Every week, I send a newsletter to thousands of Tennesseans to let them know what’s happening in the United States Senate and what I’m currently working on -- whether it is helping Tennessee communities fight the opioid crisis, helping Nashville songwriters receive fair market value for their work, or addressing the over $11.6 billion maintenance backlog in our 417 national parks, including the $215 million in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As the chairman of the Senate committee responsible for health, education, labor and pensions policies, there’s usually a lot of news to share.
You have been in touch with me recently, so I thought you might like to receive my newsletter. You can read this week’s newsletter below, and if you would like to sign up to continue to receive it, click here.
Republican Congress Getting Results for Tennesseans:
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This week, the Senate passed the first three fiscal year 2019 appropriations bills on time and within the budget limits set by Congress. I chaired the House and Senate conference committee that successfully reached an agreement, and worked to make sure Tennessee’s priorities were included. The Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill provides up to $117.7 million to continue construction of Chickamauga Lock in Chattanooga, record funding for the agency that funds our 17 national laboratories, including the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and supports our national security by strengthening weapons programs and funding the Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12 in Oak Ridge.
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The Senate also passed my “PREEMIE” Act, legislation to support health care professionals caring for babies born premature.
Important news from this past week:
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This week, we remembered the men and women who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. Our nation will never forget the events of that day, and the tragic loss that thousands of American families suffered. Nor will we ever forget how America united as a country to respond to those brutal attacks. We should strive for the unity we found that day, passing on to our children and succeeding generations the values that make our nation great. We honor our brave service men and women at home and abroad who defend our freedoms and protect us from those who would seek to cause us harm.
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The Every Kid Outdoors Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives this week. The bill, which I helped introduce in the Senate, allows 4th graders and their families free entrance to all federal lands and waters, including national parks – more than 2,000 sites in all.
Important funding bills for Tennessee one step closer to becoming law
Boy Scouts shouldn’t get a merit badge for telling the truth, and senators shouldn’t get an award for passing an appropriations bill: that’s what we are supposed to do. But, it is worth noting that for the first time in nearly 10 years the Senate passed funding bills that are on time, and they are also within the budget. I worked hard to include up to $117.7 million to continue construction of Chickamauga Lock in Chattanooga, to continue record funding for the agency that funds our 17 national laboratories – including Oak Ridge National Laboratory – and to support weapons programs that are vital to our national security and the important work at Y-12. These are important bills for Tennesseans, and I look forward to President Trump signing these bills into law.
Thank you, Jim Snell, from Volunteer Tennessee, and Matt Walker, from Teach for America, for sharing with me the impact of national and community service programs in communities and classrooms across Tennessee.
Senate to vote soon on “landmark” opioids legislation
Next week, the Senate is set to vote on legislation I introduced called the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018, which Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has called “landmark legislation.” The challenge of solving the opioid crisis has often been described as needing a moonshot. Solving the opioid crisis might require the energy and resources of a moonshot, but ultimately it is not something that can be solved by a single agency in Washington, D.C. What the federal government can do is create an environment so that everyone – governors, mayors, judges, counselors, law enforcement, doctors, nurses and families – can succeed in fighting the crisis. This bill aims to do that. My hope is that the Senate will work quickly with our colleagues in the House of Representatives to reach an agreement by September 21, so we can send it to President Trump’s desk to be signed into law as quickly as possible.
I spoke about the ten key provisions of this bill on the floor of the Senate this week. You can watch my remarks here.
Here are 10 key provisions in the Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018:
1. The STOP Act – Stop illegal drugs, including fentanyl, from coming across the border through the mail
2. New non-addictive painkillers, research and fast-track
3. Blister packs for opioids, such as a 3 or 7-day supply
4. More medication–assisted treatment
5. Prevent “doctor-shopping” by improving state prescription drug monitoring programs
6. More behavioral and mental health providers
7. Support for comprehensive opioid recovery centers
8. Help for babies born in opioid withdrawal
9. Help for mothers addicted to opioids
10. More early intervention with vulnerable children who have experienced trauma
President Trump’s zero tariff trade goal is right for Tennessee autoworkers
I spoke with members of the Nashville Kiwanis Club on Friday about the president’s zero tariff trade goal, which I believe is good for Tennessee autoworkers and the right policy for Tennessee. Just take the story of the Nissan Rogue -- several years ago, Nissan had an internal competition between its automotive manufacturing plants in Japan, South Korea and Smyrna, Tennessee, to decide which one of the plants would build the new Nissan Rogue. NAFTA’s zero tariff policies were a big reason Nissan ended up choosing to build the Rogue in Smyrna. NAFTA allows Nissan to move parts between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico tariff-free, which makes it cheaper to build the Rogue in Tennessee than it would be in South Korea or Japan. NAFTA has had the effect of getting more companies to make here what they sell here – and Tennessee’s auto jobs have nearly doubled since NAFTA went into effect. The wrong policy, is piling tariffs on top of tariffs, which destroys jobs and lowers family incomes. I hope President Trump continues to pursue his previously stated zero tariffs goal, so Tennessee can continue to see the job growth and expansion we’ve maintained since NAFTA’s implementation in 1994.
I enjoyed meeting with Eddie Bray, Henderson County’s new mayor.
House committee approves bill to cut in half maintenance backlog at 417 national park sites
This week, the House Natural Resources Committee approved the Restore Our Parks and Public Lands Act -- companion legislation to the Senate’s Restore Our Parks Act I introduced -- putting the bill one step closer to becoming law. This legislation could do more to restore national parks than anything that has happened in the last half century. We need to restore our parks so Americans can enjoy the 417 sites -- from the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to the Grand Canyon to Yosemite – for generations to come. This bill will greatly reduce the nearly $12 billion deferred maintenance backlog in our parks and prevent situations such as the Look Rock Campground on Chilhowee Mountain in the Smokies which once served 5,000 families a year, but has been closed for repairs for five years. It is my hope that both the House and Senate will be able to pass this legislation this year.
Senate approves my legislation to give more infants hope for healthier lives
This week, the Senate passed my legislation, the PREEMIE Act, to improve the treatment and outcomes of infants born premature. In Tennessee, about 11 percent of babies are born preterm. I first introduced the PREEMIE Act in 2003 to reduce infant deaths and improve infant health by continuing research and education programs aimed at preventing preterm births. Since it was first signed into law in 2006 and reauthorized in 2013, this law has helped give more babies the chance at long and healthy lives. It is important the Senate passed this legislation this week, so the president can sign it before many of the programs expire on September 30.
I had a great meeting with American for Prosperity Tennessee State Director Tori Venable. We talked about how the Republican Senate is working to confirm more qualified judges, including President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Brett Kavanaugh.
