Tennessee House approves measures on dual-office holding, wildlife naming, literacy reviews and CMT reporting

Members of the Tennessee House of Representatives approved a package of bills and resolutions during a floor session that included a prohibition on holding some simultaneous elected offices, a clarification of naming authority for the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission, a change to the frequency of a comptroller literacy report, and a nonbinding resolution urging a voluntary state reporting system for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.

The measures were approved by voice or recorded tallies after limited debate on the House floor. Sponsors and a handful of members discussed scope and potential local impacts for some measures; other items were presented with agency or sponsor descriptions and passed with little floor discussion.

House bill 618: limits dual-office holding Representative Ron Wright, sponsor of House Bill 618, described the measure as: "It is a 1 sentence, bill prohibits an individual from holding an elected office of a local government and holding another elected office in the state at the same time." The bill includes a grandfather clause and "does not apply to state executive committees," Wright said on the floor. Representative John Hirt spoke against the measure for parts of rural Tennessee, saying, "for my rural district, we don't have people beating the bushes down to serve," and urging that voters should be allowed to decide in places where long-serving officials perform both roles. The bill passed on third and final consideration, receiving a recorded tally reported as 61 yeas, 27 nays, 4 present/abstain.

House Bill 422: naming authority for wildlife agency assets Speaker Pro Tem Marsh, speaking for House Bill 422, said the measure was requested by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and "attempts to do is clarify that the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission has the authority to name real property and infrastructure under the jurisdiction of the Wildlife Resource agency." The sponsor noted the agency's existing naming policy, that the 13 commissioners will consider naming requests in public session, and offered examples of assets that could be named to support funding: shooting ranges, outreach and hunter education facilities, hatcheries (which the sponsor said produce "more than 9,000,000 fish annually"), and boat ramps. Marsh said the goal is to "advance the quality and efficiency of agency programs" and reduce some cost pressure on sportsmen who fund the agency through licenses. The House approved the bill on third reading by recorded vote (86 yeas, 8 nays).

Senate Bill 208: changes to comptroller literacy reporting Representative Mayberry moved to substitute and conform to Senate Bill 208, which the sponsor said would change the reporting cadence for reviews done by the Comptroller's Office of Research and Education Accountability (OREA) related to the Literacy Success Act and associated plans. Mayberry told members the change "allows the comptroller's office to have a more detailed thorough explanation of literacy practices rather than just presenting a snapshot on a regular basis" and that the less-frequent schedule would permit district interviews and deeper analysis. After brief floor questions, the measure passed on third reading (95 yeas, 0 nays recorded).

House Joint Resolution 35: emergency telecommunicators House Joint Resolution 35, a nonbinding resolution recognizing emergency telecommunicators as first responders, was presented by Representative Ashley. The item was briefly set aside (a motion to "roll to the hill") then later taken up and adopted by the body; the final recorded tally was reported as 95 yeas, 0 nays.

House Joint Resolution 120: voluntary reporting for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) Representative Dennis Powers introduced House Joint Resolution 120 urging the Tennessee Department of Health to implement a voluntary reporting system for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT). Powers said an estimate of about 25,000 Tennesseans affected was derived by applying a national percentage to the state's population and that the voluntary system would use existing health records to produce an annual report to legislative health committees to strengthen grant competitiveness and specialized care planning. The resolution passed by recorded vote (94 yeas, 0 nays reported).

Votes at a glance - SB 115 (substituted for House Bill 57) — Passed, recorded tally: 93 yeas, 0 nays (motion to substitute and passage moved by Representative Moon). Notes: Sponsor said the bill "adds another tool that the comptroller may use to ensure accountability and transparency in local government." - HB 618 — Passed, recorded tally: 61 yeas, 27 nays, 4 present/abstain. Sponsor: Representative Wright. Key floor objection: rural recruitment and voter choice concerns from Representative Hirt. - HB 422 — Passed, recorded tally: 86 yeas, 8 nays. Sponsor: Speaker Pro Tem Marsh. Notes: Clarifies naming authority for Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission assets; sponsor cited potential fundraising uses including hatcheries and boat ramps. - HJR 35 — Adopted, recorded tally: 95 yeas, 0 nays. Sponsor: Representative Ashley. Notes: Nonbinding recognition of emergency telecommunicators as first responders; the measure was briefly rolled then later adopted. - SB 208 (substituted for House Bill 187) — Passed, recorded tally: 95 yeas, 0 nays. Sponsor: Representative Mayberry. Notes: Changes frequency and scope of the Comptroller's report on literacy plans to allow more in-depth reviews. - HJR 120 — Adopted, recorded tally: 94 yeas, 0 nays. Sponsor: Representative Powers. Notes: Urges the Department of Health to implement a voluntary reporting system for CMT and provide an annual report to health committees to support care planning and grant competitiveness.

On procedure and next steps Several bills were moved as substitutions to conform to companion Senate language; a few items were temporarily rolled to later calendars and then returned for votes. The House adjourned into recess until 2 p.m. Monday, 03/03/2025, as announced on the floor.

Sources: floor remarks and recorded votes on the Tennessee House floor session.