Tennessee Legislature Begins Discussion Of $1.2B Business Tax Refund, Repeal

An Estimated $1.2 Billion Franchise Tax Refund To Businesses Is Scheduled To Be Voted On For The First Time In The Tennessee Legislature Next Week After The Senate Finance Ways And Means Subcommittee Heard Details Of The Proposal.

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Tennessee Bill Would Change Absentee Ballot Application Deadline

Tennessee’s Senate Passed A Bill This Week That Would Require Voters To Request An Absentee Ballot 10 Days Before An Election Instead Of The Current Seven Days.

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Software Overhaul Leads To Months Of Tennessee Families Being Unable To Access Food Stamps

Leaders Of The Tennessee Department Of Human Services Told Lawmakers On Wednesday That It Could Take Another Two More Months Before The State’s SNAP Program Is Running Smoothly Again.

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Tennessee Legislature Opens With New House Gallery Policy Restricting Access

The Tennessee House Of Representatives Is Operating With New Access Rules That Restrict The Public’s Entrance Into Upstairs Galleries As The Legislature Opens The 2024 Session, Even As It Is Set To Take Up Several Critical Bills Such As The Governor’s School Voucher “Scholarships” Plan.

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Tennessee GOP State Rep Wants To Return Medicaid Expansion Authority To Governor

Outgoing Republican Rep. Sam Whitson Is Mulling A Reversal Of State Law Requiring The Governor To Gain Approval From The Tennessee Legislature Before Expanding Medicaid.

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Tennessee Dems Push Back On Education Policy Research That Finds No Connection Between Increased Public-School Spending & School Performance

A Policy Paper States That No Connection Has Been Shown Between Increased Public-School Spending And School Performance. The Paper Also States That Expanding Parents’ Access To Public Charter Schools And Private School ESAs Could Provide An Incentive For Public Schools To Use K-12 Education Dollars Wisely.

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Tennessee’s House Education Chairman Eyes 4th-Grade “Retention” Law

The Ink Is Barely Dry On Revisions To The State’s 3rd-Grade Reading And “Retention” Law, And A Tennessee House Education Chairman Is Considering A Similar Strategy For Fourth-Graders, Including A Plan To Advance If They Continue To Test Poorly.

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Governor Lee’s Special Session Ends In House Scrum

A Special Session Of The General Assembly On Public Safety In The Wake Of The Covenant School Mass Shooting Wrapped Up With Violence And Anger. Most Questions Surrounded House Speaker Cameron Sexton’s Departure From The Dais Where He Bumped Into State Rep. Justin Pearson, Who Held A Sign Saying “Protect Kids Not Guns.”

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Sen. Janice Bowling Moves To Adjourn On First Day Of Tennessee’s Special Session

Sen. Bowling Said, “There Are Bills Filed Now That We Must Consider […] In A Very Abbreviated Amount Of Time. Some Of These Bills Seek To Aggregate The Rights Of Tennesseans And Some Of Them Seek To Even Enlarge The Use Of Federal Medicaid Spending, Thereby Expanding Our Entanglements With The Federal Government. I Fear That No Matter How Well Intentioned This Extraordinary Session May Be, It Was Ill-Conceived. For Reasons Stated Herein, I Make A Motion To Adjourn.”

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