The Tennessee General Assembly returned to Capitol Hill this week to adjourn the Special Session on Education and begin the work of the 2010 legislative session. Although the budget deficit will be the predominant driver for legislative action this year, issues that will also be considered include unemployment, job creation, and health care.

Resolution would ensure future generations
have the right to hunt and fish in Tennessee

Action on the Senate floor this week included several bills pending from the 2009 legislative session. One such bill approved by the full Senate gives Tennessee voters the opportunity to decide whether the state’s Constitution should be amended to recognize that citizens have the right to hunt and fish. The resolution was approved after all members of the Senate were added as sponsors of the measure. An identical resolution was approved during the 2007-2008 legislative sessions by a simple majority. The Constitution requires a two-thirds vote in the succeeding General Assembly before an amendment can be placed on the ballot in November 2010.

Tennessee, like many states, predicates wildlife conservation efforts on a user-pay system supported by sportsmen. The sportsmen pay for all wildlife conservation efforts, not just game fish and animals, including the acquisition of protected land and preservation of endangered species. Protection of the sportsmen’s right to hunt and fish make sure wildlife preservation efforts in Tennessee continue indefinitely. In addition, sportsmen pump millions of dollars into Tennessee’s economy.

The resolution, Senate Joint Resolution 30, will give sportsmen a voice in court on any future action that would deny their right to hunt and fish if approved by the voters. The ballot measure will be voted on in the same manner as the “Victim’s Rights Amendment” in 1998, the “State Lottery Scholarship Amendment” of 2002, and the amendment that allows local governments to give property tax relief to the elderly.

Senate overrides Governor’s veto of restaurant menu requirements

The Senate voted 24 to 7 to override the governor’s veto of legislation approved last year to bar unelected local government regulatory agencies from imposing requirements on restaurants to post calories on menus. The Senate passed the measure, Senate Bill 1092, last year after many small businesses raised concerns that some communities will impose different standards, which will significantly increase costs to small restaurant owners.

Last March, Davidson County’s Metro Board of Health, made up of unelected members, voted to require restaurants located in the county to post caloric information on menus, even though Congress is considering the Federal LEAN Act. The LEAN Act would implement a national standard generally accepted by restaurant owners to provide standardized nutritional information to customers. This year the Metro Board voted to suspend its regulations until they can be reconciled with the federal legislation that is also included in the health care bill pending in Congress.

Small business owners, as well as the restaurant and hospitality associations, support the LEAN Act, which requires some restaurant chains to post calories on menus as well as other information that is helpful like total fat, cholesterol, sodium, and sugars.

Senate Commerce Committee approves legislation
to boost sale of “prime milk” by Tennessee dairy farmers

The Senate Commerce Committee approved a bill this week to help Tennessee’s dairy farmers by establishing a category of milk to be called “Tennessee Prime Milk.” The voluntary milk labeling category is designed to promote Tennessee’s new official state drink: milk! Currently, only 50 percent of milk consumed in the state is from Tennessee dairies.

The bill, Senate Bill 1899, aims to help Tennessee’s dairy farmers, whose numbers have declined from 10,000 active farms at the height of the business to 500 today. The bill allows marketing and sale of a “home grown” milk product with solid non-fat content that bill sponsors say will likely be priced below organic milk categories.

The voluntary program calls for the milk to be certified by the state’s Department of Agriculture for sale at retail stores as “Tennessee Prime Milk” if it meets higher standards. Bottling plants can label their milk as “Tennessee Prime Milk” as long as 80% of the milk is produced in Tennessee. Reduced fat Tennessee prime milk sold at retail must contain at least 10 percent milk solids not fat (SNF); non-fat or skim Tennessee prime milk must contain at least 9 percent SNF; and, whole Tennessee prime milk must contain at least 8.5 percent SNF.

General Welfare, Health and Human Resources Committee
hears strategies for improving health in Tennessee

In Committee action this week, the General Welfare, Health and Human Resources Committee heard from Jeff Ockerman with Tennessee’s Division of Health Planning regarding strategies for improving health in the state. Ockerman is charged with implementing an act passed by the General Assembly to develop a state health plan to serve as a guide to improve the overall health care of Tennesseans.

Tennessee has been called one of the least healthy states in America, ranking 47th in the nation. In addition, the state’s health system performance has ranked below average as well at 39th in the nation. According to Ockerman, once the plan is in place it will provide a vision for moving Tennessee’s current health care system to an integrated system of care, which is more efficient and effective. It will also focus on the need for health promotion, health education, disease prevention, better nutrition, and chronic disease management.

Open Records Counsel gives lawmakers an update
on efforts to open government in Tennessee

The Senate State and Local Government Committee heard an update from Elisha Hodge, Director of the Office of Open Records Counsel, regarding efforts to open government in Tennessee. The office was created in 2008 as a division of the State Comptroller’s Office to resolve disputes regarding access to public records and promote education and awareness of Tennessee’s public records and open meetings law. It also assists Tennesseans in obtaining public records from local governments by guiding them to the correct offices or officials.

Hodge said the Office of Open Records dealt with 898 inquiries in 2009, of which 456 were from government entities, 63 from media, and 379 from individual citizens. The Office also dealt with 14 complaints of the open meetings act and was involved in 3 public records lawsuits. The Office did 29 opinions dealing with a variety of subjects involving open records.

The Tennessee Public Records Act provides that Tennessee citizens have the right to receive copies of public records, further supporting transparency in government. The Office of Open Records set a schedule of reasonable charges for photocopies at 15 cents for each black and white copy and 50 cents for color.

Hodge also reported that two local government entities are taking advantage of the expansion of a pilot program utilized in Knox County that brings sunshine online to the Internet. Blount County is now approved to use technology to set up an online forum for elected officials to communicate outside of public meetings; but within the bounds of the state’s Sunshine law, while Loudon County is close to finalizing a similar plan.

Under the law, elected bodies statewide can set up websites where they can post messages to one another after approval by the Office of Open Records Counsel. These “conversations” would be available for the public and media’s viewing. The technological sunshine bill is designed to make it easier for officials to conduct business, while balancing the public’s right to know.

Bills in Brief

Tourism – Tourism Commissioner Susan Whitaker appeared before the Senate Conservation and Environment Committee to update lawmakers on efforts to promote travel to and within the state. Whitaker said tourism is up from $14.2 billion to $14.4 billion over the last year, although some parts of the state have been hit hard by the recession. The state is in the top ten in the U.S. in tourism and is doing very well compared to neighboring states, some of which are in double-digit decline. Tennessee is promoting a scenic by-ways project to get tourists into the more rural areas of the state, which is already meeting with some success.

Using data to drive teacher instruction – Senate Education Committee members heard from Murfreesboro’s Scales Elementary teacher Pam East this week regarding her efforts to use student test data to drive individualized instruction. East, who is the author of “The 5-Step Way to Raise Test Scores,” outlined the basic steps of analyzing a variety of student data and then using that information to drive classroom instruction. She said it was a way to target instruction exactly where it’s needed. The veteran teacher looks at standardized test scores as a tool to bring student’s learning to new heights.

Education reforms signed – This week the governor signed legislation that passed during the Special Session on Education. The legislation focused on improving K-12 education and putting Tennessee in position to be a leader in the Race to the Top competition. If successful, the state could receive up to $500 million in federal funds. A second bill focuses on Higher Education and includes measures to help ensure that students are successful in completing their college degrees or post-secondary academic programs.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 28th, 2010 at 1:51 pm and is filed under Capitol Updates.
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