Status of three major Republican priorities

At the halfway point of the legislative session, here's where they stand

Tennessean.com
March 17, 2007

FOOD TAX
Governor’s threatened veto puts propositions in doubt

Republican Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey said chances are looking slim for reducing the food tax this year, though it's too early in the session to back off the push.

Republicans are looking at other ways to return what he calls excess taxes to the public, he said.

"The bottom line is the basic philosophy that we've over-collected taxes … some of that money needs to go back to the taxpayer," Ramsey said. "The food tax is one way. There may be other ideas that come out in the end."

Gov. Phil Bredesen, who holds the power of veto, has come out staunchly against cutting the tax, calling it "a lay-down-on-the-tracks issue."

"I think the food tax thing is a place where we're going to butt heads," he predicted in February.

Various GOP-backed propositions would gradually either eat away the tax until there's nothing left of it or nix it all together.

The most popular has been Sen. Mae Beavers' bill to shave half a percentage point off the 6 percent that the state charges for food until it's gone in 2018.

Her proposal would still allow local governments to tack on taxes for groceries.

She's argued that the state's revenue surplus can cover the loss of income.

But her bill, while set to be heard in a Senate-House subcommittee, also faces a Democratic House controlled by Speaker Jimmy Naifeh, who doesn't support cutting the tax without replacing lost revenue.

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE
Cap on punitive damages in legal awards languishes

What started as a showdown sure to produce fireworks over limiting legal awards to malpractice victims has rapidly fizzled out behind the scenes.

Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris filed a bill to cap punitive damages against doctors at $250,000, a plan supported by doctors and insurers but vehemently opposed by trial lawyers and victims' rights advocates.

Those plans are off the table — for now, Norris said.

Instead, he's focused on a less controversial proposal: asking lawyers to certify that they've consulted a qualified physician before taking a case to court.

Norris said he hoped it would cut down on frivolous lawsuits that drive up insurance costs for doctors.

It's a plan that the Democratic House Judiciary Committee leader — also a trial lawyer — says he can get behind, too. The compromise proposal is likely to emerge next week, said Nashville's Rep. Rob Briley.

"We're the first state that really focuses on the lawyers that file these cases," Briley said. The message? "There's got to be more professionalism in the legal community. It has such a huge impact on people."

That's all well and good, says Crossville health-care professional Ron Bodary, but it's no substitute for award caps.

He had high hopes at the beginning of the session that the Republican agenda would prevail on that note at least.

He's afraid runaway malpractice verdicts will run off Tennessee doctors.

"I'm just sad to see that they're not doing it, sad that there wasn't more action on that," Bodary said. "If it's not this year, it needs to be next year."

IMMIGRATION
Several Senate bills on drivers moved to House

On the immigration front, GOP-backed initiatives to limit driving privileges for illegal immigrants have passed the Senate. Dozens of other immigration proposals are in various stages of the legislative process.

Sen. Bill Ketron, R-Murfreesboro, successfully backed a bill to end driving certificates for people who can't prove their legal residence. Another Ketron proposal would offer the driving test in English only, though he admits that amendments allowing other languages in certain circumstances weakened the original bill.

Both head to the House.

Next for the GOP? ID cards for voters, said Ramsey.

Norris has proposed a law to require proof of ID and residency at the polls, a plan that more liberal lawmakers say amounts to a poll tax for those who can't afford it or don't have photo IDs.

That's why the Republicans are trying to knock down anticipated Democratic arguments before they're posed, Ramsey said.

A bill sponsored by Ketron would offer free IDs through state drivers' license centers.

"I'd say it will be opposed by the Democrats," Ramsey said. "Furnishing everyone with an ID, that's what Georgia did to get around" those arguments.

Other GOP immigration plans include allowing Highway Patrol officers to enforce immigration rules, punishing employers who knowingly or negligently employ illegal immigrants and requiring people to prove they're in the country legally before they can receive public benefits.