Law and order legislation dominates
Senate Debate on Capitol Hill

Law and order legislation dominated discussion in the State Senate this week as several key bills advanced, including legislation to revise the current method for selection of appellate judges, two proposals providing aid to victims of crime, a measure protecting children from Internet predators, and a bill to help deter abuse of prescription drugs.

Judicial Nominating Commission — The legislation to revise the current method for selecting the state’s appellate and Supreme Court judges comes as the Judicial Selection Commission, a key component of Tennessee’s plan for selecting judges, is set to expire next month. Under that plan, called the Tennessee Plan, the commission that nominates judges is selected by the Speakers of the House and Senate and the Governor from a list controlled by various legal organizations.

The legislation approved by the Judiciary Committee sets up a new 17-member Judicial Nominating Commission which would recommend a panel of three nominees to the governor for appointment to the state’s appellate and Supreme Courts. The governor would then appoint one of the nominees or request a second panel. If the governor rejects both panels, the governor can select another person who submitted an application and was vetted by the Commission.

The bill, SB 2114, would provide public access to every aspect of the nominating process. The 17-member Commission would be limited to 10 attorney members. The bill also would ban lobbyists and employers of lobbyists from serving on the Nominating Commission.

After being appointed through this process, judges would stand for approval by the voters who could decide whether “replace” or “retain” them. Currently, citizens vote “yes” or “no” on the ballot regarding the retention of judges. If voters decide to replace a judge, an interim judge would be appointed by the governor until the next election. At that point, the people could decide who would fill the slot through a popular election, which is the same process that the state’s trial judges are currently selected.

Next week the Judiciary Committee will consider a resolution to allow Tennesseans to vote through a Constitutional Convention or referendum on whether they want to keep the judicial selection process if it passes the full General Assembly or elect judges through popular election.

Victims of Crime — Legislation to provide funding for a program that gives victims of crime notification regarding any change in status of the offender was approved by the Senate Finance Committee this week. The bill, SB 1684, creates the Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification System Fund by adding a $1 litigation tax on all criminal charges.

The purpose of this statewide automated victims program is to increase the safety of victims of crime by providing access to timely and reliable information about the custody status of offenders in county jails. This system is operable 24 hours a day over the telephone, through the Internet, or by email.

Currently 56 counties in Tennessee participate in the Statewide Automated Victim’s Notification Program, known as VINE. Another 19 counties are expected to join the program by the end of the year, to boost the total number of participating counties to 75. However, federal grants that provided funding for the program are set to expire. This legislation would raise the necessary funds to keep the program up and running and expand its scope to more Tennessee counties.

Victims of a crime or other concerned citizens can register to be notified immediately in the event of an offender’s release, transfer or escape through the program.

Victims of crime were also the focus of another bill which advanced in the Senate State and Local Government Committee this week. The bill, SB 880, keeps the personal contact information of crime victims participating in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Fund confidential. The legislation keeps the address, telephone number, social security number and the criminal offense from which the victims is receiving compensation closed from public to protect the victim from the perpetrator or others who might seek revenge.

The Victim’s Compensation provides financial help in cases where a crime victim sustains bodily injury or death as a direct result of a violent crime.

Child Sexual Predators — The Senate Judiciary Committee acted this week on legislation designed to let law enforcement act more quickly to protect children from sexual predators using the Internet. The bill, SB 1529, authorizes district attorneys general or assistant district attorneys general to issue a subpoena to require production of records related to the Internet or computer use in cases of sexual exploitation of a minor. The bill would allow the prosecutor to subpoena the name, address, local and long distance connection records, length and types of service utilized, telephone number, and means of payment for the service.

Actor and child protection activists David Keith, spokesman for the National Association to Protect Children, told lawmakers the United States consumes more than 50 percent of the world market of that multi-billion dollar global industry. Since 2005, more than 750,000 pedophiles have been identified by computer in the United States, with only two percent of those being investigated. He said hundreds of thousands of children are being raped, tortured, filmed and traced on the Internet, and law enforcement agencies don’t have the resources to investigate the crime.

Prescription drug abuse — The full Senate has approved legislation that requires all entities that dispense medications to have access to the controlled substance database by January 1, 2010. The bill, SB 224, is designed to cut down on prescription drug abuse by providing information to those prescribing and dispensing the drugs.

The Tennessee Board of Pharmacy began accepting prescription information into the Controlled Substance Monitoring Database on December 1, 2006. The database, which is maintained by the Department of Health, includes data on controlled substance prescriptions of schedule II-V drugs. The database includes who the prescribing practitioner is; who filled the prescription; basic patient information; and the name and form of medication that the patient received.

Only those persons authorized by law can access the database to assist in determining treatment history and to ensure a patient is not fraudulently seeking controlled substances. This bill makes sure that those prescribing and dispensing drugs have electronic access to the controlled substance database upon providing health care services to a patient potentially receiving a controlled substance.

Resolution expresses Tennessee’s opposition
to federal cap-and-trade proposal

A resolution expressing Tennessee’s opposition to a federal proposal that would establish a carbon cap-and-trade system is on its way to the Senate floor after approval by the Senate Finance Committee this week. The measure, SJR 327, comes after senior U.S. administration officials indicated that if Congress does not pass comprehensive legislation providing for a cap-and-trade system to regulate greenhouse gas emissions they will press ahead unilaterally with proposals using the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s existing authority under the Clean Air Act.

Under the federal proposal, government would set a cap on the amount of pollutant that can be emitted by a business. Any company that emits carbon more than the allowable level of emissions would subsequently be taxed.  The business might be able to buy credits, or trade, with a company that is under the allowable limit, thus the term cap and trade. The practice has been implemented in some localities in the U.S., but is more commonly used in other nations, with the largest being the European Union Emission Trading Scheme which applies to emission of greenhouse gases.

Legislation approved by the Senate Finance Committee
says NO to Federal Real ID Program

Tennessee would be the 12th state in the U.S. prohibiting the issuance of a REAL ID card under legislation approved by the Senate Finance Committee this week. The bill, SB 1934, directs the Tennessee Department of Safety not to implement the provisions of the federal REAL ID program.

The REAL ID Act was signed into law in 2005.  The federal initiative forces states to standardize driver’s licenses cards across the nation into a single national identity card and database.  It does this by stipulating that state driver’s licenses and state ID cards will not be accepted for “federal purposes” unless they are in compliance with the Act. Those purposes include boarding an aircraft or entering a federal facility unless the state issuing the identification meets all of the law’s numerous conditions, like standardizing data element and security features on the IDs, a machine readable zone that allows for easy capture of data, and the construction of a interstate-linked database that makes information in each person’s file available to the government.

To date, 21 states have enacted anti-REAL ID bills or resolutions. However, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Washington, Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, and Louisiana have enacted binding legislation prohibiting participation in the federal program. Although the Act was passed by Congress, Real ID cannot go into effect without a legislative action by states.  State legislatures must also appropriate money to remake or build administrative machinery required to comply with an extensive document storage system. In addition, millions of Americans who do not have driver’s licenses would be required to receive a REAL ID card.

The Department of Homeland Security, which is responsible for implementation of the federal program, has granted extensions to all states which are good through December 31, 2009.  In addition, States that meet certain benchmarks for the security of their credentials and licensing processes will automatically be granted a second extension until May 11, 2011 to complete full implementation of REAL ID.

Bills in Brief

Consumer Protection / Pharmacy — Legislation was approved by the full Senate that addresses two important problems related to patients understanding their pharmacy benefits and cost of their prescriptions. Currently, pharmacies are often prohibited by language in their provider contracts from telling patients what the pharmacy is being paid for their prescriptions, which prevents patients from knowing the costs. The legislation, called the “Patient’s Right to Prescription Transparency Act of 2009,” would prevent a health plan or Pharmacy Benefit Management Company (PBM) from restricting or prohibiting a pharmacy from giving the patient information regarding actual reimbursement. The legislation would also define that percentage based co-pays be calculated based on the total prescription price the plan agrees to pay to the pharmacy. The bill, SB 774, will be heard on final consideration in the Senate next week.

Solar Institute / Solar Farm — Governor Phil Bredesen proposed a solar initiative this week that would use $62.5 million in federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to advance job creation, education, research, and renewable-power production in Tennessee. The Tennessee Solar Institute at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in conjunction with Tennessee’s universities will focus on basic science and industry partnerships to improve the affordability and efficiency of solar products. The governor also announced the development of a West Tennessee Solar Farm near Brownsville, a five-megawatt 20-acre power generation facility at the Haywood County industrial megasite that will be one of the largest installations in the Southeast. That facility would also serve as a demonstration tool for educational, research and economic-development purposes.

Energy — Finance Committee members approved legislation designed to allow Tennessee to tap into stimulus money coming into the state through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The bill, SB 2300, calls for state government to “lead by example” with improved energy management of its buildings and passenger motor vehicle fleet.  It also calls for a limited statewide residential building code for newly constructed homes and expanding eligibility to “weatherize” existing homes in low-income areas.

Second Amendment Rights / Restaurants — The State Senate approved a Conference Committee Report on SB 962 and sent to the governor the legislation allowing law-abiding handgun permit holders to “carry” into restaurants or other establishments serving alcohol as long as the owners of the premises have not posted notification that they are banned. Those who are in possession of a handgun are already prohibited from consuming alcohol or face a Class A misdemeanor, which carries a $2,000 fine and up to 11 months and 29 days in jail. The Conference Committee report, as adopted, deleted provisions for a “gun free zone” tied to age or time restrictions. There are 220,000 gun carry permit holders in Tennessee. Thirty-seven states allow legal permit holders to carry into locations that serve alcohol.

Second Amendment Rights / Parks — Legislation advanced in the Senate Finance Committee this week to allow legal gun carry permit holders to posses a firearm in state or federal parks in Tennessee. The legislation also allows local government bodies to maintain control of concealed carry within local parks. According to a report from the U.S. Department of Interior, there were 8 murders, 43 forcible rapes, 57 robberies and 274 instances of aggravated assault in parks nationwide in 2007. In January, the federal government lifted a regulation that banned guns in national parks and wildlife refuges. The measure, SB 976, now goes to the Senate floor for final consideration.

Second Amendment Rights / Judges — The full Senate has approved legislation authorizing judges who possess handgun carry permits to carry a firearm during judicial proceedings. The bill, SB 19, now goes to the governor for his signature.

Developmentally Disabled Citizens — The Senate General Welfare, Health and Human Services Committee approved a resolution this week supporting the development of an array of cost-effective home- and community-based programs to support people with developmental disabilities. Last year the General Assembly passed comprehensive legislation to give elderly and disabled Tennesseans more long term care options, including a comprehensive measure that simplifies access to home and community-based services and increases the number of people able to stay at home for long-term care needs through the state’s TennCare program. The Family Support Program administered by the Division of Mental Retardation Services, which is the only state program for people of all ages with any type of developmental disability, has a waiting list exceeding 6,000 persons. The resolution, SJR 72, will go to the full Senate for final consideration.

Soldier Heroes — The Senate Finance Committee voted this week to send Congress a resolution asking that an initiative be adopted to honor the wishes of soldiers regarding the disposition of their remains if they die in service to their country. The initiative, called the “Honor the Written Intent of our Soldier Heroes Act,” would amend a federal law that prohibits a service member from designating a person other than a surviving spouse, blood relative or adoptive relative to direct the disposal of the service member’s remains The resolution, SJR 352, now goes to the full Senate for final consideration.

Restaurant Menus — The full Senate has approved legislation to ban local governments or their boards from imposing requirements on restaurants to provide nutritional information on menus. The concern is that some communities will impose different standards and significantly increase costs to small restaurant owners. In March, Davidson County’s Metro Board of Health voted to enact guidelines on providing nutritional information to customers for certain restaurants, even though Congress is considering the Federal LEAN Act. That act would implement a national standard generally accepted by restaurant owners to provide nutritional information to customers. Adopting a county-by-county approach to the disclosure of nutritional information increases costs to restaurants, many of whom are small business owners. The bill, SB 1092, is pending action in the Health and Human Resources Committee in the House of Representatives.

DUI — Legislation was approved this week in the Senate Judiciary Committee that would require the testing of a driver’s blood alcohol content level in cases where there is serious bodily injury to a victim or death. The proposal calls for the test to be performed whether or not the driver consents. Presently, only drivers where a death is involved are required to be tested. This legislation would extend that requirement in cases where a victim is seriously injured and the law enforcement official has probable cause to believe that the driver has committed the offense of vehicular assault. The test results may be offered into evidence, subject to the rules of evidence under the bill, SB 534.

Cyber-schools — The full Senate has approved a measure that directs the Select Oversight Committee on Education to study the authorization of cyber-based charter schools in Tennessee and to report back to the General Assembly by January 15, 2010. Cyber schools have gained in popularity over the last several years as yet another educational option. Cyber schools primarily use a computer-based curriculum and accountability methods via internet access. The public cyber charter option is an attractive alternative for untraditional students or those with home-based needs. The bill, SB 621, is pending action in the Finance Budget Subcommittee in the House of Representatives.

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This entry was posted on Friday, May 15th, 2009 at 9:02 am and is filed under Capitol Updates.
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