Vivian Jones
State House Reporter at The Tennessean
Wife. Mom. State Gov't reporter @tennessean. Previously @mainnashville, @thecentersquare. Alum @Hillsdale. [email protected]
Articles
-
1 day ago |
tennessean.com | Melissa Brown |Vivian Jones
Tennessee lawmakers adjourned for the year on April 22, concluding a session shaped by controversy over education for undocumented students, diversity programs, taxes on vape producs and legal protections for birth control and in-vitro fertilization. At times, the session was full of contrasts for Republicans, who hold a supermajority in the Tennessee General Assembly.
-
1 day ago |
tennessean.com | Melissa Brown |Vivian Jones
A bill that could block education access to students in the country without legal status was the most controversial of the session. But the legislation did not advance this year over cost concerns.
-
2 days ago |
tennessean.com | Vivian Jones
Birth control and in-vitro fertilization treatment in Tennessee is already legal. House Bill 533 codifies those protections and doe not prevent lawmakers from regulating IVF in the future. Still, 11 Republican lawmakers and two influential conservative groups are urging Gov. Bill Lee to veto the bill. After squeaking through a contentious House vote, 11 Tennessee House Republicans and multiple conservative groups are asking Gov.
-
6 days ago |
tennessean.com | Vivian Jones
SB 1413/HB 1376 passed the Senate in a 23 to 9 vote on April 17. The bill drew opposition from both Republicans and Democrats. The House passed the legislation in a 69 to 21 vote on April 10. The bill will now go to Gov. Bill Lee.
-
6 days ago |
tennessean.com | Vivian Jones |Melissa Brown
A procedural move to block debate on a Republican anti-DEI bill sparked outrage from Tennessee Democrats, with House Minority Leader Karen Camper, D-Memphis, calling the effort GOP "suppression" rather than leadership.
Try JournoFinder For Free
Search and contact over 1M+ journalist profiles, browse 100M+ articles, and unlock powerful PR tools.
Start Your 7-Day Free Trial →Coverage map
X (formerly Twitter)
- Followers
- 3K
- Tweets
- 8K
- DMs Open
- Yes
Tennessee school staff may no longer have to have written parental consent on hand before offering Band-Aids or ice packs to students during the school day. The state House on Monday unanimously approved a bill that cleans up a measure passed last year. https://t.co/Y5MmAvkM6y
Vape store owners are "mad as hell" about a bill seeking to create a 10% tax on open system vapes and effectively bar sale of many vapor products in TN. The bill stalled after store owners' fiery testimony on how it could shut down their stores. https://t.co/Ak5khzy5RN
Sponsors of the bill, and many lawmakers who have voted for it so far, have received thousands in campaign contributions from a political action committee of major U.S. cigarette manufacturers like Camel and Newport.
A bill that would impose a state tax of up to 10% on vape products – a higher rate than tobacco – and effectively ban sale of many vape products in the state is headed for a final Senate vote this week. https://t.co/Bb5Uqlpg7I
