“If you don’t understand — from the school district to the superintendents — that we want our teachers held harmless, then I’m sorry, you’re tone-deaf.” —-State Representative Eddie Smith (Knoxville). That message was heard and understood statewide, right? Apparently not. We are receiving reports from across the state that some districts are denying their teachers their justified and earned bonuses, which harms the educator.
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NASHVILLE, Tennessee – On Tuesday State Rep. “Fast Eddie” Smith (R-Knoxville), House sponsor of the Transit Improvement District Act, which is an amendment under “caption bill” HB2361, declined The Tennessee Star’s offer to discuss his bill as previously reported. With multiple unanswered questions and several proposed amendments, the bill was rolled one week in the House Transportation Committee later that day. One hour prior to the House Transportation Committee meeting Tuesday, Chairman State Rep. Barry Doss (R-Leoma) held a bill review, which is relatively standard practice for all committees in order to address members’ issues or concerns with the bills that are on that day’s committee calendar. During Tuesday’s bill review, State Rep. Smith, who also sits on the House Transportation Committee, gave a brief description of the project not previously made public, saying the rail to be used is a spur that goes about 15 miles between the airport and what is being developed as the new downtown Alcoa and World’s Fair Park near UT. Where a transit station is located, those joining the District “will willingly self-assess themselves to help pay for this, because they are going to reap the benefit from the train stops and it would…
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NASHVILLE, Tennessee – State Rep. Eddie Smith (R-Knoxville) and State Sen. Becky Duncan Massey (R-Knoxville) are the sponsors of a bill that would permit the creation of Transit Improvement Districts and is currently targeted to the Knoxville area. HB2361/SB2354, filed as a caption bill on February 1, by March 14 had a 14-page amendment that “makes the bill” and will add a new part to the Central Business Improvement District Act of 1971, the new part to be known and called as the “Transit Improvement District Act.” During the presentation of the Act as an amendment to SB2354 to the Senate Transportation and Safety Committee on March 14, Sen. Massey stated that the Transit Improvement District Act mirrors the Central Business Improvement District Act of 1990 before deferring to a witness. Massey’s witness, former Democrat Knoxville council member and failed Knoxville mayoral candidate, Joe Hultquist, began testifying without any introduction as to his credentials, qualifications or interest in the bill, other than stating his name. The presentation of the HB2361 amendment to the House Transportation Subcommittee a week later was handled by the House sponsor himself, State Rep. Smith. The amendment is still not available on the Tennessee General Assembly…
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State Rep. Eddie Smith (R-Knoxville), a member of the House Education Administration & Planning Subcommittee and Vice-Chair of the full Committee, was nowhere to be found when subcommittee chairman State Rep. Mark White (R-Memphis) jumped his own bill on in-state tuition for illegal immigrants from number 35 on the agenda to the very first bill to be heard. As The Tennessee Star reported earlier, White’s bill, HB2429, was passed on a voice vote without any discussion other than a strongly worded statement of opposition from State Rep. Dawn White (R-Murfreesboro) (no relation to Mark White). It will go next to the full Education Committee although it has not been put on the calendar yet. The Senate companion bill, however, is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday, March 21st. Smith joined the subcommittee after White’s bill was passed. As to prior in-state tuition bills, Smith’s voting record is more transparent with the exception of the subcommittee votes where bills are passed by voice vote even though legislators have the option to request being recorded specifically as a “no” vote. With regard to Tuesday’s vote, the only recorded “no” vote was from Rep. Dawn White. The first year Eddie Smith served in the Tennessee General Assembly…
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State Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver on Wednesday called a bill that would require seat belts on Tennessee school buses “emotionally-driven” and “bad policy.” Weaver (R-Lancaster) made her comments when the proposed legislation was brought before the House Education Administration and Planning Committee. The bill is sponsored in the House by Rep. JoAnne Favors (D-Chattanooga) and in the Senate by Sen. Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga). It comes in the aftermath of a Chattanooga school bus crash in November in which six children were killed and others injured. Bus driver Johnthony Walker was charged with vehicular homicide. Police say Walker was speeding when the bus crashed into a tree and flipped over. Weaver said requiring seat belts could lead to more deaths as a result of little children not being able to work themselves out of their restraints, especially if a bus caught fire or ended up in water. “This is a very dangerous bill,” Weaver said. The bill originally called for any bus purchased starting July 2018 to be equipped with a restraint system and required any bus currently in use to have seat belts by July 2023. The bill was later amended to require only buses purchased starting July 2019 to have seat…
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