Countdown to adjournment on Capitol Hill

Legislators looking to end session first have to get budget troubles sorted out

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

The 2008 legislative session is in its waning hours – or days, depending on who you ask – and the atmosphere is tense as issues surrounding the budget are resolved for better or worse.

One of the major holdups for legislators and lobbyists seeking adjournment is details of a buyout package for state employees. Gov. Phil Bredesen has already said that he will look to lay off state employees and hopes to minimize that number through early retirements. There is hope that a 2:30 p.m. meeting of the State Senate budget subcommittee will answer questions and fill in some details related to the buyout package.

One area of the budget that was spared – a move sure to keep the National Federation of Independent Business as well as venture capitalists happy – is that the elimination of FONCEs is no longer an option to fill a hole in the state's coffers. FONCEs are 'Family Owned Non-Corporate Entities' that come with tax incentives. Some lawmakers had proposed eliminating those breaks as a way to help close the the budget gap. Venture capitalists were concerned such a move would dry up investment dollars. They and the NFIB can now rest easier.

While not a budget matter, it looks as though the Tennessee Judicial Selection Commission will enter a one-year wind-down phase, thus setting up a major debate next year. The method by which Tennessee's judges are appointed, which has been the subject of much criticism by Bredesen and Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, is entering its sunset year and will fade into the distance without a vote of approval by the legislature and the governor.

Prospective judges will continue to apply to the selection commission over the course of the next year. But without legislative action next year, the commission will cease to exist and a new system of selecting judges will have to be agreed upon.