[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6636369,"mediaKeyId","2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3","parentId",2611084,"title","Votes at a glance: Tennessee House adopts multiple bills and resolutions on March floor","audioSeconds",1380,"startMs",4260000,"endMs",5640000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3&start=4260&end=5640","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3/thumbnail_4260000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6636369/Tennessee/Votes-at-a-glance-Tennessee-House-adopts-multiple-bills-and-resolutions-on-March-floor","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6636369-87983ca79b27f6983c4a05ee4b461839/orig.mp4?Expires=1770993898&Signature=IKGnZlvjXTG9PfJ5xUmtx5PjFXT3HieJgQAFSKbUl73h9KCfPXQa23JNTz8fwAL4Apbeei7hZbFk4ukG~8Y1nS~5cqnsDrFnuXUlLN4TS84r0QPB5bu8QumVnR1Oa28I2o6X4J2Ib1agNT8xlLAsfwi2y8s93ZVGQ8K9KfeTLM28MjT7m6McundPDk4kiyWMfhLzzJU3OZy7oNItDnYpXJC-z9MZx4F-qILYLmdNCpnVLwsVrIwGmpbMWD2xn9TMIpgabjdeMvic9NKbDa3roKdyVTuknzfBcoPTfXsDpxaOtZrZ4ycbbBcAOY-exoLNQSyaNgd~BOipt4lheqm1nQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","TN House of Representatives","date","2025-03-13T20:41:27.527Z","article","On March 13 the Tennessee House considered and adopted a number of bills and resolutions across policy areas. The items below summarize each measure that received a formal vote on the floor and reproduce the vote outcome as announced in the chamber.

Votes at a glance

- Senate Bill 174 (substituted for House Bill 186) — surgical assistant credentialing: House passed the bill to add the American Board of Surgical Assistants to the list of approved credentialing bodies. Clerk announcement recorded voting results in the chamber; the bill was declared passed.

- House Joint Resolution 304 — honoring disabled victims of filicide: Representative Alexander read the resolution listing named victims. The resolution was read and presented; members were invited to join for a photo. (Read on the floor; formal adoption was presented.)

- Senate Bill 1292 (substitute for House Bill 115) — disclosure of tax information (technical fix): Sponsor said the bill corrected a prior drafting error removing a criminal penalty for publishing specified rebate recipient names; the House passed the bill as announced by the clerk.

- House Bill 1320 — Transportation Modernization Act amendments: See separate coverage. House passed the bill (clerk announced: \"Aye, 71, 16 nays\").

- Senate Bill 371 (substitute for House Bill 341) — collection of biological specimens for DNA analysis from death-row inmates: Sponsor said the bill requires DNA collection from currently incarcerated death-row inmates so potential matches can be made against untested kits; floor roll-call announced the result as \"Aye: 86; Nays: 3; Present: recorded in chamber\" and the chair declared the measure passed.

- House Bill 501 — juvenile justice review commission: Creates a juvenile-justice review body modeled on the Second Look Commission; sponsor said the panel will be multidisciplinary. Clerk announced \"Ayes 88, no nays, 2 present, not voting,\" and the chair declared passage.

- Senate Bill 569 (substitute for House Bill 693) — pharmacy authority and consultation fee: The bill extends pharmacist prescribing/dispensing provisions and permits a pharmacist to charge a consultation fee (expected to be reimbursed by insurance). The clerk announced the vote as \"Ayes 84, 4 nays,\" and the bill passed.

- House Bill 1133 — adds nuclear energy production facilities to certified green energy definition in code: The bill was passed (clerk announcement: \"Ayes 87, 2 nays, 1 present, not voting\").

- House Bill 1143 — consolidates clean/renewable energy definitions: Sponsor said the bill merged existing definitions and added the word \"green;\" the clerk announced the result as recorded on the floor and declared passage.

- Senate Bill 669 (substitute for House Bill 1226) — remove references to World Health Organization in code: Sponsor moved passage to remove references to WHO from Tennessee code. The clerk announced \"Aye, 70, 19 nays,\" and the chair declared the bill passed.

- House bill concurrence and other calendar items: The chamber also concurred in a senate amendment to House Bill 932 and adopted several resolutions honoring individuals and memorials as read on the floor. The clerk recorded each adoption on the record.

What the votes mean

Most items above were passed on third and final consideration and were noncontroversial or technical in nature; a few—particularly the Transportation Modernization Act changes and the pharmacy consultation fee—generated substantive floor questions. Where the transcript contained explicit numeric tallies as announced by the clerk, those tallies are reported verbatim in this summary. If the clerk’s spoken tally in the transcript was unclear, this summary reproduces the chamber’s announced phrasing rather than reconstructing alternate counts.

A full record of each bill’s final enrolled text, amendments, and the official roll-call will be available in the House journal and on the legislature’s website.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","House Floor Session- 15th Legislative Day- March 13, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","On the March 13 floor, the Tennessee House adopted a series of bills and resolutions spanning health care, juvenile justice, corrections, energy, and other areas. Below are short summaries and the chamber’s recorded actions as announced on the floor.","taxTitle","House Floor , House of Representatives, Committees, Legislative, Tennessee","taxId",29556,"location","Tennessee","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6636374,"Tennessee House adopts resolution urging Congress to consider national 'Fair Tax' consumption tax",364,4366000,4730000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3&start=4366&end=4730","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3/thumbnail_4366000.jpg","/articles/6636374/Tennessee/Tennessee-House-adopts-resolution-urging-Congress-to-consider-national-Fair-Tax-consumption-tax","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6636374-a75e47cf8be5673445b7064bf3ca6cc2/orig.mp4?Expires=1770993898&Signature=bm0mymNng7PUMzjtrkqicELjeHYf4FxofqsgznkSwT0dtVWEcBDBZQWQ9Z-X8EsR5H6o4r38P0mqxNI~az-c5SpZ~x2VHK-Nt4c8uqNLQgoLTkpnZsPW1fMJw5Mn5bLcQJ7oRJEWybG5U6TWzoz6kKfdzFAnxPAULsKmVxJmISz~CqgazHIA5hQ7IKaPVNuiSOmRSvWX9cw9tlsbMod1xQgB1JYVTbcMef-nMzmU5cDiWAOQIpTWKXlngj2EFp7aJjKQVrQzudl2hyWWkoXpHM8fSTSHZe1EhGoQqqn1lMsVJCjgRYnM4x6VwjK4ycedIOTecJSzHK1pRf-GWzw~lA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Tennessee House adopted a nonbinding resolution urging the U.S. Congress to consider replacing federal income taxes with a national retail consumption tax commonly known as the \"Fair Tax.\" Representative Powers moved adoption of House Joint Resolution 17, which endorses HR 25 (the Fair Tax Act) as a national retail sales tax while stating protections for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.

Supporters described the Fair Tax as a national consumption tax that would eliminate federal income and payroll taxes and argued it would be fairer and simpler. Representative Powers said projections he had seen put an effective retail rate in the 17% to 23% range and described the proposal as in keeping with Tennessee’s consumption-tax model.

Opponents said the policy would be regressive and place a heavier burden on lower-income households. Representative McKenzie argued a national consumption tax would disproportionately affect working families and noted concerns about the impact on households already paying for housing, food, and transportation.

Representative Laffer and others defended the concept and said proponents propose rebates and that production-stage taxes would be removed under the plan, which supporters said could lower production costs. Floor debate included back-and-forth about whether rebates and elimination of production-stage taxes would compensate for regressivity.

The House adopted the resolution. The clerk announced the vote on the motion as \"Aye, 69, 20 2 nays\" as recorded in the chamber and the chair declared the resolution adopted. The resolution urges Congress to consider HR 25 but does not change federal law or create a state tax.

Because HJR 17 is a house joint resolution urging federal action, it has advisory effect only; supporters said it signals Tennessee’s preference to Congress, while opponents said the policy discussion belongs at the federal level and raised concerns about distributional effects.","The House adopted House Joint Resolution 17 urging Congress to repeal federal income taxes and consider HR 25, the Fair Tax Act, prompting floor debate over regressivity and production-stage tax elimination.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6636379,"Tennessee House approves temporary changes to Transportation Modernization Act allowing committee discussion and emergency contracting",451,4842000,5293000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3&start=4842&end=5293","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2611084-801bd84dd75cf9c121798750a55964a3/thumbnail_4842000.jpg","/articles/6636379/Tennessee/Tennessee-House-approves-temporary-changes-to-Transportation-Modernization-Act-allowing-committee-discussion-and-emergency-contracting","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6636379-06d5b36b1bc23988ab73539b8b570501/orig.mp4?Expires=1770993898&Signature=LLG0tN3ZmOyQY8UEs5v3QGhLTzH93KPcV9bGAu4qAiqhyuFIWr86wJn9SRMZ-O5fQbmayY~AvMJn9JzxzKQqyFBLi35JxjLBwvtqTF2-sBsmUbsOc5IMPFCZvg7-HxAe4k4IIzv9hhYn9RVKqENhfAL8a9-ZbSGgtzwJMS4O7MCcCUJn0kxAQ6mjmJbnqFJJau4EXI8Zb9x~eaOEZK5a5BryVkuEhP-UDYT~jLjQRKbpFBy8dY1T~16lo~-SWC2GuoBroHxLkf2rYZrYdiCzkat~nQsLCvJksJKaa~L9dng1cKm9EqBuBLDFI~wVR8ieYodXBK8qOPV0rnAaZSRe7w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Tennessee House of Representatives voted to approve changes to the Transportation Modernization Act that permit selection-committee members to communicate with one another during procurement scoring, change how scores are calculated from an average to a total, and expand the department’s authority to use design-build and CMGC-style contracting in emergencies without relying on an executive order.

Supporters said the changes follow two years of practical use and improved TDOT’s ability to respond to disasters. Chairman Howe moved passage on third and final consideration and said the edits were informed by TDOT’s use of the TMA after hurricane damage in East Tennessee in 2023 and the experience of operating under Executive Order 106.

Opponents warned the change could increase the risk of collusion or bid rigging. Representative Clemens questioned how allowing committee members to confer would reduce bias and argued that averaging independent scores better protects taxpayers from undue influence. Representative Cummings pressed the sponsor on why the bill uses a sunset rather than adopting a permanent change now; Howe said the sunset (July 1, 2029) would allow review and possible renewal.

The bill also clarifies that, going forward, the transportation commissioner — rather than an emergency executive order — may authorize use of expedited design contracts in emergency responses. Supporters said allowing committee communication exposed previously unknown problems with proposals; critics said it reduced independence and raised procurement integrity concerns.

Chairman Howe said the approach had worked under the prior executive order and that the changes were practical refinements based on real-world use. The House adopted the bill; the clerk announced the vote as \"Aye, 71, 16 nays,\" and the chair declared the bill passed.

The law change includes a sunset date of July 1, 2029, after which the legislature must act again to continue or alter the new procedures. That sunset was a recurring point of questioning during floor debate.

The changes affect how TDOT runs selection committees and how the department can contract in declared emergencies. Lawmakers who raised procurement and anti-collusion concerns said they expect follow-up oversight and review during the sunset period.","The Tennessee House passed a bill amending the Transportation Modernization Act to let selection-committee members discuss proposals, change scoring to a cumulative total, and allow broader emergency contracting authority for the Department of Transportation; the changes include a sunset date of July 1, 2029.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Votes at a glance: Tennessee House adopts multiple bills and resolutions on March floor

Tennessee House adopts resolution urging Congress to consider national 'Fair Tax' consumption tax

Tennessee House approves temporary changes to Transportation Modernization Act allowing committee discussion and emergency contracting