Allan F. Ramsaur, TBA Executive Director
(800) 899-6993 or (615) 277-3200
aramsaur@tnbar.org
April 15, 2004
Bills moving as General Assembly moves toward final weeks
The TBA-backed Omnibus Probate bill (SB2599, HB2639) inched closer to approval this week, winning support from the House Judiciary Committee’s Civil Practice and Procedure Subcommittee after minor changes were made concerning confidentiality. The bill is slated for hearing before the Judiciary Committees in both houses next week.
Already approved by both houses is the TBA-backed Tennessee Uniform Trust Code (SB0560, HB0743).
Summons in Lieu of Arrest
Competing bills on Summons in Lieu of Arrest will be presented in the House and Senate Judiciary Committees next week.
The TBA-backed proposal (SB 2872 by Herron, HB 2650 by Fowlkes) incorporates four new exceptions to last year’s legislation, creating a presumption that criminal summons will be issued instead of an arrest warrant. The bill as amended gives discretion to magistrates and judges to issue an arrest warrant in these exceptional situations. The exceptions include: affiant has a written police report; a reasonable likelihood that the person will fail to appear in court; one or more outstanding warrants or criminal summons; or the accused cannot or does not produce satisfactory evidence of identification.
A competing proposal would completely turn back the clock. It would mandate that arrest warrants be issued in almost all instances. That proposal is strongly backed by bail bond interests.
The Herron/Fowlkes compromise bill has received support form several groups, including the Tennessee Judicial Council, retail merchants, the magistrates and judges group and several individual sheriffs. Sponsors continue to work with the Tennessee Sheriffs Association to address its concerns about the booking procedures that are modified in the compromise bill.
The principal reason for TBA’s support is the elimination of “junk” arrest warrants issued only on the word of a disaffected citizen.
Since these issues are coming to a head in both committees on the same day any member with a viewpoint should quickly contact his or her lawmaker over the weekend to let those views be known.
Domestic relations
A bill requiring the presumption of shared parenting ran into trouble in the House’s Children and Family Affairs Committee when a compromise motion calling for more study of the issue over the summer failed. Committee chair John J. DeBerry Jr., D-Memphis, said the measure will be back before it next week. The TBA has opposed this and similar bills because of concern that they try to divide the child’s time more or less equally between the two parents, regardless of the disruption to the child’s schedule or consequences for child support.
The Protective Parent Reform Act (HB2848, SB2966) is another bill the TBA has been following and has worked on at the request of its sponsors and the committee. The bill, which the committee did not have time to get to this week, deals with several interesting issues, but is not in a form to be passed. Further study over the summer could lead to better legislation.
Immediate repossession bill still tied up
The bill (SB2815, HB2740) that would vest ownership in a secured party upon possession of the collateral that secures the loan was rolled again in the House’s Civil Procedure and Practice Subcommittee. The committee did get a chance to hear from Middle District Trustee Hank Hildebrand, who spoke against the legislation.
Tennessee Plan repeal still stalled
The bill (SB2592, HB2637) that would abolish the Tennessee Plan on merit selection and retention and provide for popular election of Supreme Court justices and appellate judges was rolled again this week in the House Judiciary Committee. It appears to be stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee, where it failed to get enough support for passage several weeks ago.
Keep up to date on legislation of interest
The TBA bill tracking service lets you read abstracts of bills, check their status in both houses, find out who is sponsoring them and link to full versions of the legislation.
TBA Watch List Monitor close to 300 bills and resolutions of interest to the Tennessee legal community.
TBA Action List Monitor legislation in which the TBA has an interest of record — bills the TBA initiated, bills on which the TBA has taken a position or bills on which the TBA has policy.
Questions, comments? Contact TBA Legislative Counsel Steve Cobb at SAC@wallerlaw.com or TBA Executive Director Allan F. Ramsaur at aramsaur@tnbar.org
