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Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Tennessee Republicans vote down bill to require driver's license exams in English only
An Republican-led effort to require the state to administer Tennessee driver's license exams in English only and ban translation aids is dead for the year following bipartisan opposition in the House Transportation Subcommittee on Tuesday. Written driver's license tests in Tennessee are currently offered only in English, Spanish, German, Korean and Japanese. Test takers are allowed to bring a translation dictionary. Driving tests are offered in English only. House Bill 556, sponsored by Rep. Kip Capley, R-Summertown, sought to ban the administration of driver's license exams in any language but English, and prohibit translation dictionaries, electronic devices, and interpreters to assist in test administration. 'You can take the test in English, you can pass it in English. We're not asking them to learn the entire language," Capley said. "The signs are in English, the commands are in English and when you get pulled over, guess what? It's gonna be in English." State law does formally designate English as the official and legal language of Tennessee, and all state publications, including ballots, are required to be produced in English. But there is no limitation on government documents being made available in other languages. Immigrant rights advocates have argued the state should offer the test in more languages ― like Arabic and Chinese, the third and fourth most-spoken languages in Tennessee ― in an effort to ensure drivers are best prepared to hit the road. Transportation Committee Chair Dan Howell, R-Cleveland, said the actual driving road test is already only offered in English, and indicated the bill seems to take inappropriate aim at non-English speaking legal residents. 'It's already illegal for illegal aliens to have a driver's license in Tennessee. So what this bill does is address people who are already here on a work visa, on a green card – people who are here legally,' Howell said. 'Some of them may not speak English, but they are legally here.' The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Department of Economic and Community Development both opposed the effort, citing potential negative economic impacts. Diana Sanchez Vega, an immigrant from Venezuela who testified on behalf of the Our State, Our Languages Coalition, argued not offering tests that ensure drivers know the rules of the road would pose safety risks to all drivers, and send a negative message to the state's international business community. 'Access to safe transportation is a cornerstone of economic self-sufficiency," Sanchez Vega said. "Our state's continued growth depends on empowering all residents – immigrants, refugees and international executives, to hit the road without undue barriers.' Capley brushed off the concern. 'Executives of Volkswagen and Nissan don't drive – they have drivers,' he argued. The bill failed in a vote of 5 to 3. Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@ This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee driver's license exams: English-only bill fails
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
TN bills could allow deadly force to protect property
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two Tennessee bills are sparking debates on personal property defense. House Bill 856 and Senate Bill 1407 have caused controversy as they move into the next phase. The bills establish that a person is justified, under certain circumstances, to use deadly force to protect their property. HB 856 was authored by District 71's Rep. Kip Capley. Trump administration listed Memphis IRS center, federal court building for sale 'We had a situation in East Tennessee where there was a lot of looting after the hurricane. And, we're trying to also, in addition to that, to strengthen some of the self-defense laws that we have and to offer a clear protection against theft and destruction and harm to private property and to put more safeguards to prevent, really, an excessive use of deadly force going forward,' said Rep. Capley. Currently, Tennessee's Stand Your Ground law allows you to defend yourself with a gun only if you or another person is in imminent danger. The proposed legislation states, 'A person is justified in using deadly force against another to prevent or terminate the other's actual or attempted trespass; arson; damage to property; burglary; theft; robbery; or aggravated cruelty to animals, seriously bodily injury, or death to animals or livestock.' Deputy drives into path of wrong-way vehicle to save other drivers, woman arrested 'I think, you know, once people kind of learn that, if you break into somebody's home, if you break in their property, if you're trying to loot and someone feels like their lives in danger if they realize that the possibility of deadly force being used against them could, you know, potentially happen then then maybe that would deter some crime going forward,' said Rep. Capley. This year, Memphis Public Safety has reported a total of 1,095 auto burglaries and 609 home break-ins. Legislators hope these bills will allow citizens to protect their possessions and homes when necessary. House Bill 856 will be heard in the House Criminal Justice subcommittee in the coming weeks. Senate Bill 1407 has been placed in the senate judiciary committee for hearing. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Tennessee bill would require English-only driver's license exams, ban translation aids
Two Tennessee Republicans are again seeking to require all driver's license tests to be offered in English only – and ban dictionaries and other translation help. Rep. Kip Capley, R-Summertown, and Sen. Bo Watson, R-Hixson, are sponsoring Senate Bill 1373, which would ban administration of driver's tests in any language but English, and prohibit translation dictionaries, electronic devices, and interpreters to assist in test administration. Capley proposed a similar bill last year, which drew 16 co-sponsors in the House, but stalled in the Senate. If passed, the measure would take effect on July 1. While there is no official language of the United States, state law does formally designate English as the official and legal language of Tennessee. All state publications, including ballots, are required to be produced in English. But there is no limitation or requirement on government documents being made available in other languages. Currently, written driver's license tests in Tennessee are offered in English, Spanish, German, Korean and Japanese. Test takers are allowed to bring a translation dictionary, but no interpreter or translation services are available. Driving tests are offered in English only. The test is not offered in the third and fourth most-spoken languages in the state: Arabic and Chinese. Luis Mata, policy coordinator for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, told The Tennessean he believes the bill would not only violate non-English speaking Tennesseans' rights under the Civil Rights Act, but would also make roads less safe. 'This is a regressive piece of legislation that would hinder economic and cultural opportunities for people that call Tennessee home, and would compromise road safety for everyone,' Mata said. 'This bill would have the effect of making it harder for families to get to and from work or school – and perpetuating this anti-immigrant language coming from our state legislature.' Mata sees restricting language offerings as the 'beginning of a slippery slope' of the state not making documents and forms available in languages many Tennesseans speak. 'Our diversity makes our state stronger,' Mata said. 'This is not only an attack against one group or one community. This English language-only effort is an attack on all of our immigrant communities.' Last year, a coalition of local immigrant groups filed complaints with federal agencies seeking to require the state to offer tests in more languages, and offer interpretation and translation services. The Our State, Our Languages Coalition, founded in 2022, argues that not doing so is a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and amounts to discrimination by national origin. They also argued that U.S. Department of Transportation guidelines may also require inclusion of other highly-spoken languages, including Vietnamese, Somali, Swahili and Kurdish. Capley did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Watson said Capley brought the legislation to him to co-sponsor and deferred to Capley for comment. Vivian Jones covers state government and politics for The Tennessean. Reach her at vjones@ This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: New bill would make driver's tests English-only, ban dictionaries
