Rep. Kelly Keisling

Maddy summaryHJR 589 is a ceremonial resolution honoring the York Agricultural Institute Dragonettes girls' basketball team for finishing as runner-up in the 2025 TSSAA Division I, Class 2A state tournament. It commends their 30-6 season record, regional championship wins, and recognition of individual players, while acknowledging their coaches and community support. This resolution has no legal effect - it is purely a symbolic gesture of appreciation from the Tennessee General Assembly. It directly affects the named athletes, coaches, and school community, expressing official recognition of their athletic achievement.

Maddy summaryHJR 590 is a ceremonial resolution honoring Jaden Evans, a senior at Alvin C. York Institute in Tennessee, for winning the 2025 TSSAA girls' wrestling championship in the 120-pound weight class. It recognizes her as a back-to-back state champion (winning the 107-pound title in 2024 and 120-pound in 2025) and highlights her undefeated season and championship match victories. This resolution, passed by the Tennessee General Assembly and signed by the governor, formally congratulates Evans and celebrates her athletic achievements and character. As a commemorative resolution, it has no binding policy effect.

Maddy summaryHouse Joint Resolution 491 is a commemorative resolution honoring Stephanie Boshears, a third-grade teacher at Oneida Elementary School, for receiving the Milken Educator Award. The resolution formally recognizes her dedication to education, professional excellence, and positive impact on students in Tennessee, as part of the state's recognition of educators who advance teaching standards. It does not create new laws or policies but serves as a public acknowledgment of her achievements, consistent with the Milken Educator Award program's purpose of celebrating early-to-mid-career educators. The resolution was signed by both chambers and the Governor in April 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 79 creates the "Courthouse Square Revitalization Act" to allocate state sales tax revenue from designated courthouse square areas back to small municipalities. It directly affects incorporated towns or cities serving as county seats with populations under 30,000 (per 2020 census), requiring them to formally designate a revitalization zone and apply for approval. The bill’s key mechanism redirects sales tax revenue generated within the approved zone to the municipality, which must use the funds exclusively for improving the courthouse square area through infrastructure, marketing, or other revitalization efforts. The program limits approval to six total projects (max two per grand division) and requires department review of applications including maps and boundary descriptions.

Maddy summaryHB 50 amends Celina's city charter to increase the number of aldermen from three to five, effective for the 2025 election. The bill changes the election date to June 2025, updates the city council composition to include a mayor and five aldermen, and requires a majority vote (instead of two members) for council decisions. This directly affects Celina residents by altering local governance structure and voting requirements. The bill requires approval by Celina's legislative body before taking effect, as specified in Section 4.

Maddy summaryHB 1211 prohibits Tennessee public airports offering commercial flights from allowing private third-party vendors (like security screening companies) to use standard TSA security lanes or TSA PreCheck lanes. It directly affects airports and private security vendors, requiring them to either use dedicated lanes (if the vendor has exclusively built them) or not operate in standard lanes. The bill specifically exempts airlines themselves from this restriction, meaning airlines can still offer priority security lanes for their own passengers without charge. This policy aims to prevent private vendors from bypassing standard security processes while allowing dedicated lane solutions for vendors who invest in them.

Maddy summaryHB 834 prevents Tennessee's Water and Wastewater Operator Certification Board from outsourcing exam creation, administration, or competency decisions to third parties through contracts or agreements. The bill requires the board to create standardized exams that measure required skills (including at least 10% state regulatory questions per classification), sets a 70% passing score for both total exam and regulatory questions, and bans collecting applicant demographic data (age, race, sex, or cultural background). It directly affects water and wastewater operators seeking certification in Tennessee by ensuring exams are developed and administered internally by the board. The law applies to all certification processes under Tennessee Code Annotated Title 68, Chapter 221, Part 9.

Maddy summaryHB 835 shortens the waiting period for expunging certain criminal records in Tennessee. It reduces the required time from 10 years to 8 years after completing a sentence for a Class D felony, making it easier for eligible individuals to have those records sealed. The bill directly affects people convicted of Class D felonies who seek to expunge their records. The key change modifies Tennessee Code Annotated §40-32-101(g)(2)(B)(ii), specifying the new eight-year waiting period for this offense level.

Maddy summaryHB 202 requires Tennessee voters registering after July 2025 to submit proof of U.S. citizenship (like a birth certificate, passport, or naturalization document) with their registration forms. The state election coordinator must monthly compare the statewide voter database with state and federal records (including driver's license and social security databases) to identify non-citizens. If citizenship is questioned, voters have 30 days to provide proof to their county election commission; failure results in removal from voter rolls (with voting history preserved), but voters may appeal to the state election commission for a hearing. This bill directly affects all new and existing voters in Tennessee whose citizenship is verified through this process.

Maddy summaryHB 529 clarifies what constitutes a valid signature for Tennessee election documents, directly affecting voters and petitioners. It specifies that signatures must be handwritten in legible English, allows initials with a last name (if matching voter records), and permits an "X" mark with a witness verification for voters unable to write. The bill also requires petition signatures to include a residential address matching voter registration records and prohibits election officials from using extra evidence like affidavits to verify signatures. These changes aim to streamline signature verification for absentee ballots, voter registration, and petitions while reducing disputes.