufacture the substance. As a result of the new law, it is now much harder for meth cooks to obtain the raw materials they need to manufacture their drug. Criminal penalties are now much tougher and new civil remedies are available as well. Constitutional Amendment to Clearly Define Marriage The General Assembly approved SJR 31 to allow the people the opportunity to add language to their state constitution to define marriage. The question can be put to the people in the November 2006 election. Ethics On ethics legislation, Republicans took up the issue early in session and pushed until it led to the first comprehensive ethics reform package and also dealt with the issue of legislators being consultants. An ethics residency bill became law in an effort to prevent legislators from living outside the districts they represent by using a business address. Campaign disclosures are now open for challenge for two years instead of just six months. * * * |
