The second session of the 111th General Assembly is officially underway and it’s been a busy first month back.
I’m so proud to serve as your voice in Nashville. Tennessee is experiencing tremendous success and prosperity under Republican leadership. I’ll be working hard in 2020 to further build on these accomplishments.
Please take a moment to provide feedback in my Legislative Survey for 2020. These questions reflect some of the issues legislators will make decisions about during the coming session. Some of those issues include criminal justice reform, the opioid crisis, gun rights, preserving life and transportation. Your views are extremely important to me; it’s your voice that helps me to be a more effective representative for Williamson County. To take the survey, visit here.
Tennessee is officially the “Volunteer State”
Republican leaders on Feb. 10 approved a measure officially designating Tennessee the “Volunteer State.”
House Bill 1562 designates the “Volunteer State” as the official nickname of Tennessee. While Tennessee has held this distinction since 1812, it is not currently documented in state law.
Tennessee has been referred to as the “Volunteer State” because of its tradition of answering the call of duty, most notably during the War of 1812. When Tennessee was asked to send 1,500 troops to defend the lower Mississippi region during this conflict, the “Volunteer State” instead answered the call with 30,000 troops. House Bill 1562 now heads to the governor’s desk for his signature.
Metropolitan Service Area Caucus focuses on aiding fast-growing communities
I was proud to host the first meeting of the Metro Service Area Caucus with my colleagues in the House and Senate on Feb. 12. The caucus provides a forum for members of the General Assembly to work beyond geographical boundaries, political ideologies and local interests to solve common problems facing our high-growth cities and counties in Tennessee. Discussions will focus on issues like transportation, infrastructure, school growth, attracting new jobs and workforce development. The caucus will provide an opportunity for members to collaborate and work toward our shared goal of improving the quality of life for those who call these high-growth areas home.
What’s coming up in Education in 2020
Providing our children with a high-quality educational experience is our most important obligation.
That is why my Republican colleagues and I have already made an $11.3 billion total investment in education as part of our current state budget. This includes $6.6 billion in K-12 funding.
Gov. Lee in his State of the State address on Feb. 3 announced many forward-thinking education initiatives for the coming year.
These include:
- Investing an additional $117 million in teacher salaries
- Recommending moving the minimum teacher salary schedule from $36,000 to $40,000 over the next two years
- Creating the K-12 Mental Health Trust Fund through $250 million in one-time funds to support the growth and placement of mental health services for students through a systemwide, evidence-based, whole child approach
- Growing school-based behavioral health liaison program from 36 counties to all 95 counties
- Setting new standards for public elementary literacy training and instruction and providing improved literacy supports and interventions for K-2 students
- Launching the Governor’s Teaching Fellowship to support the education of more than 1,000 future teachers per year
- Supporting district-led “Grow Your Own” programs with new curriculum and grants
- Investing $4 million into professional development and career advancement opportunities Applying for a new AP education teaching course
- Establishing the Tennessee Teacher and Leader Institute
Additional highlights from the governor’s speech include:
- Reinvesting more than $100 million in cities and counties.
- Focusing on job creation in distressed and at-risk counties through incentive packages in efforts to attract new businesses to these communities.
- $25 million to further increase broadband accessibility.
- A $20 million investment in the Rural Opportunity Fund to support community development and address critical infrastructure needs.
- Increasing the criminal penalties associated with theft of a firearm and those associated with reckless endangerment of law enforcement and first responders.
- Revising the occupational licensing process to encourage employment for those who desire to re-enter society and become productive citizens.
- Expanding recovery courts and community supervision programs.
- Investing $6.5 million additional recurring funds in the Health Care Safety Network.
- Creating a Children’s Behavioral Health Safety Network through a $7.5 million investment.
- Financing year three of the Rural Hospital Transformation Program.
The full text of the Governor’s address along with video from the speech can be found by clicking here.
House Republicans Pursue Tax Cut Legislation This Year
House Republicans will continue to prioritize legislation that provides additional tax cuts for hardworking Tennesseans.
These cuts include legislation designed to create a Food Tax Holiday for 2020 across the state through House Bill 1697. This initiative would exempt the retail sale of food and food ingredients from a 4 percent sales tax for the months of June and July. However, local taxes – up to 2.75 percent – would still be collected by cities and counties.
Because most Tennessee students are out of school in June and July, this will help families better provide food for their children during summer months, especially those who rely on free and reduced lunches throughout the school year.
Republicans are also considering reductions in the corporate tax, which currently sits at 6.5 percent — one of the highest rates in the entire southeast region. This burdensome tax penalizes businesses by taxing their net earnings. By reducing it, additional revenue should allow our businesses to reinvest and potentially expand operations, which could create new jobs.
Legislation to advance recent progress made eliminating the professional privilege tax is also being considered for the 2020 legislative session. Republican leaders last year slashed $22 million worth of this unnecessary tax on accountants, architects, athletic agents, audiologists, chiropractors, dentists, engineers, landscape architects, optometrists, pharmacists, podiatrists, psychologists, real estate brokers, speech pathologists, and veterinarians.
Tennessee is the lowest tax and lowest debt state in the entire country. By continuing to eliminate burdensome regulations, cutting red-tape, and slashing taxes, Tennessee will remain a national economic leader.
Republican Lawmakers Join Governor for Pro-Life Announcement
Members of the House Republican Caucus joined Gov. Bill Lee on Jan. 23 for a significant pro-life announcement designed to enhance Tennessee’s status as a national leader on this important issue. During the announcement, the governor unveiled components of a comprehensive proposal that includes a prohibition of an abortion when a fetal heartbeat exists. Additionally, this plan would prohibit an abortion when a physician is aware that the decision to seek a procedure is motivated by the race, sex, health, or disability diagnoses of the unborn child.
Tennessee is a strong pro-life state, and conservative leaders remain committed to protecting our most innocent and serving as a powerful voice for our unborn.
Republican Lawmakers Introduce Legislation on Refugee Resettlement
Republican lawmakers have filed a series of initiatives to address the ongoing refugee resettlement issue in Tennessee.
House Joint Resolution 741, House Bill 1578, and House Bill 1929 are designed to better examine questions about resettlement costs, and other related matters including safety.
The initiatives were filed after Tennessee opted into an executive order by President Donald Trump in December, which gave states the authority to decide whether they would continue to resettle additional refugees under the program.
Tennessee in 2017 became one of the first states in the nation to sue the federal government over refugee resettlement citing a violation of the 10th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution which reserves states’ rights.
The legal matter may require additional action in the months ahead.
Be Heard
I look forward to meeting and speaking with you about your thoughts on legislation that addresses important issues facing House District 63 and our state. Our work together will lead to another successful year in our General Assembly, and Tennessee will continue to lead the nation. Please contact my office if you would like to discuss ideas or concerns by calling 615-741-4389 or by emailing: [email protected]