Image Credit: capitol.tn.gov
The Tennessee Conservative [By Rebecca Scott] –
House Bill 1645 (HB1645) was passed in a voice vote in the Civil Justice Subcommittee on January 23, 2024. This bill, filed for introduction on January 5th of this year, “expands the eligibility for filing a petition to obtain a lifetime order of protection to include victims of aggravated stalking, especially aggravated stalking, and felony harassment. – Amends TCA Title 36 and Title 39.”
This bill, as briefly explained before the vote by the bill’s sponsor, William Lamberth (R-Portland-District 44,) would allow for lifetime orders of protection to be available to victims rather than requiring them to renew the order annually.
The chairman of the Civil Justice Subcommittee and Co-Prime Sponsor of HB 1645, Lowell Russell (R-Vonore-District 21,) asked for questions and, seeing as no questions were posed, he asked for a voice vote of “Aye” or “No” and determined that the “Ayes” prevailed.
While passage of this bill out of subcommittee is a win for House Bill 1645, the voice vote does not allow for clarity on how each committee member voted.
Because Chairman Russell chose to use a voice vote to hide the voting records of subcommittee members from public scrutiny, we can only assume Chairman Russell supports HB1645 and is responsible for the passage of HB1645. Chairman Russell could have used a transparent roll call vote, but opted for a voice vote to shield committee members and himself from accountability and in this case, responsibility for the passage of this bill’s passage out of the subcommittee.
According to a statement made by Rep. Jody Barrett (R-Dickson-District 69) on the Mill Creek View Tennessee Podcast, all a legislator has to do in order to have their voice vote recorded is give a thumbs up or a thumbs down to the clerk. This means that it is very easy for legislators to put their vote on the record and create transparency with their constituents if they choose to.
However, no representative on the subcommittee appeared to have requested that their vote be counted. The General Assembly website only reports “Voice Vote – Ayes Prevail.”
HB1645 will now move on to the full House Civil Justice Committee but has not yet appeared on their calendar upon publication of this article.
Rebecca Scott is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative.
You can reach Rebecca at Rebecca@tennesseeconservativenews.com