“For a community to be whole and healthy, it must be based on people’s love and concern for each other.” – Millard Fuller
The Tennessee House of Representatives has 35 regular weekly committee meetings, and they have all been busy hearing bills this week. We have 1350 bills filed this year and about 500 should be passed out to the Governor for his signature.
House Bill 483 passed this week. This bill protects Tennesseeseans from any potential government attempt to limit the type of appliances they can use in their home.
The House has a bill that will protect our teachers’ First Amendment rights in the classroom by preventing teachers from being forced to refer to students by their preferred pronouns.
I have started to move my bill to make it easier to start Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) in Tennessee. This bill will offer tax credits to companies that start an ESOP, and allow workers to become owners and share in the company’s profits.
I am carrying a bill for the Municipal Electric Power Association that updates the purchasing authority for the managers of the municipal or county electric system. The bill states that they can purchase certain items, without board approval. The bill increases the limit from $50.000 to $100,000. The limit was last increased 23 years ago in 1989 from $25.000 to $50,000, which is worth $199,000 when adjusted for inflation according to the CPI.
Tennessee’s Habitat for Humanity had a reception at the Capitol last week and I got to see local Bedford Build’s director Pam Birtcell. I was honored to get to speak to the group and tell them about the grant of $15 million they received from the American Recovery Act.
I had the pleasure of attending the Fabulous 50s show in Fayetteville last week. I was blown away by how good the show was and how much local talent there is in Lincoln County. The show will raise thousands of dollars that will be donated to citizens in need in Lincoln County and the surrounding area.
I had two leadership groups come to Nashville to learn about state government. Leadership Bedford, run by Carol Garrett, came up for a visit on Wednesday. They got to tour the capitol, hold a mock session and got a photo with Governor Lee. On Thursday, Leadership Lincoln, headed by Jim Malone, got to hear from multiple speakers on criminal justice in Tennessee. They heard from Secretary of State, Tre Hargett, and got to tour the capitol. After lunch, they toured the Tennessee State Museum. It was a pleasure to meet all of them this week.
I’m honored to serve as your state representative and please call or email if I can ever help. 615-741-6824, [email protected]. You are also welcome to come up to the Capitol and stop by my office at 610 in the Cordell Hull building.
