Capitol Notes

Capitol Notes | Peggy Sue, the Beagle Hound

Put out the fire and call the dogs in; the hunt’s over.

The 2021 Session Recesses for the Year

With the adoption of SJR 771, the General Assembly concluded its work for the year at 9:15pm on Wednesday, May 5. The 112th General Assembly will reconvene at 12:00pm on Tuesday, January 11, 2022.

Top Five 2021 Legislative Enactments

Budget Package. Four separate bills make up a package of bills for the state’s spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2021. Those are: SB 912 / HB 1153 (appropriations), SB 909 / HB 1154 (budget implementation), SB 909 / HB 1152 (bond authorization), and SB 911 / HB 1151 (index for budget growth). The budget authorizes the expenditure of $42.6B dollars. The appropriations bill is the only bill the General Assembly must pass each year. Governor Bill Lee’s budget proposal passed largely intact with a few legislative tweaks. While the bill fully funds the K-12 education funding formula and the inflation adjustments for the TennCare program, it also has more than $900M in capital expenditures which are paid for in cash, rather than bonded indebtedness. A significant legislative improvement is a $250M allocation for the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System as well as an additional $50M deposit for the state’s rainy day fund. The budget also has a 4% pool of salary improvement funds for state employees and K-12 teachers and employees. Shepherded during the entire session by House Finance Ways & Means Committee Chair Patsy Hazlewood (R of Signal Mountain) and Senate Finance Ways & Means Committee Chair Bo Watson (R of Hixson), the bills passed with relatively little drama, but with some dissenting votes from Democratic members. The effective date of the noted bills is July 1.

Three Judge Panel. Alexander Hamilton noted in Federalist Paper No. 78 that “the judicial branch of the proposed government would be the weakest of the three branches because it had “no influence over either the sword or the purse, . . . It may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment.” Fast forward to 2021, and four years of the 45th President lashing out at judges for decisions he disagreed with and two high profile losses by the State in the Davidson County Chancery Court, and you get SB 868 by Bell / HB 1130 by Farmer that would have created a popularly elected statewide chancery court. When the original proposals could not find consensus between the two houses, the end result ended up being a three judge panel with the two additional panel members appointed by the Supreme Court. The three judge panel would hear any action challenging the constitutionality of a state action. Appeals are still be to the Court of Appeals. The effective date is July 1, and applies to a civil action pending or filed after July 1, 2021.

Criminal Justice Reform. Governor Bill Lee’s signature proposal during the 2021 session was criminal justice reform as stated in SB 767 / HB 784 and SB 768 / HB 785. Backed by a curious coalition composed of Americans for Prosperity and the Beacon Center, as well as the American Civil Liberties Union, both bills passed largely as introduced. Although, the Lee Administration did have to retreat on its initial proposal to do away with the 1989 Community Correction Programs. Vocal opponents, predictably, included the District Attorneys General Conference. Each bill includes a provision allowing for a shock confinement sentence of 15, 30, 90, or the remainder of the sentence for a technical violation of probation or parole, such as missing an appointment with a supervising officer or a bad drug screen. Under the former law, a technical violation would result in the imposition of the remainder of the original sentence. These noted provisions of the bills take effect on July 1.

COVID Response. Whether measured in dog years or human years, we hope to never see another pandemic year. The virus tore at our social fabric, and the remaining ragged edges had political impact, as well. Chapter 2 of the First Extraordinary Session excludes data from any tests or assessments during the 2020-2021 school from being used in the evaluation of teachers. SB 187 by Bowling / HB 13 by Hulsey prohibits the state and local governments from requiring anyone including school children from receiving an immunization, vaccination or injection for the SARS-CoV-2 virus or any variant of the virus. The bill becomes effective with Governor Lee’s signature. SB 858 by Bowling / HB 575 by Ragan prohibits a state or local government from requiring a business to require proof of vaccination as a condition of entry or service. The bill becomes effective with

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Governor Lee’s signature.

Constitutional Carry. In no particular order, Tennesseans are fond of their whiskey, barbecue, music, dogs, and guns. On criminal justice issues, the police chiefs, sheriffs, and district attorneys seldom ever lose, but on SB 765 by Johnson / HB 786 by Lamberth, those three groups had to run away like a scalded dog. Governor Bill Lee and the NRA worked to make Tennessee the 20th state where “permitless carry” of a handgun is lawful for anyone at least 21 or at least 18 and an active duty military member or honorably discharged veteran. The bill applies to handguns that are concealed or openly carried, and follows a 2019 statute that relaxed the then existing handgun carry permit requirements for concealed carry only handgun permits by removing the training requirement to get a permit. The bill takes effect on July 1, 2021

Worth a Mention, but Not Top 5 Material

Medical Cannabis. SB 118 by Massey / HB 490 by Terry creates a medical cannabis commission and authorizes use of oil containing cannabidiol with less than .9% THC for 9 selected medical conditions. The bill becomes effective with Governor Lee’s signature.

Transgender Rights Restrictions. Sports (Public Chapter 40 effective March 26), Bathroom signage (SB 1224 / HB 1182 effective July 1), School Accommodations (SB1367 / HB 1233 effective July 1), Health Care Treatment (SB 126 / HB 1027 effective upon Governor Lee’s signature), and K-12 curriculum (Public Chapter 281 effective May 3).

Unemployment Compensation. SB 1402 by Lundberg / HB 1039 by Vaughan. Under the former law, the maximum term of an unemployment compensation claim was 26 weeks, and the maximum weekly benefit amount was $275. This bill decreases the maximum claim length to 12 weeks and increases the maximum weekly benefit amount between $25 and $50 depending on a claimant’s wage history. The effective date is December 1.

Certificate of Need. SB 1281 by Reeves / HB 948 by Boyd relaxes some of the requirements in the present law for a health care facility to obtain a certificate of need. The effective date is October 1.

Dolly Parton Resolution. HJR 358 honored Dolly Parton and noted that her musical talents and philanthropy make her a “fierce force for good.” That is what we want to be!

Calendar Notes

Make an appointment for your COVID-19 vaccination. All good dogs get a rabies shot every year. Our humans need to do so for COVID-19.

Take a quiet moment to honor the memory of State Senator Thelma Harper. Her passing on April 22, 2021, marks the end of an amazing career of public service and support for her city and the legal community.

The State and the NBA will observe the Independence Day holiday on Monday, July 5, 2021.

Looking ahead to 2022, judicial elections are Thursday, August 4, 2022, and for those counties holding primary elections, those are Tuesday, May 2, 2022. We are starting to see incumbents knock the rust off their distribution lists and begin the campaign season. n

PEGGY SUE is fond of the classic 1957 Buddy Holly song. When hunting legislative news or biscuits, she is hard to contact.

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