NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — For the first time since special session started, Gov. Bill Lee provided remarks on how he thought it all went in spite of both chambers fighting the whole time on how to accomplish any legislation.
Lee brought forth the special session after The Covenant School shooting, which left six victims — including three children. The session was divided into 18 topics for public safety and the Second Amendment.
The only three bills passed surrounded on gun locks, criminal dispositions and the TBI and a yearly human trafficking report. More initiatives were approved through the appropriations bills, including $30 million for campus security funding. Lee called it a "process of continuous improvement."
He praised lawmakers for what he said was progress in public safety that will continue into the future. He said he thinks many of the ideas and bills brought forward over the last several days will be a part of the next legislative session.
"The fact that people recognize this is an issue that matters to Tennesseans, and we have now elevated the conversation of public safety so that we are reminded even more every day this is something that matters to Tennesseans," Lee said. "I feel confident that the next session and subsequent sessions there will be ways to make our state safer."
As for plans for the next session, Lee said he didn't have specific legislation in mind right now to further the efforts started in the special session.
Lee announced in April he wanted state lawmakers to pass an order of protection law to keep guns out of the hands of people who pose a threat to themselves or others. It's commonly called a red flag law. The bill would have allowed a judge to remove weapons from someone who is deemed dangerous. Nineteen states (including Florida) have some sort of red flag law on the books.
That didn't matter in regular session. Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, tried to take the governor's legislation and get it off the ground. No Republican would touch it. It went nowhere.
As Republicans echoed Tuesday, some Tennesseans didn't want the governor to even touch red flag legislation. However, the extreme order of protection was one of the 18 topics in the call for special session.
"The will is not to pass a red flag law or get rid of AR15s," said Jeremy Faison, House Republican Caucus leader. "I think it's good to remember that Tennessee is not just Nashville or Memphis. There is no one in my district doing anything that they ask. We did take the time to meet Covenant families. The true message is there are 75 Republicans and there's a huge amount of our caucus who asked us not to do anything."
