Some of the upcoming activities that I am looking forward to include trips to the firing range and the Montgomery County Jail, driving a police cruiser, getting shot with a Taser, and pepper sprayed. We will also be getting firsthand exposure to the K-9 squad, bomb disposal unit, and S.W.A.T. teams.

I am a participant in the 33rd class of the Citizen Police Academy. The goal of the Citizen Police Academy is to foster a better understanding between citizens and police officers through education. This is a free course provided by the Clarksville Police Department. Upon completion of the 13 week course attendees will be presented with a certificate, and become a Citizen Police Academy alumni.

Recruitment, procurement, and training

During the first week of the Citizen Police Academy, officers from the Clarksville Police Department showed us how our police officers are chosen, the specific training requirements for our officers, which is set by the State of Tennessee and the City of Clarksville.

Some of the basic requirements include:

• Be at least 21 years of age
• Have a High School Diploma or G.E.D.
• Criminal Activity – The Peace Officer Standard and Training Commission of Tennessee may consider a waiver from pre-employment requirements relating to criminal activity on an individual basis and depending on the circumstances excluding felony charge or domestic violence.
• Possess a valid drivers license
• Be a Citizen of the United States
• Honorable Discharge from the Armed Forces if prior military
• Completely fill out an application for employment
• Be able to pass an extensive background investigation, polygraph, and drug screen
• Meet State law Requirements concerning mental health and physical condition

As can be seen, the standards for new officers are very stringent.

Then the officer candidate must undergo a ten week police academy, followed by 14 weeks working with a more experienced officer.

Constitutional rights, making arrest, and professional integrity

During the second week of the Citizen Police Academy, we discussed the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and civil rights. We also discussed criminal acts, arrest procedures, the Miranda warning, what constitutes probable cause, and the major differences between criminal and civil law.

We also covered the role of the Professional Integrity Unit, more commonly known as Internal Affairs. Their primary job is to protect the citizens of Clarksville, Tennessee from police misconduct, and to protect police officers from false accusations made by citizens.

If an officer violates their professional integrity, they may face sanctions including:

• Verbal Reprimand
• Written Reprimand
• Reduction in pay
• Suspension
• Demotion
• Termination

In our city, police officers are held to a higher standard!

For the next 11 weeks, you can read more about the Clarksville Citizen Police Academy right here at Clarksville Online.

Knoxville – On March 6th Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam marked the one year anniversary of the start of his campaign for Tennessee Governor and released a campaign report card for 2009.

Haslam traveled more than 45,000 miles across Tennessee in 2009, made more than 600 county visits, and is the only candidate for Tennessee Governor to visit every county.

“Crissy and I have really enjoyed this past year, talking to Tennesseans on their front porches, in their offices and on town squares,” said Haslam. “We’re excited about this new year, and look forward to a real discussion of the issues that Tennesseans care about most – good jobs, managing our state’s budget, and improving education.”

“The numbers speak for themselves,” said Mark Cate, Campaign Manager. “Bill Haslam has visited every county, he’s built the best grassroots network, he’s raised the most money, he’s knocked on the most doors. Bill Haslam is the hardest working candidate in the race.”

“Crissy and I have met so many new friends on the campaign trail, and we’ve heard so many stories from Tennesseans who have lost their jobs, or who don’t have as good a job as they had two years ago,” continued Haslam. “Those are people we won’t forget when I’m elected Governor. We’ll work hard every day to bring good jobs to Tennessee, to keep the good jobs we have now, and to be a good steward of your tax dollars.”

“Bill and Crissy are doing this for the right reason – because they love Tennessee and want to make it an even better place to live and raise a family,” continued Cate. “Tennesseans know this election is about our future, and Bill Haslam is the right leader with the right temperament, the best ideas, and the proven executive experience to lead our state through these very difficult times.”

About Bill Haslam

Bill Haslam is the two term Mayor of Knoxville, re-elected in 2007 with 87% of the vote. A hardworking public servant, he lead Knoxville to become one of the top ten metropolitan areas for business and expansion, while reducing the city’s debt, tripling the rainy day fund, and bringing property taxes to the lowest rate in 40 years. An executive leader with a proven record of success, he helped grow his family’s small business from 800 employees into one of Tennessee’s largest companies with more than 14,000 employees. His combination of executive and public service experience makes him uniquely qualified to be Tennessee’s next Governor. Bill is the right person at the right time to lead Tennessee.

Bill and Crissy Haslam have two daughters, Annie and Leigh, and a son, Will, who resides in Knoxville with his wife, Hannah.

For more information on Bill Haslam, please visit www.BillHaslam.com.

This message was authorized by Bill Haslam for Governor, The Hon. Howard H. Baker, Jr., Honorary Chairman, Herbert Slatery, Treasurer.

Editor’s note: This is a news release from a political campaign,  and our publication does not constitute an endorsement or political advertisement for the campaign.  Any candidate for public office is welcome to submit campaign releases to . These are published as our schedule allows.

“Career and technical education provides students with a real-world career connection,” Governor Phil Bredesen said. “CTE programs in turn foster a well-educated, college- and career-ready student body, ready to contribute to our workforce.”

Tennessee’s CTE programs include Agriculture, Business Technology, Family and Consumer Sciences, Health Science, Marketing, Technology Engineering and Trade and Industry. Other CTE initiatives include High Schools that Work, Jobs for Tennessee Graduates, Contextual Academics, and Work-Based Learning.

“CTE programs are preparing students to become future leaders,” said Ralph Barnett, Assistant Commissioner of Career and Technical Education. “We hope families and communities will come out and support the 300,000 CTE students in our school districts across the state.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, eighteen of the 20 fastest growing occupations within the next decade will require career and technical education. Of the 136 school districts in Tennessee, 126 include CTE programs in their curriculum.

For more information, contact Rachel Woods at (615) 253-1960 or Rachel..

Communities throughout Tennessee will receive financing to build or repair schools as a result of the Tennessee State School Bond Authority’s (TSSBA) action on Thursday.

The TSSBA finalized plans to sell up to $184 million worth of Qualified School Construction Bonds (QSCBs) as part of a program created by the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The bonds are tax credit bonds that provide a federal tax credit to the investor on a quarterly basis. The bonds may also pay a supplemental coupon to the bondholders on a quarterly basis.

Thursday the TSSBA selected a bond underwriting team, approved a final bond resolution and finalized documents needed to move forward with the bond sale. The TSSBA had preliminarily approved the loans in September and, after some revisions in loan amounts and the addition of the City of Kingsport as a new borrower, the revised list of project loans were approved by the TSSBA.

The TSSBA will invest the proceeds from the bond sale in the State Pooled Investment Fund (SPIF) and will disburse the funds to the communities to pay the expenses related to their school construction projects.

Montgomery Central High School after the renovations

The communities authorized to receive portions of the bond money will be required to spend the proceeds on qualified projects within three years of the bond sale and comply with federal Davis-Bacon regulations. The sale is expected to be completed with bond proceeds available for disbursement in early December. Additionally, the communities are required to enter into binding contracts for at least 10 percent of their allocation of the bond proceeds within six months after the bond sale.

The TSSBA members are: Comptroller Justin P. Wilson, Secretary of State Tre Hargett, Treasurer David H. Lillard Jr., Governor Phil Bredesen, Finance and Administration Commissioner Dave Goetz, Board of Regents Chancellor Charles Manning and acting University of Tennessee President Jan Simek.

“I am very pleased that we have been able to finalize the details necessary to move forward these bonds,” said Comptroller Wilson. “These are worthy projects and they will provide much needed help to students and educators across the state.”

“Through enabling legislation the General Assembly has empowered us to extend this opportunity for substantive capital projects to local schools. We are delighted the communities availed themselves of this program.” Secretary Hargett said. “The QSCB program is an exciting direct-benefit use of stimulus funds impacting local communities and our children.”

“Education is a key to Tennessee moving forward economically,” Treasurer Lillard said. “Providing better facilities for our children should help their academic achievement over the long term.”

Of the total bond proceeds, Memphis City Schools will receive $42,960,000 and Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools will receive $21,760,000 for various projects. Those two school systems received direct allocations from the federal government because they were among the nation’s top 100 local educational agencies with the largest numbers of school-age children from families living below the poverty level.

The other participating communities that were selected through a competitive application process to receive bond proceeds are as follows:

• Clarksville/Montgomery County – $20 million for renovation of Montgomery Central High School
• Cleveland City Schools – $4,160,000 for a new science wing at Cleveland High School
• Cumberland County Schools -$2,680,000 for infrastructure and energy-efficiency upgrades at Cumberland County High School
• Dyer County – $9 million for construction of a new elementary school
• Dyersburg City Schools – $2,960,000 for renovations to Dyersburg Intermediate School
• Hamblen County Schools – $11,280,000 for land acquisition and construction at Morristown-Hamblen High School East
• Hawkins County – $1,418,347 for renovations to Rogersville Middle School and $1,221,653 for renovations to Surgoinsville Middle School
• Henry County – $2.6 million for new construction and improvements to E.W. Grove School
• Johnson City Schools – $8,160,000 for renovations and new construction at Science Hill High School
• Kingsport – $1,240,000 for renovations at Dobyns-Bennett High School
• Maryville City Schools – $18,760,000 for construction of Coulter Grove Intermediate School
• Shelby County Schools – $13,760,000 to demolish and replace Elmore Park Middle School
• Sullivan County – $15,480,000 to renovate and expand Ketron Intermediate School
• Union County – $6,807,054 to build Paulette Middle School and $352,946 to renovate and expand Luttrell Elementary School

Another UT tradition is losing to Steve Spurrier. Stretching back to his first job as a head coach at Duke, the Vols have a 5-13 record against him. Philip Fulmer had a particularly dismal 3-8 record against the Old Ball Coach.

Old Ball Coach, meet the New Ball Coach.

Vol fans got a slight scare when offensive production stalled after leaping ahead of the Gamecocks 21-0, but most of the night was pure treat. Last night’s victory was the largest point differential against a Spurrier coached team since Johnny Majors beat Duke team by twenty-six points in 1989. Furthermore, the formerly hapless Jonathan Crompton, who is rumored to be the least effective quarterback in school history, played his second game without throwing an interception. He now has double the touchdown passes Tim Tebow does. Berry and Hardesty continued to be stand-out players, Rico McCoy forced two fumbles,  and Chad Cunningham, replacing Daniel Lincoln, scored a field goal for the Vols- the first one in the past five attempts.

Legends claim that on Halloween the border between the living and the dead thins. Last night, Kiffin crossed the border between the Volunteer’s recent past of ugly wins and wearisome losses to a Volunteer future restoring the excitement and success of seasons past. The black jerseys nicely encapsulated the spirit of that bridging; unbeknownst to may in Vol Country, black was the color of choice before the adoption of orange in 1922.

Kiffin has pleaded ignorance regarding Tennessee traditions. But his final comment of the night proved to Rocky Top he’s determined to revive the most important one. Wearing his characteristic mask of latent frustration he promised, “We’re building a championship team.”

Washington – U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced HUD will speed federal disaster assistance to counties in Tennessee and provide support to homeowners and low-income renters forced from their homes following severe storms and flooding.

On Friday, President Obama issued a disaster declaration for Chester, Clay, Decatur, Jackson, Overton, and Wayne Counties. The President’s declaration allows HUD to offer foreclosure relief and other assistance to certain families living in these counties.

“Families who may have been forced from their homes need to know that help is available to begin the rebuilding process,” said Donovan. “Whether it’s foreclosure relief for FHA-insured families or helping these counties to recover, HUD stands ready to help in any way we can.”

HUD is:

• Offering the State of Tennessee the ability to re-allocate existing federal resources toward disaster relief – HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME programs give the State the flexibility to redirect millions of dollars to address critical needs, including housing and services for flood victims. HUD is currently contacting State and local officials to explore streamlining the Department’s CDBG and HOME programs in order to expedite the repair and replacement of damaged housing;

• Granting immediate foreclosure relief – HUD granted a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures and forbearance on foreclosures of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-insured home mortgages;

• Making mortgage insurance available – HUD’s Section 203(h) program provides FHA insurance to disaster victims who have lost their homes and are facing the daunting task of rebuilding or buying another home. Borrowers from participating FHA-approved lenders are eligible for 100 percent financing, including closing costs;

• Making insurance available for both mortgages and home rehabilitation – HUD’s Section 203(k) loan program enables those who have lost their homes to finance the purchase or refinance of a house along with its repair through a single mortgage. It also allows homeowners who have damaged houses to finance the rehabilitation of their existing single-family home; and

• Offering Section 108 loan guarantee assistance – HUD will offer state and local governments federally guaranteed loans for housing rehabilitation, economic development and repair of public infrastructure. For more information about these and other HUD programs designed to assist disaster victims, visit HUD’s website.

About the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

HUD is the nation’s housing agency committed to sustaining homeownership; creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development and enforces the nation’s fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet at www.hud.gov and espanol.hud.gov.

In Tennessee, currently one-fifth (twenty per cent) of adults do not have a high school diploma. I suspect that many of these people also have difficulty reading, whether from a learning disability or from not being able to attend school on a regular basis.

How can we prevent this problem? I think the following three changes could make a huge difference in the lives of our children and their success rate.

Teach only reading, math, music, art, physical education, and library arts in kindergarten, first and second grades.

Science and social studies as separate subjects should be taught beginning in third grade after reading and math skills are in place. Science and social studies can be introduced in their reading stories. The current set of reading books chosen in Robertson County has excellent stories that introduce scientific knowledge and historical material.

These first three grades need to focus on basics only.

Mornings should be dedicated to reading and math for these youngest students. They also need afternoon music and art to facilitate functions in their brains that enhance learning to read and calculate. Physical education is essential also to keep their bodies strong and, again, to reinforce good brain patterns. Library time is primary in teaching children that reading is exciting and fun.

TCAP tests should be scheduled in May, not March or April.

Children assume that when TCAP is over, school is out. When these major tests are given in April, the last six weeks of school is a battle to keep children focused on learning. It’s great to have end of the year activities like field trips and recognition ceremonies, but two or three weeks devoted to these activities is sufficient. School needs to continue into May.

One of the reasons given for testing earlier is that grades theoretically could be released before school is out. These grades are used for planning for the following year. June results work just as well as ones during the last week of school.

Increase programs that teach parents how to assist their children to succeed in school.

If we assume that, according to statistics, one in every five parents does not have a high school diploma, we have to help these people not only achieve this goal, but learn parenting skills that foster good practices for the child. A child who sees a parent read—whether it’s the newspaper or a novel—is much more likely to believe that reading is important. A child who has a parent who can help with homework and one who sets a time and place for homework is in a far better position to succeed than one whose parent does not make these provisions. Most “at-risk” children in school are those who have little or no help at home.

Children who have been held in someone’s lap and read to from infancy come to school with a greater chance of higher participation, longer periods in which they can focus, and eagerness to read, write, spell, and engage in math.

JACKSON – By voting against America’s Affordable Health Choices Act of 2009 (H.R. 3200) before the House Ways & Means Committee, Rep. John Tanner voted against fixing our broken health care system.

“When I see Congressman Tanner voting against acting now to improve health care, it tells me that he’s profoundly out of touch with ordinary working people in West Tennessee,” said Ella Parham of Jackson. “I was looking forward to retirement after my career as a teacher. Now I have to keep working to help pay for health care. Failing to fix health care is not an option. We can’t afford to wait any longer for real health care reform.”

Tennesseans need reform now in order to save their hard-earned wages. Since 2000 alone, average family premiums have increased by 77 percent in Tennessee, at a rate almost 3 times as fast as wages. Tennessee businesses and families pay an extra $900 per year on premiums as a direct result of subsidizing the costs of the uninsured.

“Thousands of Tennesseans are standing up and speaking out about the need for reform that provides access to quality, affordable health care for every man, woman, and child,” said Tony Cani, State Director of SEIU’s Change that Works campaign in Tennessee. “Putting the brakes on meaningful reform means doing nothing to hold down costs, doing nothing to help working people get secure health care, and doing nothing to protect the quality of health care. Rep. Tanner should stand with Tennesseans, not the special interests.”

About Change That Works

Change That Works is a grassroots campaign of the Service Employees International Union. We are working families and community allies united to win guaranteed, affordable health care for all.

WASHINGTON

“The purpose of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is to jumpstart the nation’s ailing economy, with a primary focus on creating and saving jobs in the near term,” said Secretary Donovan. “The funding being announced today is an important step in achieving the goal of putting the American people back to work while providing quality, affordable housing options for low-income families at a time when those options are needed more than ever.”

The current economic and financial crises present significant challenges for the construction industry, particularly residential construction. One of the by-products of this crisis has been the freezing of investments in the low income housing tax credit (LIHTC) market. The tax credits create an incentive for investors to provide capital to developers to build multi-family rental housing for moderate- and low-income families across the nation. Since the contraction of the credit market, and as traditional investors remain on the sidelines, the value of tax credits has plummeted. Consequently, as many as 1,000 projects (containing nearly 150,000 units of housing) are on hold across the country.

In response, the Recovery Act provides $2.25 billion for TCAP, a grant program to provide capital investments in these stalled LIHTC developments. HUD is awarding these TCAP grants by formula to 52 state housing credit agencies (all 50 states plus the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico) to complete construction of qualified housing projects that will ultimately provide affordable housing to an estimated 35,000 households nationwide. Since a major purpose of this program is job creation, the Recovery Act establishes ambitious deadlines for expenditure of grant funds and requires state housing credit agencies to give priority to projects that can begin immediately and be completed by February 16, 2012.

Under this first round of TCAP funds, state housing finance agencies in the states below are receiving awards today (the remaining 26 grants will follow in the coming weeks):

• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Connecticut
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Iowa
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Nebraska
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Puerto Rico
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Vermont
• Washington
• Wisconsin

About the Department of Housing and Urban Development

WASHINGTON - U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan today announced HUD is allocating $3.7 billion in disaster aid to 11 States to help them recover from dozens of natural disasters last year. The emergency funding will support the States’ long-term disaster recovery and is in addition to $2.4 billion HUD already allocated through its Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. Donovan announced the additional funding following a tour of flood-damaged areas of Cedar Rapids, Iowa with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Governor Chet Culver and Congressman David Loebsack.

Donovan also announced that nearly $312 million is available to States that spend their existing funding on programs that reduce potential damages from future disasters. This Disaster Recovery Enhancement Fund is designed to encourage States to design forward-thinking recovery plans that will reduce the risks of loss of life and the extent of future damage.

The following states are receiving additional disaster recovery funds from HUD:

State		Today’s Allocation	Prior 2008 Allocations	Total
Texas		$1,743,001,247	$1,314,990,193	$3,057,991,440
Louisiana		$620,467,205	$438,223,344	$1,058,690,549
Iowa		$516,713,868	$281,987,957	$798,701,825
Indiana		$253,340,079	$162,055,588	$415,395,667
Illinois		$127,207,128	$59,325,555	$186,532,683
Missouri		$78,625,549	$25,012,379	$103,637,928
Wisconsin		$75,200,572	$49,097,341	$124,297,913
Tennessee		$71,881,834	$20,636,056	$92,517,890
Arkansas		$70,181,041	$25,042,358	$95,223,399
Florida		$63,606,850	$17,457,005	$81,063,855
California		$39,531,784	n/a	$39,531,784
TOTAL		$3,659,757,157	$2,393,827,776	$6,053,584,933

“These States are enduring tremendous hardships as they try to piece together their local communities following last year’s natural disasters,” said Donovan. “Our job is to support them in any way possible and to encourage them to take positive steps toward reducing the risk of catastrophe in the future.”

Last September, Congress appropriated more than $6 billion in supplemental funding for “necessary expenses related to disaster relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure, housing and economic revitalization in areas affected by hurricanes, floods, and other natural disasters occurring during 2008.” There were 76 major disasters that occurred in 2008 in 35 States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These disasters included the Midwest floods, Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, and the California wildfires. HUD quickly allocated a third of this funding and today the Department is announcing the balance of this disaster recovery funding.

In determining the allocations announced today, HUD focused on two factors:

Combined unmet housing, infrastructure and business needs

This is each State’s relative share of these estimated unmet needs based on available data provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Small Business Administration (SBA); and,

Recovery Challenge Risk Level

HUD has estimated the relative level of recovery challenges confronting these States. To do this, HUD used information from the 2005 Hurricanes to estimate what factors predicted if a household would be displaced for an extended period of time and how long it takes for a neighborhood to recover. That analysis found that the extent of concentrated neighborhood damage and the severity of damage to particular properties are very good predictors for long-term vacancy.

Disaster Recovery Enhancement Fund

HUD is creating a $312 million Disaster Recovery Enhancement Fund to encourage States to undertake long-term disaster strategies that focus on reducing the risk of damage from future natural disasters. This fund is reserved for States that spend their CDBG funds on specific disaster recovery activities likely to reduce the extent of damage in the future. These projects may include:

• Buyout payments for homeowners living in high-risk areas;
• Optional relocation payments to encourage residents to move to safer locations;
• Home improvement grants to reduce damage risks (property elevation, reinforced garage doors and windows, etc.);
• Improving and enforcing building codes; and
• Developing forward-thinking land-use plans that reduce development in high-risk areas.

Since 1992, HUD’s CDBG Program has allocated approximately $31 billion to support the long-term disaster recovery of state and local governments, as well as tribal governments.

About the Department of Housing and Urban Development

According to a new report released by the Service Employees International Union called The Value of Reform in Tennessee, the reality of the healthcare crisis is grim in Tennessee’s rural towns. In the current recession, the rural economy is losing jobs at a faster rate than the rest of the nation, and loss of jobs can lead to loss of health coverage. These hard-working folks – unemployed through no fault of their own – are forced to either go without insurance or pay out of pocket to get it. And people who have to buy insurance on their own tend to pay more for premiums, have higher deductibles, and have fewer procedures covered. One out of five rural residents spends more than $1,000 per year out of their own pocket on health services. Overall, rural residents pay 40% out of pocket for medical needs—a significantly bigger hit than other Americans absorb.

In a tough economy, those costs add up. It’s not surprising that 20% of farmers are carrying medical debts. Farmers aren’t the only rural residents dealing with this problem, either. The economic engine of small towns in rural areas is small business. Ask the owner of any small business and he or she will tell you just how hard it has become for them to find affordable coverage for employees. That means that rural residents who work at a small business have a very hard time getting health insurance through their jobs, which has traditionally been the way most Americans get their healthcare.

Getting access to healthcare—even if you have insurance—is another growing problem for all rural residents. The entire healthcare system is dealing with a shortage of nurses and other skilled workers. Hospitals and clinics in rural areas tend to have a harder time recruiting and retaining staff. There are also fewer primary care doctors and specialists in rural regions. The result can be that people in the small towns and in the country get less care than they should. For example, rural women are less likely get mammograms according to recommended guidelines and are less likely to have had a pap smear conducted during the last three years. Obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure are more common among people in rural areas than in suburban and urban areas.

The good news is that this summer we have an historic opportunity to start fixing these problems by reforming the healthcare system by implementing a public option plan. The choice of a public option plan is a crucial part of comprehensive healthcare reform. It is needed to bring down costs, make coverage affordable, force private health insurance companies to compete, and guarantee that quality, affordable coverage will be there for people no matter what happens. Due to an aging population and higher out-of-pocket costs, rural communities are among those that would gain the most from a public insurance option.

By leveling the playing field and making sure everyone has an affordable option that provides real coverage, even rural Americans would get the advantages of a competitive, big city healthcare marketplace. With the choice of a public option plan, rural America’s farmers, ranchers, and small business owners on Main Street can get back to the job at hand – being the engine of our economy.

• Sanctuary cities
• Recognizing home school & church diplomas
• Guns in restaurants
• Unemployment trust fund
• Tennessee statehood day

Sanctuary Cities immigration measure approved by House of Representatives

House Republicans successfully passed an immigration measure in the House Thursday morning that the caucus has been working on for several years. House Bill 1354 aims to curb illegal immigration by prohibiting local governments from enacting “sanctuary” policies, or policies that make it difficult for law enforcement and other local government employees to comply with federal immigration law.

A map of Sanctuary cites in the United States from the English Language Wikipedia

After the legislation passed with an overwhelming 80-8 vote, House leaders announced that they were pleased with the passage of the bill, which they said was a pre-emptive strike to guard against the adoption of sanctuary policies by cities in the state, and curb policies that protect illegal immigrants.

A “sanctuary city” is a term given to a city in the United States that follows certain practices to protect illegal aliens. Thirty-eight cities in the U.S. have been recognized as sanctuary cities, but many sources have identified over 200 city or county governments nationwide as having practiced such policies.

Home school diplomas to be recognized by state

Republican-sponsored legislation that aims to give home schoolers equal footing with public school students was signed into law by the Governor late last week. Senate Bill 433 requires the state, along with local governments, to recognize home school and church-related diplomas, giving them the same rights and privileges extended to those who earn public school diplomas.

Diploma's like this one are available for $5 online at freeprintablecertificates.net

Having long been advocates for home schoolers, House Republicans felt the move was needed to put home schoolers on equal footing with public school students. The sponsor of the legislation argued throughout the process that earning a home school diploma should not be diminished simply because the mode of teaching is different than that of a traditional public school.

Tennessee General Assembly votes overwhelmingly to override Governor’s veto of restaurant carry bill

Lawmakers were notified late last week that the Governor was planning to veto House Bill 962, which would allow legal carry permit holders to carry firearms into restaurants, provided they did not drink alcohol. The bill had originally passed by over two-thirds in both chambers of the legislature.

The Governor stated in his veto message that “guns and alcohol do not mix.” The House Republican sponsor fired back, responding that the bill prohibited carry permit holders from drinking alcohol and carrying a firearm, much as it was illegal to drink and drive. The sponsor said the legal carry permit holders of this state had proven themselves to be responsible individuals, and the bill was simply an attempt to expand their Second Amendment rights.

Thirty-six states have some form of restaurant carry, including seven of the eight states that border Tennessee. The General Assembly exhaustively debated the subject, with a supermajority determining that legal carry permit holders were responsible individuals who should be able to protect themselves. With both chambers having overridden the Governor’s veto, the bill will now become law on July 14, 2009.

Legislature votes to save unemployment trust fund from federal intervention

The House voted this week to save Tennessee’s unemployment trust fund from federal intervention, saying that the move was necessary to keep the federal government from completely taking over the nearly insolvent fund. The fund was approaching insolvency this year after the state unemployment rate approached 9.9 percent. With the highest unemployment in decades, the fund began to be drained of its resources.

The legislation that eventually passed the House will ensure that the unemployment trust fund remains solvent, and creates a series of automatic “triggers” that allow unemployment taxes to decrease if the fund’s balance reaches a certain threshold.

The trust fund dropped to about $120 million after the number of unemployed receiving benefits continued to grow. Without action by the legislature, the federal government would step in to shore up the fund, but with significant strings attached, and wrest away control from the state. This week’s move by the legislature will prevent that from happening.

Tennessee celebrated “Statehood Day” June 1st

Tennessee celebrated “Statehood Day” this week, a holiday that marks the anniversary of the state’s official admission into the Union. On June 1, 1796, Tennessee was the 16th state admitted after ratifying the Constitution. In honor of Statehood Day, some Tennessee trivia facts are listed below.

• When Tennessee became a state in 1796, the total population was 77,000.
• Andrew Johnson, who hailed from Greeneville, held every elective office at the local, state, and federal level, including President of the United States. He was elected alderman, mayor, state representative, and state senator in Greeneville. He served as Governor of Tennessee, Military Governor of Tennessee, and was elected to Congress and then to the U.S. Senate. He served as Vice-President of the United States until the assassination of President Lincoln, which elevated him to the Presidency.
• Hattie Caraway (1878-1950) was born in Bakersville, Tennessee (Humphreys County) and became the first woman United States Senator when her husband died and the seat was passed to her. She won re-election several times, before losing a primary and being appointed to the Employees’ Compensation Commission by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
• Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry is the longest continuously running live radio program in the world. It has broadcast every Friday and Saturday night since 1925.
• Coca-Cola was first bottled in 1899 at a plant on Patten Parkway in downtown Chattanooga after two locals purchased the bottling rights to the drink for $1.00.
• Cumberland University, located in Lebanon, lost a football game to Georgia Tech on October 7, 1916, by a score of 222-0. The Georgia Tech coach was George Heisman—the man for whom the Heisman Trophy is named.

The Week Ahead…

**TIMES AND ROOMS SUBJECT TO CHANGE**
*All meetings will be held in Legislative Plaza Room 16 unless otherwise noted*
*Study Sub will meet, TBA*

Monday, June 8, 2009:

• Budget Subcommittee, 3:30 p.m.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

• Budget Subcommittee, 10:00 a.m.
• Finance, Ways and Means Committee, 11:00 a.m.
• Calendar and Rules, 12:30 p.m.
• Session, House Chambers, 4:00 p.m.

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

• Joint Convention, House Chambers, 9:00 a.m.
• Further schedules TBA

Thursday, June 11, 2009

• TBA

NASHVILLE – Texas may be willing to turn down the jobs that come with solar energy, but Tennessee is more than happy to welcome this 21st century industry and the economic benefits that go with it, members of the Tennessee Senate Democratic Caucus said Monday.

“Governor Bredesen has sent a strong message: Tennessee is ready, willing and able to be a center for the solar-energy industry,” Senator Lowe Finney of Jackson said. “With our Volunteer State Solar Initiative, West Tennessee will have the top solar energy-generating facility in the region.

“More than 600 Tennesseans will be hired to build the solar farm facility, and others will be hired to operate it.”

The story is altogether different in Texas, where legislators did an about-face over the weekend, voting down millions in incentives to draw solar investment to the state.  

“Legislators in Texas have yanked the welcome mat for an industry that could pay huge dividends for their economy,” said Senator Jim Kyle of Memphis, who is a sponsor of the governor’s energy bill. “To any company that had an eye on Texas, we say come on up to Tennessee.”

Senator Roy Herron of Dresden, who worked with Senator Finney to get an industrial megasite in West Tennessee, said:

“With the latest megasite in place, West Tennessee is well positioned to attract companies that will bring in 21st century jobs. The new energy industry can play a big part in getting our local economies back on their feet.”

Senator Andy Berke of Chattanooga noted that clean-energy companies already are looking to Tennessee as a place to do business.

“Thanks to Governor Bredesen’s foresight, we’ll see solar components produced at Wacker Chemie in Bradley County and at Hemlock Semiconductor in Clarksville,” Sen. Berke said. “We’ve got the West Tennessee Solar Farm and an Oak Ridge-UT solar partnership in the works.

“With Volkswagen in Chattanooga and Nissan in Smyrna rolling out clean-energy vehicles, we can be part of the economic recovery: good-paying jobs for our middle class, freedom from our dependence on foreign oil and a stable economy for our children.

“Tennessee is steadily positioning itself as a hub for the energy economy of the future.”

Unemployment has now reached 9.1% in Tennessee, with Perry County topping the list at 27%. Tax collections and state revenues are down, just as the need for government assistance and public services is skyrocketing. The number of people on food stamps, along with those losing their health insurance increases exponentially, while manufacturers and retailers from Memphis to Kingsport shut down their businesses – wiping out relatively good-paying jobs and whole regional economies.

Enter the Tennessee Republican Party, who declared victory upon taking the reins of leadership in the General Assembly for the first time since Reconstruction. The TNGOP, who barely eked out a win here in November, moved quickly to announce an agenda that would show all Tennesseans that the Republican Party was ready to handle the economic crisis.

Or not.

On November 10, 2008, just days after their election win, Republican leaders announced their agenda in the Memphis Commercial Appeal would include “allowing people with gun carry permits to take their firearms into places that serve alcohol“, “limits on… malpractice and other liability lawsuits”, “giving legislative leaders more control in the appointment of members of the judicial nominating commission”, “taxpayer funds for new [charter] schools, rather than [for] local school boards”, and their unflinching support for SJR-127, an anti-abortion bill that even its supporters admit does absolutely nothing to reduce the number of abortions in Tennessee.

But wait, there’s more. On February 23, 2009, TNGOP leaders announced a revised agenda for their legislative goals. Could it be that the Republicans decided that due to the economic crisis that they would focus more on checkbook issues? Or jobs? Not a chance. Instead, the Republicans added even more irrelevant, if not downright dangerous bills to their docket. More NRA bills, including ones to “reduce public and government access to gun owner information” a law that “would remove a requirement for gun dealers to thumbprint buyers,” and another that “would make handgun permit application information confidential”. Now, even state election laws are in the sights of Tennessee Republicans (who now happen to control every single county election commission in the state). For example, the “Voter Confidence Act” a bipartisan bill which passed last year and guaranteed an auditable paper trail for all voting machines, is in serious danger of being modified or killed. And there’s another Republican favorite – requiring a photo ID to vote – that they believe will stop hordes of illegal immigrants from voting, even though it is practically impossible for illegal immigrants to actually receive a voting card and there is zero evidence that this is actually happening. And lest we forget, the party of “family values” has decided that only straight, married people are fit to be parents, despite the fact that Tennessee sits at the top or near the top of the list among all states in divorce rate, domestic abuse, child abuse, and violent crime.

So there you have it. In the midst of one of the worst financial crises our state has seen since the Great Depression, the new Republican majority offers us Big Government on choice, adoption, and a living wage (by overturning the will of Memphis citizens who voted in favor of a living wage ordinance), the liberalization of our state gun laws, “judicial selection” (read: court-stacking) and “election reform” (read: voter suppression). Oh, and did I mention that about half of the Republican delegation actually believes that the President is not an American citizen?

In contrast, the Tennessee Democrats – by no means a poster child for liberalism – are nonetheless pushing a relevant agenda that is rooted in real-world solutions to real-world problems that affect nearly everyone in the state. According to a press release by the House Democratic Caucus, their agenda includes “providing quality education for all… increasing jobs and economic opportunities… promoting fiscal responsibility… providing affordable healthcare… supporting Tennessee’s ‘golden generation’… promoting equality and diversity… protecting Tennessee’s most vulnerable… improving safety and reducing crime… honoring patriotic service… investing in energy efficiency and protecting the environment”.

And despite now being the minority party that has a limited ability to move legislation, there are real bills by the Democrats that back up their agenda – bills that are struggling to get out of the Republican-controlled committee structure. Just a few worth mentioning include the “Pay Equity in the Workplace Act” which seeks equal pay for women doing the same work as men, “Helping Heroes” legislation that would expand education grant programs and funds to include current members of a reserve or National Guard unit, and “Crooks with Guns” legislation supported by district attorneys and law enforcement associations which would put tougher penalties on gun criminals. Democrats are also proposing a series of unexpectedly progressive environmental bills like HB2318, which among other things requires that statewide building construction safety standards include provisions for energy efficiency. And to his credit, Governor Phil Bredesen seems intent on closing a tax loophole that out-of-state businesses have been exploiting for years.

Time will tell whether Tennessee Democrats stand behind their new populist agenda. There is a long history in this state of Democrat appeasers who would rather just go along to get along then stand for something (the main reason the Democrats lost the election, by the way) and breaking that pattern entirely will take a long time. But when it comes to the issues, for those of you who still think that there’s little difference between the Democrats and Republicans in Tennessee, compare these two statements. Mike Turner (D-Old Hickory): “working families in Tennessee are hurting and desperately needing legislators to put them first.” And Tony Shipley (R-Kingsport): “they can do whatever they want out in California, with gays passing babies around, and violating God’s law, but when God drops California off into the sea, they will have to deal with the consequences of their actions.” With priorities like these, the Tennessee Republican Party won’t enjoy their majority status for very long.

We need to make our voices heard. We cannot continue to see Puppy Mill after Puppy Mill raided on the TV news. We must urge our State Legislators to support this Bill. Please highlight in your emails and telephone calls that Puppy Mills trade in domestic animals and currently have little if any regulation. There have been several puppy mill busts recently and it is time as a community to make a stand against this. It is expensive to the state; to the residents and obviously dangerous and harmful to the animals.

Commercial Breeder Act HB0386/SB258

To regulate puppy mills and protect consumers

• Protects consumers from “puppy mills” that mass produce unhealthy and diseased animals, a growing problem in TN. With approximately 400-500 puppy mills operating in Tennessee, it is estimated to be a $35 million/ year industry which is currently unregulated.
• A “commercial breeder” is defined as: any person who possesses and/or maintains twenty (20) or more unsterilized adult female dogs for the purpose of the sale of their offspring as companion animals;
• Does not affect hunters, hunt clubs, most hobby or show breeders, rescues, shelters, veterinarians, trainers, handlers or other private individuals.
• Bill language was created in collaboration with TN Department of Agriculture, TN Attorney General’s office, the Division of Consumer Affairs, and hobby/show breeders who are leaders in the Nashville Kennel Club.
• Program will be administered by the Department of Ag. The commissioner will promulgate rules regarding standards for housing and care based on existing USDA standards for wholesalers.

Senator Barnes Response

Even though Sen Barnes has indicated that he will vote for the bill, your phone calls and e-mails are still needed so he knows that Montgomery County is strongly against Puppy Mills.

Thank you for your email about SB 258. I am in support of this bill and I believe that commercial breeders should be regulated. Currently this bill has been referred to the Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee. From there it will go to the Senate floor for consideration.

Again, thank you for your email. Call or email anytime you would like an update on this or any bill.

Sincerely,
Tim Barnes
State Senator, 22nd District

Contact Senator Barnes

Email: sen.tim..gov
Address: 305 War Memorial Bldg. Nashville, TN 37243
Phone: (615) 741-2374

About Precious Friends

Precious Friends is an Puppy Rescue & Adoption service located in Clarksville, Tennessee.

For more information contact Jessica Sanford at 931-552-0622