Supporting marinas and family caregivers highlight last week

TOP PHOTO: Senator Ken Yager on a visit to the Rotary Club luncheon last summer.

NASHVILLE, TN (SPECIAL TO WLAF) – The seventh week of the 113th General Assembly is now complete. Some highlights of the week include a new office hire, passage of a bill to help marinas across the state out of committee, passage of a resolution to support caregivers within the family, and a preview of legislation to be heard in the eighth week of the General Assembly.

Trent Heath has been hired as my Executive Legislative Assistant. His predecessor, J.R. Russell, has been promoted within the General Assembly to Program Director of the Tennessee Legislative Internship. Trent has worked in the General Assembly previously as an assistant research analyst to the Senate Judiciary Committee, as a Senate Clerk, and as an intern to former state senator Mike Bell. He will be a great addition to the office.

I sponsored and passed a resolution out of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee that urges the State of Tennessee to develop a comprehensive statewide paid family caregiving policy and program by January 2025 to support family caregivers in Tennessee. This resolution will help address the needs of caregivers within the family, ensuring that they are compensated just like caregivers outside the family would be. The work caregivers do and the care they provide is extremely important, and I want to support them in any way possible.

In 2022, I passed legislation that established a grant program for marinas to address public infrastructure costs. The program was funded through gasoline tax revenue and administered by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA). Last week, I advanced legislation that will allow these grants to be administered based on the amount of gasoline sold. It also will ensure that a minimum of twenty-five marinas receive a grant, ensuring that regardless of size, all marinas can participate in the grant program. I look forward to passing the legislation on the Senate floor.

This week, the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced multiple bills, which I am cosponsoring, that protect children from known child abusers. The bills also enhance the punishment for those charged with child abuse. I am proud to be a cosponsor on these bills as protecting children from abuse is of the utmost importance. These pieces of legislation are some of the latest efforts the General Assembly is advancing to protect children in and out of the home by enhancing punishments for abusing children.

I invite everyone to visit the State Capitol. If you have children in grades 5-12, they can even serve as a page in the Senate. If your child would like to be a part of state government and would like to learn how laws are made, you can contact my office. I will do my best to accommodate all senate page requests. It is an honor to serve as the State Senator for nine of the finest counties in the state of Tennessee. If I can ever be of assistance to you, please contact me at 615-741-1449 or sen.ken.yager@capitol.tn.gov. (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 03/04/2024-6AM)

Related