Tennessee General Assembly adjourns for the year
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – The Tennessee General Assembly has adjourned for the year.
The often contentious session was highlighted by the passage of legislation that would allow handgun-carry permit holders to be armed in any state park, and the failed attempt to make the Bible the official state book.
The Bible aside, lawmakers approved Tennessee’s $33.8 billion annual spending plan after rejecting a renewed attempt to authorize Medicaid expansion that had been previously defeated in a special session February.
Haslam’s Insure Tennessee plan would extend health coverage to 280,000 low-income people, with state hospitals covering the $74 million state share to draw down $2.8 billion in federal money. But fellow Republicans in the Legislature have balked at approving a program so closely tied to President Barack Obama’s health care law.
