Jacob Francy, 26
While many people focus on Congress and the rest of the federal government as a transfer of power occurred on the 20th, Tennessee’s general assembly reconvened on January 14 with large-scale bills on the table.
HB1 - Education Freedom Act
Governor Lee, with only a couple of years left as the leader of Tennessee, is attempting to make his final legacy school choice vouchers for 20,000 children. The idea of the Education Freedom Act is to give children who attend public school a government-sponsored scholarship to help attend a private school. However, the writing in the legislation states that the recipients already have to be in high-income brackets to be eligible. This means families that already can afford private education or already have children attending private schools are receiving these vouchers and not the low or middle-income families who would just as well benefit. Also, the over $400 million in funding for the vouchers is coming directly from public schools, so Tennessee’s bottom 10 ranked public education will continue to decrease in quality. Members from both parties have called the idea a “scam”.
HB26 - Unborn Child Protection Act / HB27 - Reproductive Freedom Act
Abortion is yet another big topic in this session. While abortion is mostly illegal or discouraged in Tennessee already, HB26 would increase restrictions. Even the delivery of abortion pills in the mail would be illegal. HB27, however, would grant women the right to choose whether they want to carry their pregnancy to term. According to Planned Parenthood, 85% of Americans believe abortion should be available to women in at least some circumstances.
HB2 - End the Grocery Tax by Closing Corporate Loopholes Act
The Democrats’ big bill this session includes eliminating the grocery tax for all Tennesseeans to help working families recover financially and paying for the tax cut by holding corporations accountable by repealing tax credits and deductions that are easily achievable.
HB47 - 10 Commandment Bill
A Republican introduced a bill, similar to what happened in Oklahoma, which mandates the Bible’s 10 Commandments to be posted in public schools, a direct attack on the 1st Amendment’s freedom of religion. If this passes, it is unlikely any school board would approve such.
HB64 - Anti-trans bill
Far-right Republicans introduced this bill to require every student at a residential school with bathrooms or locker rooms to go to their biological sex’s corresponding room. While many argue this restriction comes from a place of fear and/or ignorance, this legislation could place transgender people at an increased risk of harassment or abuse in the bathroom, especially if they have already received gender-reassignment surgery or are “passing”. This bill highlights a community that doesn’t even count for 1% of the population.
With a Republican supermajority in the State House and State Senate again, Republicans will most likely achieve all that they are hoping to, but how far will they go?