Social Media Common Carrier Bill Placed “Behind Budget” But Continues To Move Forward

Image Credit: capitol.tn.gov

The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –

During the House Finance, Ways and Means Subcommittee meeting on March 30th, 2022, the “Common Carrier Bill” that would stop social media censorship of Tennessee elections and citizens was placed behind the budget due to the cost of implementing the recommendations of the legislation.

In presenting his bill to the Subcommittee , sponsor Dennis Powers (R-Jacksboro-District 36) said, “House Bill 2369 designates social media platforms as common carriers. You may have been told a lot of information about this but we actually believe it’s Constitutional.  This was opined through the U.S. Supreme Court as a way to regulate social media platforms as common carriers.  We have worked with the Tennessee Public Utility Commission and working to get them on board to help regulate this so I would appreciate any consideration.”

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Representative Gary Hicks (R-Rogersville-District 9), Chair of the Subcommittee said, “House Bill 2369 does have a cost associated with it so we will have to place it behind the budget to consider it at a later date.  So, without objection, House Bill 2369 will go behind the budget.”

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Representative Powers told the Tennessee Conservative that any bill with a fiscal note is placed behind the budget.  

“I met with Fiscal Review and the Tennessee Public Utility Commission this week to try to reduce the note even more from its original $330,000 to $100,000 now.  We have come up with the possibility of staggering some dates that may help reduce it, i.e. from the date that we require the convenience fee to the actual date of the inception.   If we get some of the fees 3 months earlier and delay the effective 3 months, we may be able to take in enough revenue to have the bill pay for itself.  It is still a work in progress,” Powers said.

The next step for the legislation is to go to the full House Finance Committee for their review and recommendations.

About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative  ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career.  Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others.  He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History.  Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com

One thought on “Social Media Common Carrier Bill Placed “Behind Budget” But Continues To Move Forward

  • March 31, 2022 at 4:46 pm
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    Placing bills behind the budget is how the establishment kills good bills. “Behind the budget” means it’s a lower priority than ALL of the items in the governor’s budget. It’s a farce.

    Reply

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