Capitol Hill Week
APRIL 17, 2009

Legislation that allows more Tennessee products to be used in the blending process of gasoline products was approved Thursday in the State Senate.  The bill, SB 1931, requires suppliers of gasoline products to make gasoline available to wholesalers in a condition that allows the wholesaler to blend it with ethanol.

The federal government has adopted policies which have encouraged the blending of ethanol and other agriculturally produced products with petroleum-based fuels.  Tennessee has also encouraged the agricultural production of crops for conversion into ethanol and biodiesel additives to expand the use of these products. 

In 2008, major oil company suppliers began to cut off wholesalers’ access to unblended product.  This refusal has prevented wholesalers from visiting ethanol terminals within the state and blending the product which might ultimately result in a drastic decrease in the consumption of Tennessee ethanol.

This legislation benefits the agricultural industry and further lessens our reliance upon foreign imported petroleum products.

Legislation helps children in state custody with post-adoption services

Legislation that aims to improve Tennessee’s success rate in adopting children who were previously in state custody has received the unanimous vote of the State Senate.  The bill clarifies state law to provide post-adoption services for child welfare adoptions.

The bill, SB 1702, applies to adoptions when children have been taken into state custody for being unruly or delinquent and parental rights from the biological parents have been terminated.  These are some of the most difficult adoption placements for the Department of Children’s Services.  However, the rate of success improves if post-adoption services are offered.  A few of the services include crisis intervention, family and individual counseling, support groups for parents and children, case management services, and networking of families and community providers.

Tennessee beats the national average on child adoption placements.  This legislation makes sure that services are available to provide a healthier atmosphere for both the child and adoptive parents.

Election law bills heard on Capitol Hill

Several bills to protect Tennessee’s election process were acted on this week by State Senators, including legislation requiring voters to provide photo identification before voting.  The bill, SB 150, provides for various forms of photo identification to be used, including a driver’s license, military identification, a valid passport, government employee identification cards, and any federal, state-issued identification card that contains a photograph of the voter.  The legislation does not apply to citizens 65 years old or older and those in nursing homes.  It also allows for those who are indigent to sign an affidavit swearing their status as an eligible voter.  In addition, the bill provides for a “provisional ballot” which would only be counted if the election counting board is able to verify identification of the voter within three days. 

Seven states require a photograph be shown to prove identification, including neighboring states Georgia, Florida, and Louisiana. 

Legislation that would give election officials the tools to prove citizenship before registering to vote was deferred upon final consideration in the State Senate on Thursday.  Sponsors are working to try and revive the measure in the House of Representatives where it received a tie vote in the Elections Subcommittee of the State and Local Government Committee this week. 

The proposal, SB 1999, sets forth the criteria that local election officials can use to establish citizenship upon registration to vote if they are in doubt.  The U.S. Constitution already requires citizenship.  In addition, federal law makes it a crime knowingly to make a false statement or claim regarding citizenship upon registering to vote.  However, local election officials are reluctant to ask due to lack of guidance on what criteria can be used in determining citizenship.

The dilemma is that election officials in the field have questions about what they can ask for to substantiate that assertion when one checks the box that they are a U.S. citizen.  These officials don’t want to bring it up if they are not authorized to ask for certain identification.  This legislation gives them guidance and clarifies what they can ask for if an election official chooses to put that person to the test.

Another bill regarding elections approved by the full Senate this week, SB 1420, honors the service of those in the military by making it easier for those overseas to access and return the necessary documents to vote absentee.   In the last election, many Tennesseans in military serving overseas requested that they be allowed to send their scanned documents by email because they did not have access to a fax in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

This legislation would allow Tennesseans serving in the military overseas to scan an absentee request or change of address form and attach the document to an email to be sent to the their county election office to make it easier for them to vote.  Currently, only a fax is allowed. The local election office would still compare the signature of the voter before mailing the ballot. 

Finally, the State Senate gave final approval to legislation, SB 440, requiring that convicted felons must pay all court costs imposed before being eligible to have their voting rights restored.  Currently, a person convicted of a felony must be pardoned, discharged from custody or supervision, and have paid all restitution to the victim of the offense to have his or her rights of suffrage restored.  This legislation would add the payment of court costs as well. 

Bills in Brief

Tennessee’s bond rating -- Tennessee Finance Commissioner Dave Goetz appeared before the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee this week where he told members that all three bond rating agencies have confirmed their confidence in Tennessee’s financial standing by maintaining the state’s bond rating and giving Tennessee a ‘stable’ credit outlook.   Both Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s held firm their rating of AA+ with a credit outlook of stable.  Moody’s Investor Service also maintained its rating at Aa1 with an outlook of stable. In February, Moody’s expressed a negative outlook for the broad sector of all U.S. states.

Farmers – The full Senate voted 29 to 3 to approve legislation this week that gives limited immunity to farmers who participate in “agritourism.”  The legislation, SB 2164, applies to events like a “pumpkin patch” or “corn mazing” that farmers may want to have on their property.  The measure requires the farmer to post and maintain a sign that warns persons of this bill's limitation on liability