One Busy Week Ends, Another Begins
As we did previously, we'll keep the introduction to our latest update short and sweet so that we can get right to the large amount of bills on our radar for this upcoming week. Much of what is listed below is a repeat from last Friday, because a large amount of our tracked bills were rolled for a week or two. However, there is some legislation (both good and bad) that is making an appearance on our agenda for the first time. As a reminder, you can access a list of our main tracked bills for this session and see their current status by
clicking here.
We plan to update this list every Friday, so that you have accurate information each time you receive an update.
Over the past couple of days, some of you have contacted us about union or industry-specific bills that have been introduced. While they may not appear on our main tracked legislation list, it's almost guaranteed that we've placed them on one of our other watched tracks (education, transportation, etc.) That being said, if there is a bill that specifically applies to you, please let us know so that we can double-check that we are watching it. We are happy to then add it to our main list to make it easier for you to see updates on it every week. Remember, our ultimate job at the Capitol is to work to pass or defeat legislation that affects ALL of our affiliates. If you are worried about a particular bill, reach out and let us know!
|
|
Tuesday, March 14th
Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee, 8:30 a.m., LP 12
Senate Joint Resolution 77: This resolution shows support for the conversion of Medicaid funding to a block grant and condemns expansion of the program under the Affordable Care Act.
House Health Committee, 10:30 a.m., LP 16
House Bill 91 (SB 1172): This bill requires SNAP recipients to meet certain levels of work, community service, education or job-searching activities.
Senate State & Local Government Committee, 10:30 a.m., LP 12
Senate Bill 155 (HB 271):
This bad piece of legislation prohibits state and local governments from adopting sanctuary policies.
Senate Bill 342 (HB 867): This election-related bill deals with the alphabetical ordering of candidate names in presidential and gubernatorial election years.
Senate Bill 517 (HB 1040):
This bill deals with the use of cell phones and other devices at polling places; prohibits voters from taking a picture of their ballot.
Senate Bill 1379 (HB 184):
According to this bill, people who are 65 or older and do not have a birth certificate may be issued a photo ID license for voting purposes.
Note: This bill will also be heard in the House Local Government Subcommittee at 3 p.m. in LP 31.
Senate Commerce & Labor Committee, 1:30 p.m., LP 12
Senate Bill 1214 (HB 325): This is a workers' compensation bill that has been introduced by the administration. It was deferred by the advisory council until its next meeting, which will be held next Monday, March 20th.
Senate Bill 473 (HB 979): Similar to last year's "Right to Earn a Living Act," this enacts the "Freedom to Prosper Act," which limits how local governments may regulate occupations.
Note: This bill will also be heard in the House Business & Utilities Committee on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in LP 16.
House Education Administration & Planning Subcommittee, 3 p.m., LP 29
House Bil
l 793 (SB 731):
According to this bill, a local director of schools may not have his or her salary increased to an amount that is higher than the governor's salary.
House Local Government Subcommittee, 3 p.m., LP 31
House Bill 1143 (SB 363): Yet another bad bill dealing with local control, this prohibits local governments from passing laws that require affordable housing. It builds a piece of legislation that was passed last year.
House Bill 1039 (SB 582): This bill requires partisan elections in municipalities with a population greater than 100,000 and in all school board elections.
House Bill 787 (SB 592): A good piece of legislation, this calls for people to be automatically registered to vote when they apply for a driver's license or photo ID card.
|
Wednesday, March 15th
Senate Government Operations Committee, 8:30 a.m., LP 12
Senate Bill 1313 (HB 1391): Among other things, this is a good bill that would create the office of apprenticeship and work-study programs.
House Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee, 10:30 a.m., LP 31
House Bill 1208 (SB 1110): This piece of legislation prohibits outsourcing of maintenance, operation and preservation of state parks.
Senate Finance Revenue Subcommittee, 10:30 a.m., LP 12
Senate Bill 903 (HB 634): This is a bad bill that would prohibit any state sales tax revenue going to municipalities that refuse to enforce state laws.
House Transportation Subcommittee, 12 p.m., LP 16
House Bill 1374 (SB 559): This would create a state office that helps local governments with public-private initiatives dealing with transportation facilities.
Senate Education Committee, 12:30 p.m., LP 12
Senate Bill 380 (HB 336): This is a bad bill that would create a statewide voucher program in Tennessee.
Senate Bill 404 (HB 356):
Among other things, this bill adds language that allows a local board of education to provide payroll deduction for dues of professional employees' organizations, but does not require an LEA to do so. This is one of our top bad bills from this year.
House Civil Justice Subcommittee, 1:30 p.m., LP 31
House Bill 668 (SB 944): This is one of the worst bills filed this year. It would give immunity to drivers who hurt someone who is blocking traffic while protesting.
House Bill 1355 (SB 879):
Filed in response to a bad bill that was passed last year, this would delete the requirement that a court must award attorneys' fees and costs to the prevailing state or local government employee sued in an individual capacity.
House State Government Subcommittee, 1:30 p.m., LP 29
House Bill 358 (SB 638):
One of our top bad bills this year, this would prohibit TSEA members from having their dues automatically deducted from their paychecks. While the bill specifically targets one group, it has the potential to be amended to target public employees.
House Bill 394 (SB 815): This bill would prohibit state employees from lobbying for 12 months after leaving office or employment.
House Bill 790 (SB 765): This piece of legislation would restore longevity pay for executive branch employees hired after June 30th, 2015.
Senate Health & Welfare Committee, 2:30 p.m., LP 12
Senate Bill 7 (HB 632):
This bad piece of legislation would require a system for capping the total amount of public assistance benefits for a household at the median household income for the state.
House Consumer & Human Resources Subcommittee, 3 p.m., LP 29
House Bill 1246 (SB 1106): A good bill (and making a repeat appearance from last year), this would enact the "Tennessee Pay Equality Act," which would prohibit wage discrimination on the basis of sex.
House Bill 477 (SB 1105): Another good piece of legislation, this bill would enact the "Tennessee Pay Equality Transparency Act," which prohibits an employer from taking adverse actions against employees who ask about the wages of their co-workers.
|
|
|
|
|
|
