Image Credit: TN General Assembly
The Tennessee Conservative [By Olivia Lupia] –
Legislation which would expand fee waivers for enhanced handgun carry permits for retired law enforcement officers who meet certain criteria continues to progress in the House, passing the Judiciary Committee on Feb. 11.
HB1508 by Todd Warner would waive the $300 fee every 8 years for a lifetime enhanced handgun carry permit for retired law enforcement officers who served for less than 10 years prior to retirement, was POST-certified, or had equivalent training, on the date the officer retired, and who retired from service due to an injury received in the line of duty.
Current law waives the fee for officers injured in the line of duty who had served for 10 or more years, and this bill would simply extend that benefit to any officer who retired for injury in the line of duty regardless of number of years they had served.
The bill easily passed 7-0 in the House Civil Justice Subcommittee last week and saw similar success during the full Judiciary Committee hearing on Wednesday.
Democrat G.A. Hardaway questioned whether the bill accounts for how an officer retired, like if they retired “running from prosecution before they lost their POST certification”, to which Warner stated that he did not believe that any officer who retired “in any type of trouble” would be eligible for the waiver.
There were no other questions or comments before the vote, which was 13-0 in favor of passage, with a couple Democrats joining Republicans to vote “Yes”. However, two Republicans, Rep. Rick Eldridge and Rep. Mary Littleton, joined two other Democrat committee members in marking themselves “Present Not Voting”.
While most bills typically only pass through a single subcommittee and then it’s full committee, some legislation, like HB1508, will visit several committees before making it to the House floor depending on the spectrum of their contents or their proposed alterations to regulations/laws from multiple different departments.
This bill will now move to the House Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee while its Senate counterpart, SB1628, is still awaiting a calendar date before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
