Norris supports petition against resettlement of refugees
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — State Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris on Monday urged citizens from all across Tennessee to join him in signing a petition to give a fair and timely hearing to, and adopt, Senate Joint Resolution 467 — the Resolution recently adopted by the Tennessee Senate aimed at challenging the Federal Government’s Refugee Resettlement Program.
SJR 467, once passed by the House of Representatives and signed by the Governor, asks the Tennessee Attorney General to file suit to enforce the federal government’s duty to consult on refugee resettlement and on Tenth Amendment grounds concerning expenditures for the federal Refugee Resettlement Program.
“It’s high time someone fought for Tennessee’s rights, sovereignty and the safety of her citizens,” Norris said. “I urge all citizens who value liberty to visit KeepTNSafe.com and sign the petition showing your support for this important resolution.”
In part, the petition reads: “To defend the sovereignty of the state of Tennessee, this resolution seeks to uphold our state’s constitutional power to defend the peace, safety and happiness for which our state government was originally instituted.”
For more information on the refugee petition, visit KeepTNSafe.com.
Tenn. senator remains firm on Natural Marriage Defense Act
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — State Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) on Monday reiterated support for legislation she is sponsoring in the Tennessee General Assembly to defend marriage as a union of a man and a woman as recognized in the state constitution.
Beavers said the only constitutionally sound resolution of the Obergefell v. Hodges opinion would be for the legislature to ignore and nullify it on the basis of the Tenth Amendment alone, which is the aim of the bill called the Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act.
“Justice Antonin Scalia characterized the Obergefell ruling as ‘lacking even a thin veneer of law,’” said Beavers. “The U. S. Constitution specifically enumerates the powers of the federal government, including the judiciary. The Tenth Amendment precisely states that the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the states respectively or to the people. As the regulation of marriage is not a federally enumerated power, no branch of the federal government has the constitutional authority to interfere with the institution.”
Beavers’ bill prohibits any state or local agency from complying with any court order that has the effect of violating Tennessee’s laws protecting natural marriage. It also prohibits state and local governments from arresting those persons who do not comply with a court order that is in contradiction to natural marriage in Tennessee.
The legislation failed to receive a majority in the five-member House Civil Justice Subcommittee to move forward in the House of Representatives for the body’s 99 members to consider. She said that there are efforts to resurrect the bill in the House and that she will schedule the legislation in the Senate accordingly.
2 bills address growing problem of opioid abuse
Two bills which address the growing problem of opioid abuse were approved by the full Senatelast week, including legislation to expand patient access to lifesaving opioid antagonists. Senate Bill 2403, sponsored by Senator Doug Overbey (R-Maryville), would require the Tennessee Department of Health to draft a Collaborative Pharmacy Practice Agreement where standards and parameters are to be outlined for the dispensing of the medication by pharmacists.
An antagonist is a drug that blocks opioids by attaching to the opioid receptors without activating them. Opioid overdoses can be accidental from a legitimately obtained prescribed medication or as a result of the abuse of prescription opioids or heroin, and can result in death if not treated promptly.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 44 people die of prescription opioid overdose every day in the United States.
Under the bill, a pharmacist must complete an opioid antagonist training program approved by the Department of Health within the previous two years to dispense the medication.
At least 24 other states either have enacted legislation or introduced a bill to give pharmacists some level of authority to dispense opioid antagonists at their discretion.
The other bill approved by the Senate this week ensures that medical directors of pain clinics are highly qualified.
Opioid pain relievers such as oxycodone, hydrocodone, fentanyl and hydromorpone are responsible for three-fourths of all prescription drug overdose deaths according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The 2015 law required the medical director or owner of a pain clinic be a licensed physician who holds the required continuing medical education and subspecialty certification in pain medicine.
Senate Bill 2057, sponsored by Senator Richard Briggs (R-Knoxville), provides that a medical provider can qualify for state licensing as a pain management specialist by passing the two-part exam administered by the American Board of Interventional Pain Physicians (ABIPP). The physician must still be certified by the ABIPP. This allows for physicians that have been in practice for some time, an option that does not require a full-time fellowship, which takes a year to complete.
Handgun act could improve permit process
Among bills approved in Senate committees last week was the “Efficiency in Handgun Permitting Act,” which aims to improve the process for gun owners and lowers the fee associated with obtaining a handgun carry permit.
Senate Bill 2566, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris (R-Collierville) and Senator Frank Niceley (R-Strawberry Plains), was given approval by the Senate Judiciary Commit-tee and is part of a package of bills submitted to the legislature by Governor Bill Haslam.
The legislation extends the current five-year handgun carry permit to eight years, lowers the initial handgun permit fee from $115 for five years to $100 for eight years and expands the renewal cycle from six months to eight years after the expiration of a permit before a person must reapply as a “new” applicant.
It was noted in committee that when the original handgun carry bill was passed in 1994, the fees associated with the permit were never intended to cost more than what was necessary to administer the program. The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security manages the process for obtaining a handgun carry permit and uses permit fees to fund the cost of administering the program. Niceley said this legislation would finally make the program more revenue neutral.
Under the proposal, background checks will continue to be conducted at the time of initial issuance and at the time of renewal. Additionally, an internal background check will be conducted in the fourth year of the eight-year permit without charge. It also gives a member of the armed forces, whose permit does not expire while deployed until two months after their return to Tennessee, the same eight-year period after expiration that a civilian has to renew a permit before having to reapply as a new applicant.
The bill now goes to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration before moving to the floor for a final vote.
