By State Senator Page Walley
The Senate Commerce and Labor Committee advanced legislation I am sponsoring named the “Garrison-Jordan Survivor Benefits Act.” The bill, Senate Bill 97, expands death benefits for surviving spouses and dependents of individuals killed in workplace accidents. Two brave women from our district widowed by workplace accidents told their stories to the committee and testified about how the bill would help families who receive death benefits. They spoke about the importance of the legislation to not only increase death benefit payments but also to allow benefits to continue to dependents if a surviving spouse remarries.
I want to thank Candy Garrison and Kara Jordan from McNairy County for their testimony and for bringing awareness to this important issue. Their remarks played a vital role in the passage of this legislation in the committee.
Improving the juvenile justice system
The Senate Judiciary Committee advanced two bills that I am sponsoring to make improvements to the state’s juvenile justice system. The legislation is a part of the recommendations from the Joint Ad Hoc Committee on Juvenile Justice, which I had the privilege of chairing. We met throughout 2022 to conduct an exhaustive study of the state’s juvenile justice system.
Senate Bill 610 is a result of our work in the Ad Hoc Committee and seeks to give juvenile court judges a full picture of a juvenile’s record. It allows district attorneys general to request the release of information from the Department of Children’s Services, and those DAs can present the information to Juvenile Court judges. Currently, juvenile records such as programs and services received, adjudications, and what has been successful and unsuccessful do not follow juveniles to different jurisdictions across the state. This change would help judges make more informed decisions about youth who will be treated at the Wilder Youth Development Center but are from another county in the state.
Another bill I am co-sponsoring, Senate Bill 616, would provide a stronger clinical mental health presence at youth development centers by requiring 24/7 access to psychological and behavioral health treatment services for children who are placed in juvenile detention facilities and youth development centers. Many of these children have severe behavioral and mental health challenges, and it is important that we support their behavioral needs with clinical treatment, no matter the hour.
Protecting against unwanted surveillance from China
In the Senate State and Local Government Committee, which I vice-chair, we advanced legislation that prohibits local law enforcement agencies from purchasing drones from corporations or entities which are banned under the National Defense Act of 2019. Senate Bill 776 aims to protect Tennesseans from surveillance by the Chinese Communist Party and other foreign actors.
In the Senate, we gave final approval to Senate Bill 834 to prohibit the Chinese-owned social media platforms TikTok and WeChat from being accessed on Tennessee public higher education institutions’ internet networks. These platforms pose serious national security risks to the United States. The State of Tennessee and the Federal government have taken similar steps to mitigate the security risks of TikTok by prohibiting government internet networks and devices from supporting the social media app.
If you need to contact me for any reason please email me at sen.page.walley@capitol.tn.gov or call my office at 615-741-2368. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to serve as your state senator.
