Tennessee Lawmakers Seek Tougher Penalties for Transporting Illegal Immigrants

Illegal Immigrants

Tennessee lawmakers are poised to pass legislation instituting harsher penalties for those caught providing transportation to illegal immigrants in the state, but first plan to introduce amendments protecting “good Samaritans” and professional drivers from unknowingly violating the law.

The Senate Judiciary Committee considered SB 2802, which would impose a $5,000 fine for individuals caught transporting illegal immigrants in the state on Wednesday, when Senator Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald) introduced an amendment to his bill he said closed existing loopholes within the law.

Read the full story

Not Feasible: Co-Chair of Tennessee’s Federal Funding Task Force Says Rejecting All $1 Billion-Plus in Federal Education Money Isn’t Possible

As Tennessee lawmakers investigate the possibility of just saying no to federal education funds and the ties that come with them, the state’s Federal Funding Working Group co-chair told The Tennessee Star that completely letting go probably isn’t going to happen.

“No, I don’t think that’s feasible,” said State Senator Jon Lundberg (R-Bristol) in an interview this week with The Star.

Read the full story

Bill to Ban TikTok, WeChat on Tennessee Public College Networks Passes Senate

A bill to ban TikTok and WeChat on public college internet networks in Tennessee passed the Senate by a 28-1 vote Thursday.

During committee, Sen. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, said many in the United States have been concerned about Chinese spy balloons over the past month. But he said that, during his work in the Navy, he dealt with a lot of secrets and the biggest secret was how the military gets its secrets.

“What we have at our fingertips is thousands of balloons,” he said, pointing to his phone.

Read the full story

Tennessee Senate Passes Bill Increasing Those Eligible for School ESA/Voucher Program

Tennessee’s Senate approved a bill Monday night that would expand eligibility for the state’s educational savings account program to any student who attended a public school in any of the three previous years.

Sen. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, said the bill is aimed at students who would have fit the requirements when ESA’s were originally passed in 2019 but decided to attend a private or charter school after that while the original ESA law was blocked in the court system.

Read the full story

Tennessee State Senate Hurriedly Approves Major Abortion Bill Just Before Legislature Adjourns, Gov. Lee Says He Will Sign into Law

Major pro-life legislation was approved by the Tennessee Legislature in Friday’s early morning hours just before legislators wrapped up their year.

Passage — and the end of the session — came as a surprise because Senate leaders had said they would not take the abortion measure up in this condensed year, according to a story by The Tennessee Journal: On the Hill. The publication also reported the Senate did this to persuade the House to back off of making changes to the budget proposal the Senate had approved.

Read the full story