Legislators convene in Nashville for 113th General Assembly

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The next Tennessee General Assembly has arrived!

The 113th assembly kicked off Tuesday in Nashville, and it came with the reelection of Lt. Governor Randy McNally as Speaker of the Senate.

This is McNally’s fourth term in the position, as he has been serving since both the Speaker of the Senate and Lieutenant Governor since January 2017.

McNally stated:

“The Tennessee Senate is one of the most conservative legislative bodies in the nation. This is a great source of pride and has resulted in great things for our state. But our strength comes not just from our conservatism but also from our dedication to the people of this state. I am extremely proud to once again serve the people of Tennessee as Speaker of the Senate and Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee. I am grateful for your trust and will not let you down.”

Tennessee’s House Democrats add that they are happy to return to Nashville and to begin working for the people of the state.

House Minority Leader Karen Camper stated:

“Members on both sides of the aisle recognize that we have major issues in our state.  From massive congestion in our major cities for our constituents travelling to work and school, to creating access to the Blue Oval sites, to linking cities in our three Grand Divisions to improve tourism, infrastructure is an issue that involves serious planning and forethought and we want to work with the administration to plan for the future.”

Tuesday marks the beginning of months of debate in the Capitol building, with legislators looking to bring forth abortion exemptions for rape and incest, adjust penalties for various crimes, ban doctors from altering a child’s hormones or performing surgeries that enable them to present as a different gender, address traffic congestion, and more.

You can read about bills proposed by legislators in December from West Tennessee here and some proposed just on Monday here.

You can watch the full opening of the 113th Tennessee General Assembly below:

You can find more news from across the state here.