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Legislative report

Permit-free carry bill introduced in House

State Rep. Pat Marsh
Posted 3/6/20

“Hope itself is like a star – not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.” —Charles Haddon Spurgeon We have 461 bills set to be heard in our committees this week. I have 10 bills that I’m presenting and hopeful that they will all pass and move on the House Floor in the next couple of weeks. ...

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Legislative report

Permit-free carry bill introduced in House

Posted

“Hope itself is like a star – not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.”

—Charles Haddon Spurgeon

We have 461 bills set to be heard in our committees this week. I have 10 bills that I’m presenting and hopeful that they will all pass and move on the House Floor in the next couple of weeks. One of these is HB 1904 that I’ve been discussing the past few weeks. This antique slot machine bill passed out of the Calendar and Rules Committee and was placed on the regular calendar for Monday, March 9th. Support continues to be strong and it’s still moving in the Senate.

The big news this week is the large tornado that hit parts of Downtown Nashville, Wilson, and Putnam Counties. The state offices in these areas closed Tuesday and our morning committee work was postponed that day. Our prayers are with everyone touched by this tragedy.

I was honored to get to read to two classes at Thomas Magnet School on Monday morning. This week is Read Across America and it honors Dr. Seuss and all the great books he authored. I got to read to my grandson Walker’s second grade class and teacher Mrs. Mandy Simon and also to my granddaughter Maddie’s class and teacher Mrs. Becky Chapman.

On Thursday, we passed HB 618- more commonly known as the “Slow Poke Law” on the House Floor. Under this law, people who aren’t using the far left lane to pass other vehicles can be charged with a Class C misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $50. The bill has already passed the Senate, so it’s on the way to the Governor for his signature.

I stood with Governor Lee last week as he announced Tennessee’s historic constitutional carry legislation. HB 2817 extends the right to carry a handgun to all law-abiding citizens with or without a permit through constitutional carry who are 21 and older, except in current restricted areas. Additionally, the proposal sends a strong message to violent criminals, felons, and those who illegally obtain a firearm through a series of increased penalties for firearm-related crimes. These include:

l Increasing the penalty for theft of a firearm to a felony;

l Providing a sentencing enhancement for theft of a firearm in a car;

l Increasing the minimum sentence for theft of a firearm from 30 days to 180 days;

l Increasing the sentences for unlawful possession of a firearm by violent felons and felony drug offenders, possession of a handgun by a felon, and unlawfully providing a handgun to a juvenile or allowing a juvenile to possess a handgun.

This will make Tennessee the 16th state in the nation to enact constitutional carry. We have a lot of work left to do on this bill to make sure there are guidelines to keep our citizens and law enforcement safe, but I’m excited to see our Second Amendment rights upheld while the penalties for the crooks are increased.

Christy and Rick Womack came up Monday night to witness our Legislative Session and to see how our ideas become law. We had a good visit and thankfully everyone was safe that night during the storm.

Most of our appointments were canceled on Tuesday due to the tornado damage, but things began to ramp back up on Wednesday. Melanie Hamilton and Jane Tucker came by with Moms Demand Action to talk about the proposed constitutional carry legislation. Also, I saw Tony Patterson from the Lincoln County Recovery Court at their meet and greet that morning. He invited me to come back in April to this year’s graduation. Great program!

The Tennessee Health Care Association had a legislative reception that evening and I got to visit with Cheryl Pendergrass of Lincoln County. She is the director of the Lynchburg Nursing Facility. I also enjoyed a visit with John Lavender of Lincoln-Donalson Care Center of Fayetteville. I want to thank you both for all the difficult but needed and appreciated work you do. Did you know that in Tennessee we have almost 37,000 people employed in nursing homes with almost 27,000 patients? The average annual cost per patient is $79,442. Almost 90% of those patients have their care paid for by government programs.

We are looking forward to an exciting time next week. Not only will we have Leadership Bedford and Leadership Lincoln here, but Wednesday is Hamburger Day on the Hill. Carolyn Denton with the Fayetteville-Lincoln County Chamber was here on Wednesday passing out tickets. All the legislators, staff, and even the Governor look forward to this event every year. They show up hungry because the Lincoln County Livestock Association grills the burgers right outside their windows all morning.

As always, feel free to stop by my office at the Cordell Hull Building Suite 676 or give me a call if you have any questions or concerns. You can reach me at 615-741-6824 or by email at rep.pat.marsh@capitol.tn.gov. You can also find information on my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/RepPatMarsh.

Marsh, a trucking industry executive from Shelbyville, represents the 62nd House District, including all of Bedford and part of Lincoln counties. He is a Republican.