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Displaying items by tag: Tennessee Senate
Displaying items by tag: Tennessee Senate
Displaying items by tag: Tennessee Senate
The State Senate voted 26 to 3 Saturday to approve an anti-terrorism bill that updates the Tennessee Terrorism Prevention Act that was passed shortly after the 9-11 terrorist attacks and was approved unanimously in both the House and Senate. The “Material Support to Designated Entities Act of 2011” now makes the provision of “material support” a Class A felony and helps to close the prevention gap left by the 2002 statute.
“After discussions with all interested parties the bill was rewritten to achieve a fiscally responsible way to cut off “material support” that assists those planning to commit terrorist acts in Tennessee since it is the support that typically makes the acts more likely to occur,” said Senator Bill Ketron (R-Murfreesboro), sponsor of the bill. “This bill is very timely, in view of the fact that an August 2010 background report showed 21 U.S. citizens were charged in terrorist cases in 2009 and another 20 were charged in 2010 between January and August.”
The trajectory of cases of homegrown terrorism includes actors such as Memphis Carlos Bledsoe who attempted to firebomb the home of a Nashville rabbi and went on to murder 24-year old Private William Long in Arkansas. Secretary Janet Napolitano has called out to states to become more active and engaged in counter-terrorism measures.
The new amendment eliminates designation of terrorist entities by the state authorities and instead, defers to designations already made by the U.S. Secretary of State and the Department of the Treasury. The bill supports the work of the Joint Terrorism Task Force in continuing the collaboration between federal and state law enforcement authorities.
Ketron said the bill is an even handed and non-discriminatory counter-terrorism measure. The bill specifically declares that it does not target the peaceful practice of any religion. It, however, prohibits using religious doctrine as a justification for terrorist acts in Tennessee.
“It should be a priority of ours to protect the citizens of our great state – there will be no prosperity without security,” he concluded.
The bill now goes to Governor Bill Haslam for his signature.
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The full Senate voted last week to approve legislation requiring permission from the person whose voice is recorded on a 911 before the transmission can be broadcast to the public.
Senate Bill 1665, sponsored by Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville), clarifies that all calls and tapes will remain public record. The bill just requires that any broadcast or publication of a call is prohibited without written consent of the caller whose voice is recorded, or their designated representative or legal guardian.
“This does keep a public record but does keep the calls private for republication unless the caller gives the right to do so,” said Senator Tracy. “This is a matter of personal privacy, dignity and public safety.”
The bill does not apply to court orders or subpoenas regarding 911 calls. The proposal is pending action in the House Calendar in Rules Committee in the House of Representatives, the last step in the committee process before a final floor vote is taken.
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(NASHVILLE -- The Senate Commerce Committee has voted 8 to 1 to approve legislation calling for Tennessee employers to use the E-Verify system to ensure that new hires are in the state legally. The legislation, sponsored by Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) and Representative Joe Carr (R-Lascassas), is the first in a three-pronged approach to combat illegal immigration in Tennessee.
“There are more than 140,000 illegal immigrants in Tennessee, with over 110,000 in the state’s workforce,” said Senator Tracy. “This has far-reaching effects on our state, including an impact on employee wages, costs to schools, unpaid hospital expenses and the need for additional law enforcement resources, to name a few. This bill asks businesses to take one simple step beyond the current I-9 requirements to verify a new hire is not in the state illegally by utilizing the E-Verify System’s Internet website or by making a telephone call.”
E-Verify, an Internet-based system operated by the Department of Homeland Security in partnership with the Social Security Administration, allows participating employers to electronically verify the employment eligibility of their newly hired employees by entering their name and a social security number. It is free to employers in all 50 states, including Tennessee where more than 4,000 businesses have voluntarily participated in the system. The “E-Verify” system is 97.4 percent accurate.
The legislation, Senate Bill 1669, would penalize businesses for hiring illegal immigrants with escalating consequences for repeated offenses. It also provides a mechanism for small businesses without Internet access to call by telephone for verification assistance. The businesses would keep verification records for three years after the hire, or one year after termination of the person’s employment under the bill. It does not apply to those who are already employed before the January 1, 2012 enactment date.
“We have worked very hard on this legislation to accommodate business concerns,” Tracy added. “The result is a common-sense approach that makes verification as simple as possible, but still focuses on identifying those who are here illegally,” Tracy added.
Federal contractors or subcontractors have been required to use E-verify since 2008 to determine employment eligibility of employees performing direct work. Fifteen states, including five which are adjacent to Tennessee, require the use of E-Verify for public and/or private employers. Another 25 states are considering similar legislation.
The Tennessee General Assembly is also considering the “Lawful Immigration Enforcement Act” which calls for state and local law enforcement to determine the legal status of an individual in question in the course of a lawful stop, and the “Eligibility Verification for Entitlements Act” which would give state agencies authorization to verify the lawful status of an alien in Tennessee before receiving any “non-emergency” public benefits.
“Individual states and cities across the country are tired of the inaction by the federal government to do their job in protecting our borders,” added Tracy. “This bill comes as a mandate by Tennesseans who want action to curb the tide of illegal immigration.”
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