Tax break for seniors clears committee

By TOM HUMPHREY, KnoxNews
April 25, 2007

NASHVILLE - After months of dispute and debate, legislation authorizing county and city governments to freeze property tax payments by senior citizens has cleared its first committee hurdle.

A major disagreement has been over establishing an income ceiling for those 65 and older who would benefit from the freeze. As originally proposed by Senate Republican Leader Mark Norris of Collierville, the ceiling would have been $50,000.

Under the compromise approved by the Senate State and Local Government Committee on Tuesday, however, the level will vary from county to county, depending on the median level of household income for senior citizens in each county.

In Knox County, for example, statistics presented to the panel show there are 26,205 households where the homeowners are 65 or older, or 21.45 percent of the county total. The median income of those households was pegged at $36,927.

That means that - if the legislation passes and the Knox County Commission votes to participate - senior citizen households with annual income of $36,927 or less would be eligible for a county property tax freeze. Those earning more would not be eligible.

The amount varies widely from county to county. In the state's wealthiest county, Williamson, the senior median income is $52,185. At the other extreme is Hancock County, where the senior median is listed as $16,592.

In counties that opt to adopt a freeze, younger people and those ineligible for the benefit will face higher property tax bills when taxes increase in the future. In Knox County, officials calculated that future tax increases would have to be about 6 percent higher to raise the same amount of money.

The bill, SB2, still has to clear several committees in the House and Senate before becoming law, but Norris and other supporters said they are optimistic about the chances now that the income dispute appears resolved.

Toll roads moving ahead

A bill paving the way for building at least two toll roads in Tennessee was approved by a House committee on Tuesday and faces a vote in a Senate panel today.

The House Transportation Committee approved the bill - HB1204 - by voice vote, with four of its 18 members asking to be listed as voting no. Committee Chairman Phillip Pinion, D-Union City, sponsor of the bill, said it merely provides "another tool in the tool box" for improving transportation.

An amendment added during the committee session declares that no more than two toll roads could be built in the state as "pilot projects."

A recent study financed by the state Department of Transportation indicated that two projects might have enough traffic to be practical as toll roads, including a Knoxville Regional Parkway that would ultimately connect Interstate 40 east of Knoxville to Interstate 75 in Anderson County. The other would be a bridge over the Cumberland River connecting Nashville and Hendersonville.

Unlike 26 other states, Tennessee has no toll roads and state highways are financed with gasoline tax dollars. Pinion said that toll roads might delay the need for raising the state gas tax.

'Girls Gone Wild' bill gone

One of the most publicized proposals in the 2007 legislative session - nicknamed the "Girls Gone Wild bill" - was quietly killed in a House subcommittee Tuesday in an action that was loudly denounced afterwards by sponsor Rep. Mike Turner, D-Nashville.

The bill, HB1108, would have imposed fines on cable and satellite TV companies of up to $50,000 when they aired ads for obscene products. The leading example offered by sponsors was advertising for "Girls Gone Wild" videos.

The measure had cleared Senate committees and was awaiting a Senate floor vote. But when Rep. Mike Turner, D-Nashville, brought it before the Civil Practice Subcommittee on Tuesday, it died without discussion because no member would make the required seconding motion for passage.

"Not even letting it be heard is undemocratic and I'm ashamed of what they did in there," Turner told reporters afterwards. "They're exposing just about anything on there (TV ads) and that is just wrong."

He said the panel is "the worst committee in the Legislature" because of lawyer members who "think they know better than anyone else."

Five of the subcommittee's six members are lawyers. Questions have been raised about whether the proposal is unconstitutional. Attorney General Bob Cooper has been asked to provide a formal opinion on that possibility, but has not yet done so.

Lottery/welfare bill nixed

A House subcommittee on Tuesday voted down a proposal by Rep. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, that would have banned payment of lottery winnings to people on welfare or TennCare.

Under the bill, HB981, anyone winning a lottery prize worth more than $600 would have to authorize a check of records to determine if he or she were receiving any "public assistance." If so, the person could not be paid.

"More government intrusion on privacy, I guess," said House Democratic Caucus Chairman Randy Rinks of Savannah, who took the lead in criticizing the bill during a brief hearing.

Campfield replied that lottery winners are already checked to determine whether they owe child support before payment. He said the object of the bill is to block the use of funds obtained through government payments from being used in gambling.