De-annexation bill goes back to committee
The state Senate sent Tennessee’s controversial de-annexation bill (SB749) back to committee on Monday. The Senate State and Local Government Committee scheduled a special meeting for Wednesday to review multiple amendments to it and review the version that passed the House on March 14 (HB779).
The House version limits de-annexation to five cities, including Memphis.
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland said Monday, “I’m glad the Senate decided to send the de-
annexation bill to committee for further review. I look forward to working with members of the committee and all senators to educate them on the drastic impact the bill could have in Memphis and our region.”
Last week, Sen. Reginald Tate (D-Mem-phis) announced the withdrawal of his support of SB749/HB779 in light of the changes made to the bill. The original version applied to a few recently annexed communities, including two that Memphis annexed in 2013 without a referendum.
The bill was amended earlier last week to include areas that were annexed as far back as 1998.
The initial bill would have affected only two local areas (costing Memphis about $5 million), but the number has since risen to 10 (estimated to cost between $27-$80 million).
Sen. Lee Harris (D-Memphis) also has requested an opinion from the State Attorney General’s Office as to whether the bill is constitutional.
DUI reform bill passes Senate
A bill amending the state’s DUI laws passed the Senate Monday (SB2577/ HB2199), requiring the arresting agency to send fingerprint cards for DUI and other vehicular impairment offense arrests to TBI within seven days of arrest for submission to the National Crime Informa-tion Center (NCIC) database.
It also will require clerks to send DUI convictions to TBI within five days of conviction.
Rep. Mark White (R-Shelby County) noted in September 2015 that 18 counties don’t report DUI records to the state’s system or the NCIC.
The legislation arose after a repeat DUI offender was charged in the death of two Briarcrest students in a May 2015 crash.
