Tennessee’s annual Ag Day on the Hill was held at the State Capitol in Nashville on March 19 and featured a variety of events, exhibits, activities and livestock along with producers and exhibitors from across the state. The event coincided with National Agriculture Week. In Tennessee, agriculture-related industries employ 324,000 people and contribute $89 billion into the economy. Among those in attendance were farmers, foresters, agriculture officials, legislators, 4-H and Future Farmers of America members.
The House kills massive $800 million tax increase
The House on Wednesday successfully defeated a major tax increase on Tennessee businesses. House Bill 2043 would have also enacted the Business Enterprise Tax Act, raising taxes on all Tennessee businesses with gross receipts of $250,000 or more annually.
Tennessee remains one of the lowest-taxed states in the nation. In the last decade, the Legislature has cut $2.5 billion in state taxes through sales tax holidays and elimination of other taxes, including the Hall income tax, inheritance tax and nearly all professional privilege taxes on citizens in certain occupations.
The Legislature last year passed the largest tax cut in state history, including a three-month-long tax holiday on groceries, through the Tennessee Works Tax Act of 2023. In addition to benefitting families, these cuts provide important relief for small businesses through various changes to business, franchise, and excise tax collections. These reforms will encourage future entrepreneurship and further strengthen our state’s economic competitiveness.
General Assembly increases support for sexual assault victims
Legislation that gives sexual assault victims more time to file a civil lawsuit against their attacker has been unanimously approved by the Tennessee General Assembly.
House Bill 2216, also known as Danielle’s Law, will extend the statute of limitations from one year to three years for civil lawsuits relating to a sexual assault injury or illness. The time would increase to five years if a police report was filed.
“There have been cases where rape kits have not been processed within a year of the assault occurring, leaving survivors with no option to pursue civil action,” said Rep. Dennis Powers.
The legislation is named after Nashville resident Danielle Pyle, who found out 13 months after filing a police report that the local district attorney’s office had declined to pursue charges against her alleged rapist. Existing state law prevented her from taking civil action since it had been more than one year since the crime occurred. House Bill 2216 will now head to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk to be signed into law.
Bill establishing stronger penalties for threats of mass violence advances
A bill currently advancing through the House would establish stronger penalties for those who threaten mass violence in Tennessee.
As amended, House Bill 2538 would make it a Class E felony to knowingly, through any means of communication, threaten to commit an act of mass violence. The punishment would increase to a Class D felony if the threat was made against a school, house of worship, or government facility. It could also be enhanced to a Class D if the defendant had a prior conviction for threatening mass violence, or they had taken a substantial step towards carrying out the crime.
“There aren’t a lot of great tools for a district attorney if someone calls and makes a credible, knowing threat of violence against a location,” said bill sponsor Assistant House Majority Leader Mark Cochran, R-Englewood. “It’s either a misdemeanor charge or you can be charged with an act of terrorism… so this gives them another type of charge to go after in that type of situation.”
The bill requires, as a condition of bail or other pretrial release, a court to order a defendant charged with threatening to commit an act of mass violence to undergo a mental health assessment to determine if emergency involuntary admission to a treatment facility is needed. It also authorizes a court to order a defendant to undergo a mental health evaluation to determine whether the defendant is competent to stand trial or the defendant’s mental capacity.
Debanking
The House on Monday approved legislation to protect Tennesseans from discrimination by financial institutions for their personal beliefs. House Bill 2100, sponsored by State Rep. Jason Zachary, R-Knoxville, would prohibit financial institutions and insurers from discriminating, denying or canceling services to Tennesseans based on political opinions, religious beliefs, social credit scores and other factors. The practice is commonly referred to as “debanking.” If approved, House Bill 2100 would take effect July 1.
State Representative Dennis Powers represents the 36th House District, which consists of Campbell, Union, and Claiborne Counties in the Tennessee House of Representatives. He is chairman of the House Banking and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee and serves on four other committees: Transportation, Commerce, State Government and Public Service.
