(NASHVILLE, TN), March 6, 2012  –  Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey (R-Blountville) and Senate Education Committee Chairman Dolores Gresham (R-Somerville) said today they are sponsoring an amendment to tie changes in scholarship eligibility requirements for students attending four year institutions that were proposed by a Lottery Scholarship Task Force to lottery revenue growth.   If the Lottery Corporation sustains the $10 million growth it experienced this year through the Spring of 2015 the provisions set forth in the Senate Bill 2514 would sunset.

Gresham said she asked staff to draft the amendment last week after Tennessee Lottery Corporation CEO Rebecca Paul Hargrove testified before the Senate Education Committee regarding their latest revenue reports.  Hargrove said they have experienced a $10 million growth in revenues over the past year, predicting that increase would be sustained indefinitely.  The Gresham amendment will be presented to the full Senate Education Committee tomorrow when members consider the legislation for approval.   

 “Unlike those in Washington, Tennessee is required to actually pay its bills on time – and we do,” said Lt. Gov. Ramsey. “I am committed to rewarding excellence in the classroom and giving a leg up to students who work hard. I am also committed to paying for it. This amendment will accomplish both goals in a common sense fashion.”

The total costs of Tennessee’s Lottery Scholarship Program have outstripped lottery revenues -- the net proceeds from the lottery games played plus interest from the lottery reserves -- since 2008.  To make up the difference, the state has dipped into the lottery reserves, an act of great concern to fiscally conservative policy makers and higher education officials who feared the lottery reserve balance would dwindle to an unsustainable level by fiscal year 2021.  These concerns prompted Governor Ramsey to appoint a bi-partisan Senate Lottery Stabilization Task Force which included the state’s top higher education officials, key State Senators and the Tennessee Treasurer, Comptroller and Secretary of State.  

“We must have a fiscally sound lottery scholarship program that will not only ensure stability for the immediate future of the fund, but makes sure it will be there for the next generation of students,” said Senator Gresham. “If the $10 million improvement is sustainable into 2015, this amendment would keep the current requirements for students attending four-year institutions in place.”

The Task Force recommended a plan which would require students who attend a four-year institution to meet both the ACT and grade point average (GPA) requirements to receive the full award beginning in the fall semester in 2015.  Under the new amendment, that provision would only apply if the Lottery does not sustain the projected revenue growth. 

The plan adopted by the Task Force would have also provided financial assistance to financially-needy undergraduate students who are residents of the state.  Approximately 5,600 more recipients would be served for each $10 million in funding provided to the Tennessee Student Assistant Award (TSAA) under the recommendation.  The grants would be available to non-traditional students of any age, including laid-off workers and other students.  That provision would also sunset if the $10 million is sustained and current eligibility requirements continue to remain in effect.

If the revenues fall short of the goal, the award to non-traditional students would apply and students who attend a four-year institution and meet one of the criteria (ACT or GPA) would be eligible for the two-year award amount.  It also provides that students who meet one of the criteria and retain the award through year two would be eligible for a full award in year three. Award amounts for students who attend two-year institutions would remain unchanged under the plan and the amendment. 

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(January 4, 2011, NASHVILLE) -- Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey today announced the release of the Senate’s first-ever Republican-drawn redistricting map. The plan was put together by the Senate’s Working Group on Redistricting with the assistance of the Office of Legal Services and is now available at the General Assembly’s website.

"We were committed to drawing a fair and legal state senate map and that is exactly what we have done.” said Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey. “The map emphasizes regional integrity and adheres to state and federal laws as well as court precedent. I look forward to concluding the redistricting process swiftly and efficiently as soon as we go into session next week.”

This year’s redistricting has been the most open, interactive and transparent redistricting process in Tennessee history. By placing an unprecedented amount of information and data online for use by the general public, Lt. Governor Ramsey opened up the process to any Tennessean with access to a computer.

In addition to Lt. Governor Ramsey the Senate Working Group on redistricting included three regional coordinators: Majority Leader Mark Norris, Republican Caucus Chairman Bill Ketron and Speaker Pro Tempore Bo Watson.

This unprecedented release includes both a statewide map as well as regional and urban center breakout maps for public perusal. A comprehensive memorandum explaining the new map in detail can also be found at the website: http://www.capitol.tn.gov/senate/redist/redistricting.html.

During a recent stop on my Red Tape Road Trip, a member of the audience couldn’t fathom why it was so hard for certain people to understand why we need voters to supply a photo ID at the polls.

His question seemed to imply that a large swath of the populace opposes photo ID. Let me assure you -- nothing could be further from the truth. By almost every measure a politician has to gauge the electorate, the recent photo ID law passed by our Republican majority is wildly popular. Be it polling, emails, phone calls or simply constituents stopping us on the street -- support for the measure is strong. Not only do voters agree with the policy when asked, it is one the the few issues on which people I encounter will volunteer their favorable opinion.

So who opposes photo ID? As is often the case these days, the opposition amounts to just a few leaders in the upper echelon of the Democrat Party and their friends in the press.

If you read the slanted news stories and editorials of the mainstream media, you would think that asking voters to present a photo ID at the polls is literally the end of the world as we know it. They believe that photo ID is an attempt to “suppress” the Democrat vote in Tennessee. With all due respect, their candidates seem to have done a pretty good job of suppressing their vote themselves in 2010 when they lost the governor mansion, fifteen seats in the legislature and three congressional seats.

But I digress. Let’s look at that word “suppression.” It means  to “prevent the development of an action or expression of an idea or feeling.” The photo ID law suppresses nothing other than voter fraud. We expect in a modern republic such as ours to have faith in the integrity of our electoral process. It is actually a quite unique situation we have in America. Not only do we have the right to vote - a rarity around the globe - we have an expectation that our elections are not a farce. We expect our vote to count. But how can our vote truly count if we don’t really know who is and isn’t voting?

That is the purpose of photo ID. This is not about suppression, it is about protection. If a qualified voter has his vote canceled out by one unqualified voter, tell me who has been disenfranchised? Whose vote has been suppressed?

The ever-dwindling Democrat political machine in this state would have you believe that there are scores of currently registered voters without voter ID who will be disenfranchised under this bill. They have even resorted to creating false numbers to bolster their case. Democrats say that 675,000 voting Tennesseans currently lack an photo ID. That number is rubbish. Pulled from thin air.

When challenged, they admit their calculations are based on census numbers which contain the very ineligible people this law is designed to exclude: felons, illegal aliens and even convicts sitting on death row.

That is what we are dealing with here:  a small, vocal, unscrupulous opposition who believe they are entitled to their own set of facts, their own reality.

Fortunately for Tennessee, their reality does not exist. No Tennessee voter is being disenfranchised by this legislation - not one. Voters who are residents of a licensed nursing home who vote at the facility are exempt. Voters who are hospitalized are exempt. Voters with a religious objection to being photographed are exempt. And any registered voter who wants to can vote by mail and does not have to present a photo ID.

But most people do like to vote in person so let me be clear: No one will be turned away at the polls on election day. They will either vote on a machine or cast a provisional ballot which will be counted when proof of identification is presented.

While the opposition throws out terms like “poll tax” remember this: Any registered voter may get an ID at no charge. Free. There is no poll tax.

The only way voters will be disenfranchised is if the purveyors of misinformation succeed. We shall not let them. The AARP of Tennessee has joined with State Election Coordinator Mark Goins to educate the public on exactly what this law means and what it does not. On November 1, the Secretary of State will hold outreach events in all 95 counties to inform and educate citizens on this new law. Your state is working hard to make sure that every qualified voter knows the law and receives an ID if they want one.

In fact, just this week a wonderful woman unable to drive herself was referred to my office by Congressman Jim Cooper. Though his office was unable to help this constituent, Congressman Cooper’s staff suggested she call me. A person from my office took this lovely lady downtown to use the Express Station right across from Legislative Plaza. She successfully procured her ID in minutes and now has an ID she can use not only at the polls but for many everyday activities which require a photo ID.

Clearly, the only suppression going on here is that of the truth by the opposition.

Unified Republican government has no interest in suppressing the vote. We wish only for the integrity of our democracy to be unimpeachable. The legislature, the Department of Safety and the Secretary of State are doing everything we can to make it so.

Tennessee deserves better than fear-mongering and demagoguing from frustrated Democrats and ill-informed editorial boards. We want Tennesseans to have a system they believe in and one they can trust. If you have any questions about the law or what is required to vote please call 1-877-850-4959 or log on to http://govotetn.com. Every Tennessean deserves the right to vote and every Tennessean has the right to have that vote mean something.

Lieutenant Governor partnering with NFIB to travel the state visiting with job creators

Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey today announced a series of discussions with business owners called Red Tape Road Trips. From now until Christmas, the Lieutenant Governor will be meeting with Tennessee’s business owners and entrepreneurs to hear concerns and offer help in dealing with state government and remove any and all “red tape” in the way of those putting capital at risk to create jobs.

“If history has proven anything to us it is that government cannot create jobs. It can, however, hasten the shedding of existing jobs and prevent new jobs from being created,” said Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey. “My primary goal in public service is to make Tennessee the easiest state in which to own and operate a business. These road trips are an opportunity to hear from the job creators themselves to get a clear and concrete picture of the ways government makes life harder for them. I am looking forward to hearing their stories and ideas on what we can do to get out of their way. The ultimate goal here is to make entrepreneurs interactions with state government as painless as possible.”

Partnering with Lt. Governor Ramsey on the road trips is the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB). NFIB is the leading small business association representing small and independent businesses.

“This road tour is a great initiative, and NFIB is proud to be part of it,” said NFIB State Director Jim Brown. “Through direct experiences with regulators, small business owners experience the challenges of our current regulatory environment and see the opportunities to fix them. Our members greatly appreciate Lt. Governor Ramsey taking the time to listen to business owners, who simply want a fair shake from their government.”

The Lt. Governor’s first Red Tape Road Trip will be to Clarksville on Oct. 13 where he will attend a roundtable discussion on regulation sponsored by local antique and consignment shops. Following that, Ramsey will visit the Memphis Area Action Council for a luncheon sponsored by NFIB at Regions Bank. Further trips to Knoxville, Nashville, Tri-Cities and Chattanooga are currently being scheduled.

In March 2011, Lt. Governor Ramsey launched TNRedtape.com, a site designed to connect with business owners and potential business owners to ease their interactions with state government. “Red Tape Road Trips” are an extension of TNRedtape.com and Lt. Governor’s long-term commitment to eliminate red tape in state government..

RED TAPE ROAD TRIPS

Thursday, October 13
2PM CST
Roundtable discussion
Better Homes & Garden Real Estate
108 Center Pointe Drive, Clarksville, TN 37040

Wednesday, October 19
11:30 AM CST
Q & A
Regions Bank
6200 Poplar Avenue, Memphis, TN 38119

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