Tennessee Senate targets school boards, superintendents associations
Republican senators are putting Tennessee school board and superintendent associations in their cross-hairs after a bruising fight this year over the governor's private-school voucher bill.
Sen. Adam Lowe, a Calhoun Republican, is sponsoring Senate Bill 2017, which would prohibit school districts from joining organizations that use public funds or dues to pay lobbyists. The bill, which Lowe postponed Tuesday for discussion until 2026, clearly targets Tennessee's school board and superintendent associations.
In addition to the legislation, Republican members of the Senate Education Committee notified the Tennessee School Boards Association last week that it's asking the group to voluntarily provide all communications between the association and its members regarding private-school vouchers by April 5.
A letter signed by Senate Education Chairman Dawn White and several other Republican members of the committee on March 19 says the discussion surrounding Gov. Bill Lee's plan 'created a situation where a great deal of information concerning the bill's purpose, provisions, and elements were misrepresented to local communities, boards, councils and commissions… we understand that opinions may vary in these contentious moments, facts do not.'
The Republican lawmakers want to know how the association communicated with its members to cut through 'any speculation and misunderstanding that might have occurred during the public discourse' on the bill.
The voucher bill narrowly passed the House and Senate during a February special session called by Gov. Bill Lee, enabling the state to set up a program to give $7,000 scholarships to students statewide to enroll in private schools, costing about $220 million annually. Roughly two-thirds of the students who are expected to receive the state money are enrolled in private schools already.
Part of the bill, which Lee signed into law a month ago, contains a provision to give teachers a $2,000 bonus.
White said Wednesday the school boards association might have told its members wrongly that boards had to approve a resolution saying they support the voucher program to receive the bonus.
'We just want to get to the bottom of this and see what really was told, what wasn't told,' White said.
Lowe's companion bill, which is sponsored by Republican Rep. Mary Littleton of Dickson, passed the House Education Committee Tuesday but now is on hold.
Lowe said he didn't want associations whose members paid dues using public funds to use 'taxpayer dollars to lobby against taxpayer interests.'
'They're using general fund money paid for by taxpayers, and they'd be lobbying against the interests of the very people who gave them the money,' Lowe said.
Lowe denied that his bill targets the school boards association, though he said it was 'apparent' the group opposed the governor's bill.
'I don't think it's punitive at all, but it is revelatory,' he added.
Tennessee has dozens of government-affiliated groups that lobby the legislature, ranging from cities that hire their own lobbyists to associations representing mayors and sheriffs.
Republicans have long complained about government-affiliated groups using public funds for lobbying, including state departments. But these groups have argued that without the ability to lobby, business interests would have the upper hand in dealing with lawmakers.
Lowe said under his bill that the school board and superintendent associations would need private funds or some other 'pot of money' to continue lobbying the legislature.
Representatives of the Tennessee School Boards Association and Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents could not be reached for immediate comment Wednesday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
26 minutes ago
- The Hill
GOP senator on DC carjacking fears: ‘I don't buckle up'
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) on Wednesday expressed his fear of being carjacked in the nation's capital, as the Trump administration ramps up its federal takeover of local law enforcement. 'And by the way, I'm not joking when I say this, I drive around in Washington, D.C., in my Jeep, and yes, I do drive myself, and I don't buckle up. And the reason why I don't buckle up, and people can say whatever they want to, they can raise their eyebrows at me again, is because of carjacking,' Mullin said during an appearance on Fox News's 'The Ingraham Angle.' 'I don't want to be stuck in my vehicle when I need to exit in a hurry, because I got a seatbelt around me and that — and I wear my seatbelt all the time,' he told host Brian Kilmeade, in a clip highlighted by Mediaite. 'But in Washington, D.C., I do not, because it is so prevalent of carjacking,' the Oklahoma Republican continued. 'And I don't want the same thing [to] happen to me what's happened to a lot of people that work on the hill.' President Trump announced earlier this week that his administration was taking control of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and deployed hundreds of National Guard soldiers to the area to combat crime and violence in the city. The move, sparked after a former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer was attacked by teenagers during a carjacking — has received heavy blowback from Democrats and local officials. A provision in Washington's ' Home Rule Act ' allows the president to federalize the police force for up to 30 days — but any additional time requires Congressional approval. During a speech Wednesday from the Kennedy Center, Trump said he will seek a 'long-term' extension. 'Well, if it's a national emergency, we can do it without Congress,' Trump said, when asked about whether he's talked to lawmakers about extending the takeover. He added that he expects meet with Congress 'very quickly' and snag GOP support. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) signaled in a post online Wednesday that he and fellow Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) were working with the Trump administration on a safety package for the district. 'Together, we will try to shepherd the DC Security Fund through Congress to give President Trump the resources he will need to improve the safety and quality of life in our nation's capital,' he wrote on social platform X. 'Every American should be behind this effort to make Washington, DC clean and safe so that it can truly become the shining city on the hill.' For such a move to advance, however, it would likely need support from some Senate Democrats. Sen. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) made clear that his caucus would not back the measure. 'No f‑‑‑ing way,' he told podcast host Aaron Parnas. 'We'll fight him tooth and nail. … He needs to get Congress to approve it, and not only are we not going to approve it, but there are some Republicans who don't like either.' D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser has also pushed back on Trump's moves, calling them an 'authoritarian push' as data shows the crime rate declining in the nation's capital. The mayor has also used the national attention as a platform to reup the district's quest to gain statehood.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Unpacking claim Utah lawmaker suggested change in age of consent law as relative faced child rape charges
According to an article published in The Salt Lake Tribune, Utah state Senate President J. Stuart Adams inspired a change in state law that reduced the penalty for cases in which an 18-year-old still enrolled in high school has "consensual" sex with a 13-year-old. At the time the law was changed, Adams reportedly had an 18-year-old relative facing charges of child rape for having sex with a 13-year-old. Although Snopes couldn't independently confirm Adams' relationship to the individual, he didn't deny the individual was related to him in public interviews about the case. Voting records showed that Adams didn't vote on the bill except to adopt an amendment introduced in the House that didn't affect the aforementioned change. Some social media posts claimed that the change "loosened" the age of sexual consent, which is inaccurate — the age of consent in Utah was and still is 18, and the law only altered the charge for the criminal act. The law wasn't retroactive, meaning Adams' relative still faced the original charges of child rape, not a reduced charge. However, the judge, prosecutor and defense attorney in Adams' relative's case reportedly all agreed that the legislative change did impact how the charges were resolved in the relative's plea deal. On Aug. 2, 2025, The Salt Lake Tribune published an article, titled, "Utah's Senate president prompted law change that helped a teen charged with child rape." The article claimed that state Senate President J. Stuart Adams, a Republican, made the initial suggestion that led to a recent change in Utah's child rape penalty, and that Adams had an 18-year-old relative charged with child rape who was indirectly helped by the law's change. The claim went viral on social media, and Snopes readers wrote in and searched the site asking for more information about it. As part of researching this story, we reached out to Adams and the senator who introduced the bill, Kirk Cullimore. We also contacted the journalist who wrote the Salt Lake Tribune article. At the time of publishing, we had not heard back from any of them. Clear information was somewhat difficult to find, as the allegation stemmed solely from the Salt Lake Tribune article. The paper also elected to not publish the name or gender of Adams' purported 18-year-old relative, meaning that Snopes could not independently confirm Adams' relationship to the individual. As a result, there isn't enough information to include a rating on this article. However, some versions of the claim shared on social media inaccurately reported the situation. Here's what we do know: The change lessened a penalty but 'age of consent' law didn't change Some social media posts described the legislation as a change in "age of consent law." However, that's somewhat misleading. A statement from Adams available on the Utah Senate website pointed this out: Contrary to fabricated and baseless claims, the law is not retroactive, does not alter the legal age of consent and does not apply to incidents of rape, aggravated sexual assault or offenses involving force, coercion or threats. The age of sexual consent in Utah is 18. Under state law, any child under the age of 14 cannot legally consent to any form of sexual activity. Any adult having sex with a child under the age of 14 is committing a first-degree felony punishable by a minimum of 25 years in prison and must register as a sex offender. (Teenagers between the ages of 14 and 17 can legally consent in some, but not all, circumstances, according to The Salt Lake Tribune). In 2017, the Utah legislature created exceptions to that law for cases where two youths, one of whom was either 12 or 13 years old, "mutually consented" to the sexual activity. The exceptions, which reduce the criminal charges based on the ages of the two participants, cannot be applied to situations involving "rape," "object rape," "forcible sodomy," "aggravated sexual assault," [or] incest." Those exception charges, in order of lowest severity to highest severity, are: Class C misdemeanor: any 12- and 13-year-old with each other, or a 14-year-old with a 13-year-old Class B misdemeanor: a 17-year-old with a 14- or 15-year-old, or a 15-year-old with a 13-year-old Class A misdemeanor: a 16-year-old with a 13-year-old, or a 14- or 15-year-old with a 12-year-old. Third-degree felony: a 17-year-old with a 12- or 13-year-old, or a 16-year-old with a 12-year-old. The provision in S.B. 213 that Adams supposedly influenced extended the third-degree felony charge to include cases in which an 18-year-old still enrolled in high school and 13-year-old had mutually consensual sex. The change, therefore, did not alter consent laws — the age of consent in Utah is still 18. Children under the age of 14 still cannot legally consent, meaning that a teen under the age of 18 who has sex with a 13-year-old is still doing something the state deems illegal. The case against Adams' relative According to The Salt Lake Tribune, an 18-year-old relative of Adams was charged with having sex with a 13-year-old. Since the individual was a legal adult, the state charged the defendant with two counts of child rape and two counts of child sodomy, all of which are first-degree felonies. The article claimed that "plea bargain negotiations were at an impasse" in the case when the law was changed. Sen. Kirk Cullimore, who introduced the legislation that changed the law, told the newspaper that Adams explained the charges against the relative and asked Cullimore to look into the law. Reportedly, Cullimore consulted several criminal lawyers about changing the law, including Cara Tangaro, the attorney defending Adams' relative. According to Cullimore, Tangaro told him that the prosecutor in Adams' relative's case was not "consider[ing] the circumstances and offer[ing] pleas." So he asked her what the ideal scenario would be. Cullimore claimed that Tangaro drafted the language that would allow for the lower-level felony charge, and that neither he nor Adams intended for the law to retroactively apply to the case against Adams' relative. Adams said in a statement to the Tribune that he "did not request the legislation and did not intervene or give input on the drafting of the bill." Voting records showed that he did not vote on the bill except to adopt an amendment introduced in the House that did not affect the aforementioned change. The bill did not apply retroactively, meaning that the 18-year-old did not face the fully reduced charge once the bill was signed into law. However, the judge, prosecutor and defense attorney all agreed that the legislative change did impact how the charges were resolved, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The parties reached a plea deal that required the 18-year-old to plead guilty to aggravated assault (a second-degree felony) and three counts of sexual battery (a class A misdemeanor) instead of the two child rape and child sodomy charges. Crucially, those reduced charges did not require the 18-year-old to register as a sex offender, which the article reported was a sticking point for the prosecutors. The judge "ordered the teen to serve four years on probation, complete sex offender treatment, pay a $1,500 fine and perform 120 hours of community service," according to the article. Criminal Penalties. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. "GOP Lawmaker Changes Law to Help Relative Facing Child Rape Charges." The New Republic. The New Republic, Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. "Here's What Utah Law Says about Minors Having Sex and When They Can Consent." The Salt Lake Tribune, Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. KUTV, Jared Turner. "Utah Senate Leader Denies Influencing Law for Family amid Resignation Calls." KUTV, 9 Aug. 2025, President J. Stuart Adams Addresses False Information | Utah Senate. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. SB0213. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. Senator | Utah Senate. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. ---. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. Utah Code Section 76-5-401.3. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. Utah Code Section 76-5-402.1. Accessed 11 Aug. 2025. "Utah's Senate President Prompted Law Change That Helped a Teen Charged with Child Rape." The Salt Lake Tribune, Accessed 11 Aug. 2025.
Politico
an hour ago
- Politico
Sherrod Brown's never-ending crypto headache
Editor's note: Morning Money is a free version of POLITICO Pro Financial Services morning newsletter, which is delivered to our subscribers each morning at 5:15 a.m. The POLITICO Pro platform combines the news you need with tools you can use to take action on the day's biggest stories. Act on the news with POLITICO Pro. Quick Fix Remember the Senate Banking Committee of 2022? The cryptocurrency industry — then beleaguered by scandals, lawsuits, and unfriendly lawmakers — doesn't want to. And crypto firms may again drop a bomb of super PAC money on Ohio to keep it from coming back. As your host reports in a new story out this morning, crypto campaign cash is looming over former Banking Chair Sherrod Brown's Senate comeback bid in the Buckeye State. A deep-pocketed super PAC funded by crypto companies that spent more than $40 million to help defeat Brown during his failed 2024 re-election campaign could once again pose a major problem for the Ohio Democrat as he seeks to return to the Senate in next year's midterms. Defeating Brown, a longtime thorn in the side for both Wall Street and the crypto sector who was a big roadblock to industry-friendly digital asset legislation as chair of the committee, was the biggest win last year for the crypto PAC network, known as Fairshake. Its 2024 crusade featured more than $130 million in spending across a swath of House and Senate races, which helped turn around the industry's fortunes in Washington. The PAC network has replenished its war chest with more than $140 million ahead of 2026, and it is already signaling that Brown could again be a target. 'Last year, voters sent a clear message that the Sherrod Brown and Elizabeth Warren agenda was deeply out of touch with Ohio values,' Fairshake spokesperson Josh Vlasto said in a statement. 'We will continue to support pro-crypto candidates and oppose anti-crypto candidates, in Ohio and nationwide.' As chair of the banking panel from 2021 to 2025, Brown often warned that digital assets open the door to illicit finance and money laundering, and he stood in the way of GOP-led proposals aimed at boosting the sector. Crypto firms capitalized on his political vulnerability in 2024, when he was one of only two Democratic incumbents running in states won by President Donald Trump. Fairshake — which is funded primarily by the crypto firms Coinbase and Ripple and the venture capital group Andreessen Horowitz — spent more money on his Ohio race than any other contest it meddled in. The PAC plastered ads across the state boosting Republican Bernie Moreno, a crypto enthusiast and car dealer who defeated Brown and now sits on the banking panel himself. It is unclear if Brown would retain his seniority and replace Warren as the committee's Democratic leader. Senate Democrats' current rules stipulate that seniority is defined by a member's most recent entry into the conference, meaning that 'the seniority of a Member with interrupted service or service in another Party does not date from that Member's initial entrance into the Senate.' But Democratic leaders could seek to change those rules or grant an exception to Brown, who was their top recruit for the Ohio race. Regardless, crypto lobbyists worry that Brown could pose problems for them if he returns — especially given the brute-force tactics the industry has used to try to take him out. And his opponent, Republican Jon Husted, has been a reliably industry-friendly vote. Husted campaign spokesperson Tyson Shepard said in a statement that if Brown enters the race, 'he will be starting in the biggest hole of his political career,' dubbing him Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's 'handpicked candidate.' Ohio Democrats hope a more favorable national environment will help propel Brown next year. 'Crypto can come in again and do whatever they're going to do,' said Jerry Austin, a longtime Democratic strategist in the state. 'I think they've shot their wad. And if they want to come back and do it again, I think a lot of things have happened between the last election and now, and that is what Trump's been doing in Ohio and the rest of the country.' It's THURSDAY — Send Capitol Hill tips to jgoodman@ For econ policy thoughts, Wall Street tips, personnel moves or general insights, email Sam at ssutton@ Driving the day Labor will release the Producer Price Index for July at 8:30 a.m. … The Securities and Exchange Commission has a closed meeting at 1 p.m. … Rate cut watch — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested the Federal Reserve should cut interest rates by half a percentage point when it meets next month, Bloomberg reports. 'I think we could go into a series of rate cuts here, starting with a 50 basis-point rate cut in September,' Bessent said on Bloomberg TV. 'Any model,' he said, suggests 'we should probably be 150, 175 basis points lower.' New York v. Zelle — New York Attorney General Letitia James on Wednesday sued the operator of Zelle, accusing the bank-owned payment platform of facilitating widespread fraud and failing to protect consumers, our Michael Stratford writes. The lawsuit against Early Warning Services, which runs the popular peer-to-peer payment network, revives similar allegations that were dropped earlier this year by the Trump administration's Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A Zelle spokesperson said New York's lawsuit was a 'political stunt to generate press, not progress.' ICYMI — Why Trump's BLS pick is in for a fight, via Sam Sutton and Nick Niedzwiadek At the regulators Treasury waives sanctions for Trump-Putin summit — The Treasury Department is temporarily easing its sweeping sanctions program targeting Russia to allow activities needed to carry out Trump's historic meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday. The order, signed on Wednesday, underscores the complex logistics involved in hosting Putin and other Russian officials who are cut off from the U.S. financial system. Treasury greenlit transactions that would otherwise be prohibited if they're 'ordinarily incident and necessary to the attendance at or support of meetings' in Alaska between the U.S. and Russian governments. The reprieve lasts through Aug. 20, and it explicitly prohibits the unblocking of any frozen Russian assets or other property. On The Hill Strange bedfellows — A coalition of groups that are normally on opposing sides in financial regulatory policy fights is calling on lawmakers to change a section of the recently enacted stablecoin law that it says allows state-chartered uninsured depository institutions to operate nationwide without proper supervision. A letter sent to lawmakers on the Senate Banking Committee Wednesday led by the Conference of State Bank Supervisors said the GENIUS Act 'allows any state-chartered uninsured depository institution with a stablecoin subsidiary to perform traditional (i.e., not solely related to payment stablecoins) money transmission and custody activities nationwide through that subsidiary, thereby bypassing host state licensing and allowing substantially less state oversight.' The letter was signed by bank trade associations including the American Bankers Association and consumer groups including Americans for Financial Reform. 'This unprecedented overriding of state law and supervision weakens vital consumer protections, creates opportunities for regulatory arbitrage, and undermines state sovereignty,' the letter said. Outbound investment on the big stage –– From our Katherine Hapgood: House Financial Services National Security Subcommittee Chair Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) said Wednesday that as Congress considers their proposal for the Defense Production Act, they will have to wait on a potential outbound investment addition, as it will most likely be a part of Trump's trade negotiations with China. 'We have a strong sense from the administration, they would rather have a threat of very harsh outbound investment criteria than finished outbound investment criteria, because they're also hopeful for a positive outcome in the negotiations,' Davidson told Katherine after the subcommittee's field hearing on the DPA. Davidson said he also wants to decouple the legislation from the annual appropriations deadline for 'more floor time' to modernize the DPA, and let trade negotiations play out. He said he is eyeing June for the revamped DPA reauthorization. Bessent endorses congressional stock trading ban — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is calling for a ban on single-stock trading by members of Congress, our Gregory Svirnovskiy and Meredith Lee Hill write. Trade Bessent dismisses Nvidia deal concerns — Bessent on Wednesday brushed off concerns about Trump's decision to charge Nvidia for a government license to export semiconductor chips to China, our Doug Palmer and Ari Hawkins report. 'There are no national security concerns here' because the H20 chips are not the most advanced chips that Nvidia makes, Bessent said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. His comments come despite criticism from former officials and members of Congress. Jobs report Anastasia Dellaccio is joining the Digital Chamber, a crypto trade group, as executive director of state and regional affairs. She is an alum of the Export-Import Bank.
