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Paid for by Friends of John Ray Clemmons, Sydney Rogers, Treasurer

Election Day is approaching on August 6th. Please remember to vote, absentee or in person. Visit the Davidson County Election Commission ([link removed]) for more information about absentee voting ([link removed]), early voting dates ([link removed]), and polling locations.

 

My family and I would sincerely appreciate your support ([link removed]) this year as I run for re-election. Campaigning will be a little different than usual this year, but please let us know (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Invite%20for%20Rep.%20Clemmons) if you are hosting an event ([link removed]), virtually or otherwise, that you would like for me to attend. I will be sharing more information about our re-election campaign activities in the coming weeks, including virtual town hall dates, yard sign distribution, and much more. Your support ([link removed]) makes all the difference as we continue our work for Tennessee families.

 

Thank you

Thank you to everyone who continues to march and rally for equity, equal opportunity, and justice across our state. Change requires action, and change is long overdue. I strongly support each of you in our ongoing fight for social progress. 

 

Thank you also to everyone who reached out to me this session via email, telephone, and letters to share your opinions on issues of importance. I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to communicate with me, educate me, and provide your valuable insight. Because I personally respond to my correspondence, some of my responses to emails about specific bills have been delayed while I continue to receive and respond to countless requests for help with unemployment benefits from individuals across the state. Please know that I reviewed your emails as they were received during session to stay apprised of your opinions, and I thank you for your patience while awaiting a response. 

 

I-440

The I-440 project ([link removed]) is wrapping up ahead of schedule ([link removed]). The entire I-440 corridor will be fully open this Thursday, July 2nd, in advance of the July 4th holiday weekend. I would like to thank all of you for bearing with us and sharing your concerns throughout the duration of this project. Prioritizing and funding this much-needed $159.2 million design/build road construction project has been one of our biggest accomplishments during my short tenure in office, and I am proud that it went as smoothly as can reasonably be expected from a project of this size.

 

From the outset, one of our biggest concerns was the loss of the grassy median and trees that helped maintain at least a semblance of the roadway’s “parkway” aesthetic. These beautification and environmental concerns were shared with TDOT in every public meeting I hosted, and I am proud to say that our efforts resulted in the planting of 295 trees, 2,623 shrubs, 5,255 groundcover plants, and the use of 4,373 cubic yards of mulch. 

 

I appreciate Kiewit ([link removed]), TDOT ([link removed]), and all the project’s subcontractors, supervisors and workers for their good work and maintaining an open line of communication with us throughout the project. We will continue to work with them, local Metro Council members, and Metro government to address lighting concerns for nearby residents.

 

2020 Legislative Wrap-Up

This year’s legislative session proved to be yet another interesting experience in the State Capitol.  With the gavel in the hand of new Speaker Cameron Sexton ([link removed]), the House of Representatives operated much more smoothly this year. I thank Speaker Sexton for my appointments to the Health Committee and Education Committee, on which I had the opportunity to represent some of District 55’s top priorities.  Partisanship and a lack of civility continue to pose challenges for thoughtful dialogue on substantive policy, but I successfully worked across the aisle and cosponsored 47 bills that passed both chambers.

 

Despite our best efforts, the legislature failed to address some important issues facing Tennesseans in the recently adjourned session, such as telemedicine, unemployment, and justice reform. For this reason, last week, I authored a letter from the House Democratic Caucus to the Governor requesting an extension of several related provisions set forth in Executive Order No. 36 ([link removed]) which is scheduled to expire tomorrow, June 30th.

 

I was proud of our strong legislative package ([link removed]) this year and the progress we made on several key initiatives, such as my anti-lunch shaming ([link removed]) and “Stop the Bleed” ([link removed]) legislation, both of which are cosponsored by my friend and colleague Sen. Sara Kyle ([link removed]). Regarding the latter bill, with the help of Wanda McKnight and the American College of Surgeons ([link removed]), physicians ([link removed]) at Vanderbilt Trauma Center ([link removed]), and others, we successfully passed our “Stop the Bleed” bill on the House floor, and it was on its way to passage in the Senate when we temporarily adjourned for COVID-19. Unfortunately, the Senate did not take the legislation back up when we reconvened earlier this month. Also, after two years of little success, I was finally able to successfully navigate our “Tennessee Anti-Lunch Shaming Act” through the K-12 Subcommittee, the full Education Committee, and the Finance Subcommittee before Rep. William Lamberth ([link removed]) attached a multi-million dollar amendment in the full Finance Committee to effectively stop the bill.  

 

Unfortunately, we passed some harmful legislation this year on multiple topics. Chief among them were two bills targeting families and women’s reproductive health care rights. The “heartbeat bill” ([link removed]) and “chemical abortion reversal bill” ([link removed]) were passed as part of a budget deal that was cut between GOP leaders in the House and Senate after midnight ([link removed]) on the last night/morning of session. As was clarified when I questioned the sponsors on the House floor, the former contains no exception for cases of rape or incest and limits a woman’s ability to exercise her reproductive health care rights prior to twelve weeks of gestational age. The “reversal bill” is premised on a claim that is not supported by reliable medical research or peer-reviewed scientific study, and it exposes medical providers to felony charges. In addition to these bills, several concerning bills saw progress in the House, including legislation targeting transgender youths and allowing students to carry firearms on college campuses.

 

Please feel free to email (mailto:[email protected]?subject=Idea%20for%202021%20legislation) or call me ([link removed]) with suggestions for next year’s legislative agenda.

 

Possible Special Session

From the moment we adjourned sine die at 3:15 am on Friday, March 19th, word has spread that we would likely reconvene for a special session to take up legislation that failed to pass this year, such as the important telemedicine bill that I supported and a bill regarding liability related to COVID-19. If we are to convene a special session, it should address Medicaid expansion, the state’s failures with regards to unemployment benefits, and long overdue justice reform, as well as the telemedicine bill.

 

COVID-19

Though Nashville has moved into Phase Three ([link removed]), the coronavirus continues to spread throughout our community. For this reason, Public Health Order 8 ([link removed]) has been issued by the Metro Department of Health. Please remember to wear a mask in compliance with this Order.  The public health and welfare of our city’s residents, as well as the strength of our local economy, hinge on each of us being responsible and doing all that we can to help prevent the spread of this virus. We simply cannot afford another shutdown, so please do your part and be safe.

 





2501 Oakland Avenue | Nashville, TN 37212 US

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