New TNJ alert: Awaiting more Phoenix fallout after grand jury testimony, lawmakers at odds over Ford labor disclosure rules, Lee declines to sign

The new print edition of The Tennessee Journal is out. Here is what’s in it:
— Waiting for the other shoe to drop after lawmakers’ grand jury testimony.
— Domed of Doomed? Lee’s $500 million bond proposal for new NFL stadium gets mixed reviews among lawmakers.
— Legislative roundup: Fracas over union labor building Ford plant, Lee doesn’t sign new sterilizer rules, and Jerry Sexton’s latest official Bible resolution appears headed for failure (again).
— From the campaign trail: 5th District race cast into uncertainty over residency requirement bill, lawsuit.
Also: Hagerty’s kids get stake in MLS team, Bell’s statue of limitations on smoking something in high school, and Weaver claims to title of “conscience of the House.”
As always, access the your copy of the TNJ here.
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New TNJ alert: 5th District update, logistics of Robinson proceedings, final state House maps

The latest print edition of The Tennessee Journal is out. Here’s what’s in it:
— Morgan who? Trump makes surprise 5th District endorsement.
— Ouster watch: Senate to weigh whether to expel Robinson after Wednesday debate.
— Redistricting roundup: 2 steps forward, 1 step back: House GOP undoes some incumbent pairings.
Also: Advocates of right-to-work amendment get favorable internal poll results, Janice Bowling gets COVID-19, and Terri Lynn Weaver gets biblical about Nashville’s raucous tourist district.
As always, access the your copy of the TNJ here.
Or subscribe here.
Lee declines to sign teacher training bill over cost dispute

Gov. Bill Lee has declined to sign a bill sponsored by Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver (R-Lancaster) and Sen. Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) allowing school districts to establish their own teacher training programs.
The governor’s objections had less to do with the bill’s substance than concerns that the fiscal note was revised from $470,000 to “not significant,” despite his administration presenting evidence to the contrary. The lack of funding for the program is “something that will need to be addressed” in the upcoming budget year, Lee wrote.
Lee has not vetoed any bill since coming into office in 2019 and he’s now only allowed three to become law without his signature. In 2019, he didn’t sign the bill creating Tennessee’s online sports gambling program. In 2020, he declined to sign a resolution ratifying the Tennessee Emergency Communications Board’s increase in the 911 surcharge from $1.16 to $1.50. The latter was also sponsored by Bowling.
Here’s a copy of the letter Lee sent to House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) and his Senate counterpart, Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge):
Dear Speaker Sexton and Lieutenant Governor McNally:
I am writing to inform you that I am returning HB1534/SB653 to become law without my signature. As our state faces a teacher shortage, we support alternative pathways to teacher licensure. These efforts cut back red tape and ensure more qualified professionals can teach our students. I am not signing the bill solely because of a cost discrepancy.
Unfortunately, this legislation incurs a cost that was not accounted for by Fiscal Review during the legislative process. Fiscal Review adjusted the fiscal note downward from several hundred thousand dollars to “not significant.” At the end of the legislative session, our team provided Fiscal Review with evidence of the costs associated with implementation and asked for correction.
The requested correction was not made, and the lack of adequate funding to support this legislation is something that will need to be addressed in the budget process in the year ahead in order to ensure proper implementation.
With your continued partnership, we have once again created and enacted a balanced budget that maintains Tennessee’s position as a leader in fiscal responsibility. We must be vigilant about thoroughly accounting for costs in the fiscal review process to ensure we maintain that fiscal prudence.
Our team at the Department of Education is available to discuss the cost assumptions on this matter at your convenience. We will also communicate our concerns with the bill sponsors and relevant committee chairs.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this fiscal matter and I look forward to supporting more qualified teachers in our state.
Respectfully,
/signed/
Bill Lee
Former commissioner reports Rep. Weaver to DC police

A former commissioner in then-Gov. Ned McWherter’s administration has reported state Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver (R-Lancaster) to law enforcement for taking part in Washington protest that turned into a riot.
“I respectfully inform you that Terri Lynn Weaver… was a participant,” Dudley Taylor wrote to D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee. “She posted photos and informed The Tennessean, the daily newspaper in Nashville, that she was ‘in the thick of it.’ She claimed to be a ‘patriot,’ of course.”
Contee in an email thanked Taylor for his report.
“I will ensure our FBI partners have this information,” Contee wrote.
Taylor is a Knoxville attorney who served as revenue commissioner for McWherter. He is also a former member of the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance and was the Democratic nominee in the open 2nd Congressional District won by Republican Jimmy Duncan in 1988.
Taylor wrote in his letter that if his report qualifies for a $1,000 reward, he will donate it to the family of the U.S. Capitol Police officer who was killed in the riot.
Marriage bill stalls amid debate over who can perform ceremonies
A seeking to allow more elected officials to officiate over wedding ceremonies has run into trouble in the House amid a myriad of questions about the purpose of the legislation.
Andy Sher of the Chattanooga Times Free Press reports that Rep. Ron Travis (R-Dayton) put off the bill after extensive questioning on the House floor about the need for extending the officiating power to all current and former state lawmakers (the speakers of both chambers can already solemnize weddings), plus nearly 1,700 city or town council members.
The bill would also specify that that ministers, preachers, pastors, priests, rabbis, or other spiritual leaders must be ordained or “otherwise designated in conformity with the customs of a church, temple or other religious group or organization” in order to preside over weddings.
“We have right now in Tennessee a situation where people are going online and getting an online ordination in order to marry friends and family members,” said House Judiciary Chairman Michael Curcio (R-Dickson). “Right now we don’t know under the eyes of the law whether those are legal marriages. So we desperately need clarification.”