Tag: Jeff Yarbro

Arguments for Appeal in Lawsuit over Nashville Transit Plan End Without Judges Offering Date for Ruling

Tom Pappert
Stop an Unfair Tax hearing

The Tennessee Appeals Court heard arguments last Thursday in the appeal by the Committee to Stop an UnFair Tax, the group which sued Metro Nashville last month to stop the implementation of the Choose How You Move transit plan that voters approved in November, as opponents have argued it is illegal under the Tennessee law that empowers cities to levy sales taxes to fund mass transit.

Oral arguments were heard by a panel of three judges after the lawsuit was initially dismissed in January, when Chancery Court Judge Anne C. Martin ruled the litigation did not represent a legitimate election contest, and that Mayor Freddie O’Connell and Metro Nashville complied with the IMPROVE Act of 2017 when drafting and approving the referendum.

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Nashville Democrat Jeff Yarbro Wants Elon Musk in ‘Jail’ if DOGE ‘Hurts Tennesseans’ by Blocking Federal Grants

Tom Pappert
State Senator Jeff Yarbro

Tennessee State Senator Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville) on Thursday filed legislation that he said could lead to the jailing of Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk, if the government reformer’s work “hurts Tennesseans” by denying them grant funding through DOGE’s efforts to cut wasteful spending.

Senate Bill (SB) 1128 by Jeff Yarbro, submitted Thursday as the “Shielding Tennesseans from Oligarchic Power and Eliminating Lawless Obstruction of Necessities” (STOP ELON) Act, would create a new felony offense that would be applied to anyone who, according to a description of the bill, interferes “with an individual’s or entity’s receipt of a loan, grant, or financial assistance,” to which the government previously said they were entitled.

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Tennessee State House Set to Take on $1.6 Billion Franchise Tax Refund, $400 Million Repeal

The Center Square
Jeff Yarbro

Discussions on a nearly $1.6 billion franchise tax refund and $400 million annual franchise tax cut are set to begin in Tennessee’s House of Representatives on Wednesday.

Bill sponsors have termed the $1.55 billion franchise tax refund fund as necessary for the state to avoid litigation. But the Lee administration proposal has not included which businesses will get those refunds nor if threats of litigation have been received.

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Huey: If Nashville Republicans, Christians, and Libertarians Vote, Republican Alice Rolli Can Win the Mayoral Race

Tennessee Star Staff

Digital marketing expert and creator of the conservative TennVoterGuide.com Craig Huey joins host Michael Patrick Leahy in-studio on Monday’s episode of The Tennessee Star Report to outline who – among the 12 candidates – has a real chance to win the Nashville mayoral election; who is running the smartest campaign; and who is behind the well-financed efforts to push Nashville – and Tennessee – to the far Left.

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New Legislation Would Exempt Tennessee Teachers from Cataloging Books in Classroom Libraries

TC Weber

State Senator Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville) introduced legislation that would exempt teachers from the state requirement of cataloging books in their personal classroom libraries in a manner that would not undermine current law as it applies to school libraries.

According to Yarbro’s legislation, if passed into law, this bill would free teachers up while creating a policy that ensures parents and legal guardians have multiple opportunities throughout the school year to view books in their student’s classroom libraries. Also, a provision prohibits teachers from knowingly or intentionally using their classroom libraries to circumvent the current law. This ensures that inappropriate books for the school’s library can not be included in classroom libraries.

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Tennessee Looks to Reinstate SNAP Benefit Work Requirement

The Center Square

A Tennessee bill to reinstate a 20-hour-a-week work requirement for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is headed to the Senate.

Senate Bill 2071 would require able-bodied individuals between age 18 and 49 and without children to work, train or volunteer for 20 hours each week to receive benefits. The bill would be effective once it is signed into law. Work-requirement laws were waived during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to sponsoring Sen. Jack Johnson, R-Franklin.

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Legislation That Would Make It More Difficult for Metro Nashville Citizens to Amend Charter Fails

Aaron Gulbransen
Jeff Yarbro

Legislation that would make it more difficult for Metro Nashville citizens to amend their city charter failed in a key Senate committee and is effectively dead for the year.

SB2544, which failed to pass out of the Tennessee Senate State and Local Government Committee, proposed to eliminate exemptions to the requirements for recall, referendum, or initiative in Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 2 that allow Metro Nashville’s charter to govern the signature requirement process.

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Democrat-Sponsored Legislation Would Make It More Difficult for Metro Nashville Citizens to Amend Charter

Aaron Gulbransen

Democrat-sponsored legislation that would make it markedly more difficult for Metro Nashville citizens to amend the Metro charter is set to be considered by a key state Senate committee.

The measure increases petitions signature requirements to trigger Metropolitan charter amendment ballot referendums in Davidson County. The Metro Charter currently allows citizens to propose charter amendments by ballot initiative for public referendum. The required number of petitions signatures has historically been 10 percent of the voters for the previous general election.

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Tennessee Legislators Pass Special Session Education Reforms

Corinne Murdock

The Tennessee General Assembly passed a series of legislation to reopen schools and improve learning losses and literacy. The measures passed will establish phonics as the primary method for reading instruction, mandate third-grade students read on grade level before graduating to fourth grade, establish tutors and summer learning camps for students who fell behind in certain subjects, and remove accountability for standardized testing results. An additional bill concerning the state budget will fund 4 percent teacher raises.

As reported previously by The Tennessee Star, the General Assembly convened the special session to prioritize the state’s flagging education system due to pandemic-related closures. The session was called per the request of Governor Bill Lee last month.

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Tennessee Taxpayers Gave $1 Billion in Corporate Welfare Last Year

Chris Butler
Bernstein

You, the taxpayers of Tennessee, helped give away nearly $1 billion in tax credits to corporations who set up shop here last year. State law, as it turns out, forbids you from finding out exactly what kind of return you’re getting on your investment. In other words, even though the money came out of your wallet, you may not know how any one corporation spent it. For this, you can thank Tennessee’s confidentiality laws. Mark Cunningham, spokesman for the Nashville-based Beacon Center of Tennessee, a free market think tank, said state officials hide behind them. “Beacon wants the books to be completely open when it comes to corporate handouts,” Cunningham said. “If you are getting money from the taxpayers then we should know how many jobs you are creating and what that money is being used for. If you are taking our money then you don’t get to hide behind these walls, in our opinion.” When there’s more transparency with these tax credits then there’s more clarity. When there’s more clarity about what, precisely, corporations do with this money then there’s more likelihood the taxpayers will dislike it, Cunningham said. The state’s powers that be, of course, bestow these tax…

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