Update from the Hill

April 30, 2012

The 107^th General Assembly is expected to adjourn sine die later today or tonight and bring to a close a most interesting two year session.

Of the complex issues that have been addressed in the last few days, we will point out a few.  Please do not hesitate to contact any of us about specific issues of which you would like more information.

The Budget:

The $31 million 2012-13 state budget was forced into a conference committee late on Friday after the House and Senate couldn’t agree on some specific items which were included by each house.  After the expected wrangling the first 30 minutes of the Friday night conference committee, they got down to business and everyone discovered that there were only 9 items of disagreement totaling less than $3 million.  In fairly short order, the Republican dominated conference committee adopted a conference committee report that restored 5 of the 9 disputed items and adjourned.  Minority reports were addressed and expected to come from the 4 democrats on the 12 member panel.

Some highlights of the budget include a .25% reduction in the sales tax on food; a new 1.25 million dollar threshold for the maximum single allowable exemption for the state inheritance tax with the expectation being total repeal of the estate tax by 2016; the repeal of the gift tax; the restoration, in recurring dollars, of many of the cuts to social services made during the last two years; and several legislative initiatives that have been held up for several years due to the lack of funds.  Pretty much, everybody got a little something to love in this FY12/13 budget.

Unemployment Reform and Workers Compensation changes:

Several bills introduced at the behest of Lt. Gov Ron Ramsey after his cross state listening tour last summer and fall have been introduced and passed.

The bills include, SB3658/HB3431 which makes those incarcerated for more than four days in any week ineligible for unemployment compensation; further it makes those that turn down a job ineligible; as well as those that refuse a job due to refusal to take a drug test.  SB3659/HB3429 requires the Department of Labor to implement an internet based system allowing employers to receive notices electronically as well as authorizing the Department of Labor to implement a program of checking county jails for inmates who may be receiving unemployment benefits.  These changes, among others introduced and passed, have been lauded by the business community as positive steps to provide for those truly in need while disallowing some “gaming” of the system which is currently occurring.

SB 3315/HB 3372 started out as a caption bill on workers compensation, but as amended it deals with putting the treatment of pain in a workers’ compensation case under utilization review.

A last minute change in eligibility for state or federal benefits SB 1325/HB1379 is a comprehensive re-write of several provisions relating to requiring the verification of legal citizenship before benefits can be provided.  This bill is still pending today and is expected to generate more discussion.

Judges:

The appointment, election, retention of appellate court and Supreme court judges has been a hot topic this session.  A resolution to amend the TN Constitution has passed both houses on third reading which will alter the current selection process.  The new process, which will have to be approved by 2/3 of the members of the 108^th General Assembly, envisions a gubernatorial appointment for the above named court justices with legislative confirmation.  Then the justices would serve 8 year terms with retention elections. 

Those supporting this approach refer to it as a “modified federal plan” and hope that it will forever put to rest the subject of popular election of judges.

Guns:

As expected on Friday, Rep. Bass attempted to pull his legislation which would allow guns in employee car trunks despite the employer’s objection directly to the House floor.   His motion was thwarted by the House Clerk, Joe McCord, who explained that the bills had been sent to summer study so his motion was out of order.

As always, expect your weekly reports this Friday and please feel free to contact any of us with any questions.  We will be sending out Public Chapters and wrap ups in the next couple weeks.

April 20, 2012

The 107^th General Assembly is expected to adjourn sine die next week, hopefully no later than Friday, but perhaps before. In addition to the appropriations bill, there are a number of other pieces of legislation that require action prior to adjournment. A few that have generated some public attention recently and are described below.

Drug testing of welfare recipients, proposed by Sen. Stacy Campfield and Rep. Julia Hurley, is set for a floor vote in the Senate, while the House version is scheduled in the Finance Budget Subcommittee.  Under the amended version, new applicants would undergo a special screening process devised by the Department of Human Services. If suspicion is raised during the screening, then the applicant would be drug tested. 

Two bills allowing registered gun owners to keep guns secured in their cars on the property of others, including employers, passed the House Consumer and Employee Affairs Committee this week and are now headed to the House Calendar and Rules Committee.  The Senate companion bills had already made it to the Calendar Committee, where they have been held at the request of Lt. Gov. and Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey. The legislation was amended to exempt only property that is a single-family detached residences, commercial electricity generating nuclear reactors (TVA), and a science and energy national laboratory managed for the US government by the Department of Energy. There is a significant chance that these bills will not be considered by the full Senate and House because of the amount of controversy, discussion and debate they are expected to generate.

The State Comptroller's office has decided against continuing to push for action this year on legislation that would have repealed a property tax break granted the solar industry during former Gov. Phil Bredesen's tenure.  The legislation would have raised the taxable value of solar equipment from 0.5 percent of the purchase price to 33.33 percent of the installed cost.

Also alive are three resolutions calling for a constitutional amendment regarding how Tennessee’s appellate and Supreme Court judges are selected. The three approaches differ, although none of them call for a popular vote of the general public.

April 13, 2012

 End in Sight

House Judiciary and Education and Senate Judiciary were among the committees that closed this week, and long floor calendars are planned for the week of April 16. The House added a Tuesday floor session, as well, to their other three session days. The Senate meets on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday next week.

The Senate Finance Budget Subcommittee heard some of the 400 plus budget amendments this week and plans to hear the rest on Monday evening at 6:00 p.m., or immediately following the floor session. Sen. Bo Watson, Chair of the Senate subcommittee, pointed out that the amendments filed total more than $500 million more than in the budget already and that only $5 million in “excess” additional funds remained available for appropriation, according to Commissioner Emkes of Finance and Administration.

The House Finance General Subcommittee meets at noon on Tuesday to begin the process of considering budget amendments.

There was some minor controversy in the House yesterday over when to adopt the “flow” motion, which suspends the notice requirements so that bills can move seamlessly and with little advance notice from one committee to another or on to the House floor. They decided to wait until next week to unleash “FLO MO,” as the motion is also known around the legislature.

These are signs that the 107^th General Assembly is headed toward adjournment sine die, presumably by the end of April. Bills not already heard in subcommittee or committee are dead, generally speaking, but there are plenty of issues left, including guns in parking lots and judicial selection, that may inspire significant debate.

March 22, 2012

Even more retirement news was announced this week!  Representative Mike McDonald, D - Portland, became the 10th Democrat to announce his retirement after nine terms in the House.  Also, freshman Representative Scotty Campbell, R - Mountain City, stated this week that he will not seek re-election after this session.  Campbell is one of a just a few Republican legislators to announce he won't seek another term in his current seat.  Two other Republican representatives leaving the House are Joey Hensley and Frank Niceley, both are running for the Senate. 

Greenville Representative David Hawk resigned his chairmanship of the House Conservation and Environment Committee this week after some legal issues developed in his home county.  After the announcement, Hawk issued this statement: "My dedication continues to be caring for my family and serving my constituents. Proving my innocence will take much of my focus, so I feel relinquishing my chairmanship will best serve these goals." 

Guns

The rights of gun owners remain a hot topic this session. Two bills, both sponsored by Sen. Mike Faulk and Rep. Eddie Bass, are being pushed heavily by the NRA and the Tennessee Firearms Association. One bill would enable and possibly encourage lawsuits against employers with any policies believed to be unfair to employees who happen to be gun owners. The other aims to allow any legal gun owner to have the right to have guns in their locked vehicles (and out of sight to passersby) just about anywhere. The idea is that gun owners still have a right to have access to their guns, assuming, again, that they are owned legally, when they are not in their homes or on their own property. This one affects public property and virtually all private property, and a large coalition of business and health care organizations, as well as representatives of colleges and universities, airports, and public utilities, is seeking significant amendatory changes to the bills. They are scheduled for Senate action in the Commerce and Judiciary committees next week but are not yet scheduled in the House.

Rate Reduction Bill

The administration bill to partially restore the TennCare rate reduction to certain providers that occurred in January has passed the House but just hit a snag in the Senate.  It was scheduled for a Senate floor vote today but was referred back to the Calendar Committee instead by request of the administration.  Other bills with huge fiscal notes are moving in the committee system and they could potentially impact TennCare.  The TennCare Bureau has not budgeted for these other pieces of legislation and is exercising caution by putting the brakes on SB2245, which affects the CHOICES plan, which has a fiscal note of over $21 million.

March 9, 2012

Calendars

The calendars are getting heavy, and the halls are getting more and more crowded as we roll along into the busiest time of session. Subcommittees are hoping to shut down soon so calendars are becoming longer, as is the time we spend in committee rooms. One House subcommittee has 83 bills on its next calendar, while another has 103.

In addition, more groups are visiting for their Hill days, including some of our Smith Harris & Carr stellar clients next week. This will make for a jam packed Tuesday and Wednesday! We are aware of six organizations planning to be there this next Tuesday.

Jimmy Naifeh

Speaker Emeritus Rep. Jimmy Naifeh announced to the House yesterday that he won't seek re-election after 38 years in the House of Representatives. None of us at SHC have experienced the legislative arena when Jimmy Naifeh wasn't a member of the House. To say he will be missed doesn’t quite convey what a watershed moment this seems to be.

Another good friend to SHC has also announced his decision to not seek re-election this week. Senator Mike Faulk, a Republican from Church Hill, is leaving the Senate after serving one term.  Faulk cites the challenges of running a one-man law practice and his desire to be more available to his elderly mother as the reasons he must go.

Major bills

Two gun bills, both sponsored by Sen. Faulk and by Rep. Eddie Bass, have caused some turmoil but seem to be headed for compromise over the objections of the NRA and the Tennessee Firearms Association. SB2992/HB3559 and SB3002/HB3560 affect the ability of employers to ban firearms from employee parking areas and create a new cause of action for employees who feel they have been unfairly targeted due to gun ownership. A large and diverse coalition of business and health care groups has been working to slow down and amend the bills.

The Prescription Safety Act of 2012, SB2253/HB2391, by Sen. Mark Norris and Rep. Gerald McCormick, is an administration bill seeking to require all prescribers to check a drug database prior to writing prescriptions for “scheduled” drugs for patients  and requiring dispensers, such as pharmacies, to report all such prescriptions filled on a more timely basis. (Pharmacies are already required to report at least monthly, although many report more often.) Another huge coalition of organizations representing hospitals, pharmacies, physicians, nurse practitioners, and many others is working with the administration to make the legislation more feasible and less costly to implement. The bill is aimed at curbing the state’s massive problem with prescription drug abuse.

February 24, 2012

A few committees now have long calendars each week, including Judiciary and State and Local Government, but many bills remain unscheduled. The traditional “Tuesday crunch” seems to have begun in earnest, however, with a number of organizations bringing in their members to visit with legislators.

Guns were a big topic with hearings in both Senate Commerce and Senate Judiciary on Tuesday afternoon. The proponents of two bills, including the NRA, testified in committee, and the opponents of the bills will appear for their shot at it on March 6. J

The “Prescription Safety Act of 2012” has seen plenty of behind the scenes activity as the coalition of groups with significant concerns about the bill has looked for ways to work with the Haslam administration on some amendatory language. The bill will likely be on Health calendars in a couple of weeks.

Elections

No retirement announcements this week, although there is talk of a possible delay in the early April qualifying deadline for legislators and office-seekers. Currently, the date set is April 5, but a recent state court decision sided with secondary political parties, which believe the requirements for placement of candidates on the state’s election ballot are too high to be fair. That decision may result in a longer time frame for candidates to seek to qualify – perhaps in late April or even May. 

Top to Bottom Review

Governor Haslam’s office has released his Top to Bottom Review of state government. You can find it and link to the portion relevant to any department at: http://forward.tn.gov/toptobottom/index.shtml

February 16, 2012

Committees and subcommittees are considering bills and plodding along, and the number of “Hill Days” sponsored by various groups and organizations is increasing. The legislative pace is not, however, as frenetic as it will be in about a month.

Who is in and who is out of this year’s state legislative races is becoming more interesting every day! Davidson County Democrat Janis Sontany announced yesterday she will not seek re-election and does not appear to have any plans to run for another office at this point. In addition, Rep. Bill Harmon, a Democrat from Dunlap, announced he will not be seeking re-election to the House. He is, however, considering both the race for the District 14 State Senate seat being vacated by current Sen. Eric Stewart and the race for Sequatchie County Mayor. Stewart has announced he is running for Congress.

Republican Rep. Vince Dean, of East Ridge, has decided to run for the District 10 State Senate seat currently held by Sen. Andy Berke. A Democrat from Chattanooga, Berke has publicly said he may run for Mayor of Chattanooga but has made no decision as of yet. 

Sen. Joe Haynes, a Democrat from Goodlettsville, is retiring from the State Senate after this year. Haynes has been a member of the Senate since the 94th General Assembly, which was elected in 1986.

Early voting for the Republican presidential primary began on Wednesday. Early voters will be able to cast ballots until February 28th. Tennessee is among 10 states holding their primaries on March 6th, which is known as Super Tuesday.

January 27, 2012

The Budget

Governor Haslam’s budget address is at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 30. You can watch it live at http://forward.tn.gov/stateofthestate/. On Tuesday, Finance Commissioner Mark Emkes will speak to both the Senate and House Finance Committees to provide an overview and additional information.

Judicial Selection

Governor Bill Haslam, Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey and Speaker Beth Harwell jointly announced on Wednesday their plan to push an amendment to the Tennessee Constitution to specifically legitimize the state's current system for selecting top judges. Currently, Tennessee Supreme Court judges as well as the judges for the intermediate courts of appeals are chosen and appointed from a group of candidates offered by the Judicial Nominating Commission. They serve eight year terms and then face public approval retention election, “yes or no”, for another term. Local judges on the circuit, criminal, and general sessions courts run for election in the more traditional way every eight years.

Once approved by a majority of this general assembly and by a 2/3 vote of the next general assembly, the proposed constitutional amendment would be placed on the general election ballot in 2014.  There are other proposals on this subject by various legislators but this one has the most support.

Election 2012

Senator Roy Herron (D-Dresden) has announced plans not to run for office in 2012 after serving 26 years in the Tennessee legislature. Instead, he has decided to lead the Ned McWherter Center for Rural Development in expanded efforts to help young people go to college and create jobs for Tennesseans.

Republican State Sen. Bill Ketron has decided not to run for the seat currently held by freshman Congressman Scott DesJarlais. The 4^th Congressional District changed significantly in the redistricting process causing the Ketron speculation. State Senator Eric Stewart, a Democrat from Winchester, will, however, challenge DesJarlais, who is from South Pittsburg, Tn.

Knoxville Rep. Harry Tindell, a Democrat from Knoxville, is retiring from elective office after 22 years in the state legislature. He has been a fixture on the House Finance Ways and Means Committee for much, perhaps all, of that service. 

Former State Rep. Ty Cobb, of Columbia, has announced he will run for the new State Senate seat in District 28 (Maury, Lawrence, Lewis, Giles, Wayne and Perry counties). Current Republican State Rep. Joey Hensley, of Hohenwald, is also running for the new Senate District.

Highly regarded State Senator Doug Overbey, a Republican from Maryville, has drawn a challenger, Scott Hughes, who has announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for the newly-drawn 2nd District State Senate seat. The qualifying deadline for state legislative races is in April so news of other contests will be ongoing.

Congrats are in order for Rep. Mike McDonald. The former communications professor made the first cut of 12 semifinalists, out of 35 applicants, to be the next Volunteer State Community College president.

January 20, 2012

The 2^nd week of session

Redistricting is over (at least the legislation required); more bills are being filed; and several standing committees met for the first time. We expect next week to ramp up even more.

The number of bills on calendars, both subcommittees and full committees, remains low next week, with the exception of Government Operations and its sunset bills.

Negotiation has begun in earnest, though behind the scenes, on some of the big issues coming up in the weeks ahead. Those issues include a Governor’s task force effort to attack the state’s tremendously high number of painkiller prescriptions and abuse. Task force legislation affecting prescribers is complex, and everyone wants to get it right. Other issues of interest include the administration’s recommendations on state employees and tax reductions.  Bath salts are also getting more than expected attention.

The Senate bill filing deadline is January 26^th and there will be no 9-bill limit.  The House has set its bill filing deadline for February 1^st.

Governor’s Budget Address

Governor Haslam will present his budget for 2012-13 to a joint meeting of the General Assembly on the evening of Monday, January 30. Information on several items has already surfaced. For instance, the administration filed legislation in preparation for a supplemental appropriation to this year’s TennCare budget in order to mitigate the amount of rate cuts imposed on some providers and effective January 1.

December Revenue Collections

Mark Emkes, Finance and Administration Commissioner, reported that state revenue collections for December were $965.7 million, $123.2 million more than the budgeted estimate. The general fund was over collected by $118.9 million and the four other funds were over collected by $4.3 million.

December collections posted the eighth consecutive month in which the growth rate has been 5.0 percent or higher. Commissioner Emkes cautioned that while it’s encouraging, the unanticipated over collection last month could be a timing issue, and could result in a negative impact for future months. The Commissioner stated that it’s important to remember that state sales tax collection levels have not even returned to pre-2008 levels as yet.

The leadership remains committed to adjournment by the end of April, which seems quite achievable!  We will certainly know a lot more after the qualification deadline for candidates for office which is in early April.