From State Representative Bruce Griffey, R-Paris:
Capitol Update: A Week in Review, Legislation Improving Election Integrity, Balancing Power in Courts, Making It Harder for Murderers to Get Parole & Honoring Military Service
A bill improving the integrity of our elections that Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris) co-sponsored, passed the TN General Assembly and is now heading to the Governor’s desk for approval. Specifically, House Bill 2128 prohibits non-U.S. citizens from participating in federal, state, or local elections in Tennessee and ensures that no local government entity grants voting rights to any individual who is not a United States citizen for an election. The bill also gives additional tools to the coordinator of elections to identify non-U.S. citizens on the voter rolls.
“In the aftermath of the November 2020 Presidential election, election integrity has been at the forefront of political discussions and the subject of a number of bills introduced in state legislatures across the country. Last year, I filed and passed the TN Election Integrity Act, which now requires: (1) local election commissions to create unique, non-visible and non-reproducible watermarks on all paper absentee ballots in an effort to deter and detect fraud; and (2) funding used by state and local election officials and commissions from nongovernmental entities to be approved by the Speaker of the House, Speaker of the Senate and Secretary of State (which makes it much more difficult for those in big tech such as Zuckerberg and corporate America to funnel dark money to fund election processes in Tennessee). Election reform is not just important to my constituents, but it is a national priority. Fair and honest elections are fundamental to the success of our republic. We must ensure that no person’s vote is stolen or diluted by fraud. We need a fair and secure election process that restores and inspires the utmost confidence by voters and all of this legislation is a step in the right direction to get us there,” Griffey said.
Another bill co-sponsored by Griffey – House Bill 1749, which balances the power between citizens and businesses and government agencies in court – passed the TN General Assembly and is heading to the Governor’s desk for signature. More specifically, this legislation (HB1749) directs courts to no longer give deference to administrative agencies over citizens and businesses. The bill directly addresses a landmark United States Supreme Court decision which established the Chevron Doctrine in 1984. This ruling gave deference to administrative agencies in the interpretation of their own rules, which unfairly gave preference to administrative agencies over businesses and citizens. House Bill 1749 aims to recalibrate the scales of justice by prohibiting the courts presiding over a contested case hearing or appeal from relying solely on an agency’s interpretation of a statute or rule.
The House of Representatives also unanimously passed legislation co-sponsored by Griffey to make it more difficult for a convicted murderer to be granted parole. Specifically, House Bill 2306, also known as the Joe Clyde Daniels Act, requires the Board of Parole to consider the extent to which an offender “obstructed or continues to obstruct” the ability of law enforcement to recover the remains of their victim in homicide cases. The legislation was prompted by the 2018 disappearance of 5-year-old Joe Clyde Daniels from his home in Dickson. His father, Joseph Daniels, was convicted of murder in June. However, the child’s remains still have not been found.
A final bill co-sponsored by Griffey (HB1852) passed out of the House State Government Committee and is heading to the House Finance, Ways and Means Committee. This bill honors the service and sacrifice of military veterans by expanding retirement benefits for state employees who served in armed conflicts. At present, the state allows military veterans who served prior to 1975 to receive time served in the military credited to the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) for up to 4 years. House Bill 1852 adds to the current law by expanding it to cover those who served in armed conflicts after 1975.