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 State Sen. Jim Tracy (Official portrait) [Click to enlarge] |
State Sen. Jim Tracy said Monday he is disappointed with action in the House of Representatives last week that killed a bill he sponsored that would have ended the health insurance benefits of a member of the General Assembly or governor upon conviction for felonies involving their office.
The bill was sponsored by Tracy in the Senate and by Rep. Charles Curtiss (D-Sparta) in the House.
Tracy told the Times-Gazette Monday morning that he is perplexed at the bipartisan bill's defeat.
The bill was approved unanimously in the Senate in March, and then approved by the House Judiciary Committee and the House Finance Committee. But the House Calendar Committee killed the measure by voice vote (although five members who supported the legislation asked that their individual votes be recorded).
"I don't understand it," Tracy said on Monday. "It really doesn't make sense to me." He characterized the bill as "a slam dunk" and noted its unanimous, bi-partisan support in the Senate.
Under the bill, dependents of the convicted official would still be eligible for insurance, Tracy said.
"State legislators' rights or a governor's right to the benefits associated with holding office should be terminated upon conviction for violating the public's trust," said Tracy in a news release last week. "This is simple, common sense legislation and I urge the House to reconsider their actions."
The General Assembly had already passed a similar law denying pensions for state officials convicted of malfeasance in office. Subsequently, a constituent pointed out to Tracy that such offenders were still eligible to receive state health insurance.
"I looked into it, and he was right," said Tracy, who then proposed his bill.
Tracy is a Republican from Shelbyville who operates Nationwide Insurance agencies in Shelbyville and Murfreesboro. He represents the 16th Senate District, including Bedford, Moore and parts of Rutherford counties. He is seeking re-election this year.
grandpat, I am not sure where you got all of your information on "the uninsured get their bills paid" When I had no insurance because my job did not offer it, and I could not afford the majorly high cost of individual health insurance, I did not get my bills paid at all. I have the bills and letters from collection agencies to prove it. I can send them to you if you would like, and tell me who is paying them, since I have not seen any of them get paid. You seem to know though since you yelled it out so loud and clear. Is there something you know that I don't????
jim is only out for himself and the ins comp.HE WANTS TO USE ANY THING TO MAKE YOU LOSE YOUR INS.look at the bill he tryed to pass on the law suites,if you got hurt,..Cobb is no better VOTE them both out of office chris brown,
please dont use caps in your comments grandpat, its rude, and means your screaming.
IF BENEFITS TO A STATE OFFICE HOLDER LAW VIOLATOR WERE TAKEN AWAY THERE WOULD NO WAY THAT THEIR MEDICAL BILLS COULD BE PAID,OTHER THAN THE PUBLIC PAYING THE TAB....JUST LIKE THE UNINSURED GET THEIR MEDICAL BILLS PAID,AS WELL AS INCARCERATED PEOPLE....AT TAXPAYER,AND WORSE AT RATEPAYERS EXPENSE,TOO.SO SHUT UP YOUR HOLEYER-THAN-THOU-ATTITUDE ABOUT ETHICS BILLS FAILING TO PASS.IT WAS NOT A FAIR BILL ANYWAY,AND HARMFUL TO ALL.
This seems like the logical thing to do, but do we know the full particulars of the bill? There may have been some parts of the bill that were unacceptable to some members of the house that may have had nothing to do with ethics. There also may have been some parts of the bill that left a great deal of gray area that wasn't clear at the time of the vote.
I would like to hear from a legislator who voted down this measure to get his or her take on this. Let's hear the other side.
Wow, Jim is right. That doesn't sound fair at all to me!