Tagged: 2013 TN General Assembly

Teachers in Tennessee with prior law enforcement experience would be allowed to carry a gun at school under a proposal that's advancing in the state legislature.

The measure passed the House Education Committee Tuesday.  The companion bill was approved in the Senate Judiciary Committee. 

The Tennessee House has given final approval to a proposed constitutional amendment to ban a state income tax.

The chamber approved the measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Glen Casada 88 - 8 Monday. The vote completes a lengthy process for constitutional amendments, which must pass both chambers in consecutive General Assemblies before they can go before the voters in the same year a governor's election is held. 

Legislation that makes cock fighting a felony in Tennessee is dead this session after failing to pass the Senate. Under the bill, a first offense for cock fighting would have remained a misdemeanor. But a second offense would be considered a felony punishable by six years in prison and a fine of up to $3,000.

Republican legislative leaders in Tennessee are glad the most contentious issues of this session are largely decided as they enter the final weeks.

Gov. Bill Haslam's decision last week to withdraw his limited school voucher proposal highlights the sometimes contentious nature of his relationship with fellow Republicans in the Legislature, who now hold a supermajority. The governor was unable to persuade a faction led by Sen. Brian Kelsey to refrain from trying to expand the bill to more families.

A House committee has approved a measure linking a family's welfare benefits to student performance a day after Gov. Bill Haslam expressed serious reservations about the measure. The House Health Committee voted 10-8 Wednesday to advance the bill sponsored by Republican Rep. Vance Dennis.

The measure would cut monthly benefits under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program if a child fails to "maintain satisfactory academic progress." Supporters say that those cuts could be avoided if parents attend conferences with teachers, take parenting classes or enroll their children in tutoring programs or summer school.