Here are the Senate committee assignments for the upcoming session
Here are the Senate committee assignments for the 113th General Assembly:
Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis)
- Calendar
- Commerce
- Education
- Ethics
Paul Bailey (R-Sparta)
- Commerce, Chair
- Transportation
Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma)
- Energy
- Government Operations
- Transportation
Richard Briggs (R-Knoxville)
- Rules, Vice Chair
- State & Local, Chair
- Transportation
Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville)
- Energy
- Transportation
Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City)
- Education
- Government Operations
- Health, Chair
Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga)
- Education
- Judiciary, Chair
Here are your House committees for Special Session III
Here are the committees House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) has assigned for the third special session of the year. The Senate is sticking with its regular committees.
Banking
- Chair: Powers
- Vice Chair: Boyd
- Alexander
- Bricken
- Halford
- Hardaway
- Harris
- Hicks, T.
- Jernigan
- Mannis
Covid-19
- Chair: Farmer
- Vice Chair: Grills
- Carr
- Carringer
- Cooper
- Darby
- Eldridge
- Faison
- Hall
- Hodges
- Howell
- Hulsey
- Johnson, C
- Lamberth
- Potts
- Rudder
- Sherrell
- Thompson
- Todd
- Warner
- Zachary
Elections
- Chair: Moon
- Vice Chair: Wright
- Campbell
- Casada
- Cepicky
- Dixie
- Doggett
- Lafferty
- Mitchell
- Ramsey
Emergency Orders
- Chair: Littleton
- Vice Chair: Leatherwood
- Calfee
- Chism
- Clemmons
- Kumar
- Lynn
- Moody
- Ogles
- Parkinson
- Rudd
- Stewart
Finance, Ways, & Means
- Chair: Hazlewood
- Vice Chair: Hicks, G
- Baum
- Campbell
- Camper
- Chism
- Cochran
- Crawford
- Gant
- Faison
- Helton
- Howell
- Lamar
- Lamberth
- Miller
- Moody
- Russell
- Shaw
- Vital
- Williams
- Windle
- Zachary
Public Health
- Chair: Terry
- Vice Chair: Hawk
- Byrd
- Gant
- Gillespie
- Haston
- Holsclaw
- Kiesling
- Love
- Marsh
- McKenzie
- Powell
- Smith
- Sparks
- Towns
- Vaughan
- White
- Whitson
- Williams
Judiciary
- Chair: Curcio
- Vice Chair: Russell
- Beck
- Garrett
- Griffey
- Hakeem
- Hurt
- Johnson, G
- Lamar
- Ragan
- Reedy
- Travis
- Weaver
Calendar & Rules
- Chair: Zachary
- Vice Chair: Darby
- Camper
- Curcio
- Faison
- Farmer
- Freeman
- Gant
- Grills
- Hazlewood
- Howell
- Lamberth
- Littleton
- Love
- Moon
- Powers
- Shaw
- Terry
- Todd
- White
- Windle
Here are the House committees for the special session
The Senate is keeping its regular committees in place for the special session, but House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) is appointing special panels to hear the Ford incentive bills and other legislation.
Here are the special House committees:
Commerce
- Chair: Vaughan
- Vice Chair: Todd
- Bricken
- Chism
- Freeman
- Gillespie
- Griffey
- Halford
- Harris
- Hurt
- Leatherwood
- Miller
- Moody
- Parkinson
- Powers
- Ramsey
- Travis
- Vital
- White
Health and Safety
- Chair: Terry
- Vice Chair: Grills
- Calfee
- Campbell
- Carringer
- Cepicky
- Cooper
- Doggett
- Hakeem
- Hardaway
- Howell
- Johnson of Knox
- Lafferty
- Ogles
- Ragan
- Rudder
- Smith
- Thompson
Finance, Ways & Means
- Chair: Hazlewood
- Vice Chair: Hicks of Hawkins
- Baum
- Boyd
- Camper
- Carr
- Faison
- Farmer
- Gant
- Garrett
- Haston
- Hawk
- Helton
- Hodges
- Lamar
- Lamberth
- Littleton
- Lynn
- Shaw
- Whitson
- Williams
- Windle
Calendar & Rules
- Chair: Zachary
- Vice Chair: Russell
- Beck
- Camper
- Curcio
- Darby
- Faison
- Halford
- Hazlewood
- Howell
- Jernigan
- Keisling
- Kumar
- McKenzie
- Mitchell
- Lamberth
- Marsh
- Reedy
- Terry
- Warner
- Weaver
Speaker Sexton strips Griffey of committee assignments
House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) has stripped Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris) of his committee assignments. The move comes after Griffey’s unsuccessful attempt earlier this week to pull an e-verify bill that had earlier been defeated in a subcommittee straight to floor.
Griffey had engaged in a testy exchange with Sexton and House parliamentarian Daniel Hicks on Monday about whether he should be allowed to deliver remarks in favor of his bill while making the motion on the floor. After cutting the lawmaker off, Sexton determined Griffey’s motion didn’t have a second and declared it defeated.
Griffey, who is considering a bid for a judgeship next year, was removed as a member of the Civil Justice, Criminal Justice, and Education Instruction committees.
UPDATE: A statement from Sexton:
There are certain expectations that must be met by members of the Tennessee House of Representatives. These include maintaining decorum and professionalism, as well as respect for others, and perhaps most importantly — respect for our longstanding committee process. If any or all of these expectations become an issue, appropriate actions will be taken — including removing a member from his or her committee assignments.”
Here are Sexton’s House committee assignments
House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) announced his committee appointments on Wednesday before the General Assembly adjourned its organizational session. Here they are:
AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE
- Chair – Curtis Halford
- Vice Chair – Rusty Grills
- Mark Cochran
- Barbra Cooper
- Tandy Darby
- Clay Doggett
- GA Hardaway
- Bud Hulsey
- Chris Hurt
- Jason Potts
- Jay Reedy
- Iris Rudder
- Johnny Shaw
- Chris Todd
- Ron Travis
- Dave Wright
Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee
- Chair – Chris Todd
- Mark Cochran
- Tandy Darby
- Curtis Halford
- Bud Hulsey
- Chris Hurt
- Jason Potts
- Jay Reedy
- Johnny Shaw
CIVIL JUSTICE COMMITTEE
- Chair – Mike Carter
- Vice Chair – Darren Jernigan
- Rush Bricken
- John Ray Clemmons
- Michael Curcio
- Rick Eldridge
- Andrew Farmer
- Johnny Garrett
- John Gillespie
- Bruce Griffey
- Torrey Harris
- Mary Littleton
- Brandon Ogles
- Antonio Parkinson
- Bob Ramsey
- Robin Smith
- Mike Stewart
Civil Justice Subcommittee
- Chair – Andrew Farmer
- Mike Carter
- John Ray Clemmons
- Michael Curcio
- Johnny Garrett
- Bruce Griffey
- Brandon Ogles
- Antonio Parkinson
Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee
- Chair – Mary Littleton
- Rush Bricken
- Mike Carter
- Rick Eldridge
- John Gillespie
- Torrey Harris
- Mike Stewart
Senate names new chairs, House juggles committees
Senate Speaker Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) has named Sen. Brian Kelsey (R-Germantown) as chair of the Education Committee and Sen. Richard Briggs (R-Knoxville) to head the State and Local Government Committee. The positions were vacated by the retirements of Dolores Gresham and electoral defeat of Steve Dickerson, respectively.
Committee assignments have yet to be made in the House, but draft rules signal a change in the overall makeup of standing committees. Speaker Cameron Sexton will once again split apart the Judiciary Committee into two standing panels: Civil Justice and Criminal Justice. He is also turning the single Education panel into separate Education Administration and Education Instruction committees. The Consumer and Human Resources Committee will be no longer.
The changes will leave the House with 14 standing committees, up from 13 last session. Sexton is also expected to significantly retool the subcommittee system.
Here are your special House committees
House Speaker Cameron Sexton has appointed special committees to handle each of three subjects being taken up in the special session. The Senate, meanwhile, is sticking with its regular standing committees.
Here are the House panels for the special session:
COVID Related Liability Committee
- Chair-Curcio, R
- Vice Chair-Howell, R
- Boyd, R
- Bricken, R
- Byrd, R
- Camper, D
- Carr, R
- Cochran, R
- DeBerry, D
- Freeman, D
- Gant, R
- Grills, R
- Halford, R
- Keisling, R
- Lamberth R
- Love, D
- Marsh, R
- Potts, D
- Rudder, R
- Sherrell, R
- Thompson, D
- Tilis, R
- Travis , R
- Whitson, R
- Windle, D
Electronic Delivery of Healthcare Committee
- Chair- Terry, R
- Vice Chair- Baum, R
- Carter, R
- Casada, R
- Chism, D
- Clemmons, D
- Dixie, D
- Dunn, R
- Faison, R
- Hardaway, D
- Hawk, R
- Hill, Timothy, R
- Johnson, Gloria, D
- Kumar, R
- Leatherwood, R
- Mitchell, D
- Moon, R
- Parkinson, D
- Ragan, R
- Ramsey, R
- Smith, R
- Sparks, R
- Vaughan, R
- White, R
- Williams, R
Public Safety Committee
- Chair- Farmer, R
- Vice Chair- Hurt, R
- Beck, D
- Calfee, R
- Cepicky, R
- Cooper, D
- Crawford, R
- Griffey, R
- Garrett, R
- Hakeem, D
- Hodges, D
- Hulsey, R
- Lafferty, R
- Littleton, R
- Miller, D
- Moody, R
- Ogles, R
- Reedy, R
- Rudd, R
- Russell, R
- Staples, D
- Todd, R
- Van Huss, R
- Weaver, R
Finance Committee
- Chair- Lynn, R
- Vice Chair- Hicks, R
- Camper, D
- Coley, R
- Daniel, R
- Doggett, R
- Eldridge, R
- Hall, R
- Haston, R
- Hazlewood, R
- Helton, R
- Hill, Matthew, R
- Holsclaw, R
- Holt, R
- Jernigan, D
- Johnson, Curtis, R
- Lamar, D
- Lamberth, R
- Powell, D
- Powers, R
- Sexton, Jerry, R
- Shaw, D
- Stewart, D
- Towns, D
- Wright, R
- Zachary, R
(Additions to the Finance panel compared with the regular session are Daniel, Eldridge, Hall, Haston, Helton, Holsclaw, Jernigan, Johnson, Lamar, Powell, Powers, Sexton, Stewart, Towns, and Wright. Subtractions are Republicans Baum, Crawford, Faison, Gant, Hawk, Ogles, Reedy, Tillis, Todd, Whitson, and Williams, along with Democrats DeBerry, Miller, Staples, and Windle.)
Here are Sexton’s House committee assignments
Rep. Cameron Sexton presides over his first session as House speaker on Aug. 23, 2019. (Erik Schelzig, Tennessee Journal)
Here are the committee assignments made by new House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) upon his election to lead the chamber last week. Additions are in italics (full committees only).
Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee
Chair – Halford
Vice Chair – Todd
Carter
Cepicky
Chism
Holsclaw
Holt
Hulsey
Keisling
Marsh
Moody
Shaw
Stewart
How nigh is the end? House leadership plots course
House Speaker Glen Casada speaks to fellow Republicans in a caucus meeting on Jan. 10, 2019. (Erik Schelzig, Tennessee Journal)
For the Tennessee General Assembly to get around to completing its business for the year, committees need to start closing. And for that to happen, the subcommittees need to wrap up. Here’s a schedule for when House leadership expects those panels to call it quits this year:
March 25: Agriculture, Transportation, Consumer & Human Resources.
April 1: Commerce, Insurance, Local.
April 8: Education, State, Health.
April 15: Judiciary. Also the full committees of Government Operations and Naming & Designating.
If all that happens to plan, the chamber will be on course for adjourning the first week of May. Or so we hope.
House committees banning live streaming by members
Republican members vote during a House GOP caucus meeting in Nashville on Nov. 20, 2018. (Erik Schelzig, Tennessee Journal)
As reported by The Tennessean’s Joel Ebert and Natalie Allison, live streaming of legislative proceedings by members is being banned in several House committees.
House Speaker Glen Casada’s office says he’s leaving the decision up to the chairs of each committee, but the policy will also extend to the House floor — and to the visitors in the gallery.
“The chairmen that are choosing to do this are choosing to do so in order to make the legislative process run more smoothly both for themselves and for the public,” Casada’s Chief of Staff Cade Cothren told the newspaper.
Commerce Chairman Timothy Hill (R-Blountville) said he was imposing the policy because he didn’t want committee members to be distracted by a colleague using social media to “prove a point.” Some members last year used social media to try to intimidate others, he said.
The change comes after a rule change pushed by Casada to eliminate speechifying on the House floor. The House Republican Caucus, which has enough members to decide new laws without the input of a single Democrat, has also decided to close its caucus meetings to the public.
UPDATE: Statement from Casada’s Chief of Staff Cade Cothren:
House session and committee hearings are and will continue to be shown on the General Assembly’s website and on public television stations across the state. If someone actively violates House policy by disrupting the legislative process — through unruly live-streaming, blatant disregard for decorum, or disrespect of members or the public — they will be removed from the area. Legislators, stakeholders, and those visiting to see government in action must be allowed to do work and enjoy their time without unneeded and senseless disruption. Speaker Casada fully supports his chairmen in their decisions to run their committees as they best see fit.
