HB 2795 / SB 2775

This bill declares that federal laws, federal executive actions, and federal court opinions must comply with the jurisdictional limitations of the U.S. Constitution. It is further declared that any federal action outside the enumerated powers set forth in the U.S. Constitution are in violation of the peace and safety of the people of this state, and therefore, such acts are declared void and must be resisted.

This bill provides that one proper manner of resistance is a state action of nullification of the federal action.

Nullification is rooted in the principles of federalism and states’ rights, which are integral to the constitutional framework of the United States. The concept was most famously articulated in the early 19th century by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 1798 and 1799, respectively. These resolutions argued that the states had the right to judge the constitutionality of federal laws and to refuse to enforce laws deemed unconstitutional.

This bill authorizes state nullification of federal action to be accomplished in the following ways:

(1) The governor may, by the governor’s own executive authority, issue an executive order nullifying the same, whereby all executive departments of the state are bound by said order;

(2) Any member of the general assembly may introduce a bill of nullification in the general assembly. For any such proposed bill of nullification, the bill is not subject to debate or passage in committees, and proceeds directly to the floor of each house. Each house must give its members notice of five legislative days before the bill is scheduled for debate on the respective floor for purposes of amendments thereto in accordance with house rules, as applicable, including amendments that provide penalties or punitive measures to ensure compliance with the bill by state and local governmental departments, agencies, and officers. Within five legislative days after such period of notice, the bill must be scheduled for debate on the floor of each house, and within three legislative days after the debate is closed, must be presented for a vote on each floor. The bill, if passed in the same manner as other general law, has the force and effect of law, and becomes effective immediately upon enactment. The time constraints listed in this (2) may be changed by majority vote of any house of subsequent general assemblies;

(3) Any court operating under the authority of the Constitution of Tennessee may render a finding or a holding of nullification in any case in which it otherwise has proper venue and jurisdiction, wherein the parties to said case will, upon final judgment, be bound thereby in the same manner as in other cases;

(4) Any combination of 10 counties and municipalities may, through the action of the executive or through the action of a majority of the governing legislative body, submit a petition of nullification to the speaker of the house of representatives, with a copy to the office of the attorney general, and upon satisfactory proof that said petitions are valid, the speaker of the house of representatives must proceed to introduce the bill and follow the same methods and protocols as described in (2) above; and

(5) The signed petitions of 2,000 registered voters of this state may submit signed petitions of nullification to the speaker of the house of representatives, with a copy to the office of the attorney general, and upon satisfactory proof that said signatures are valid, the speaker of the house of representatives must proceed to introduce the bill and follow the same methods and protocols as described in (2) above. Such voter petitions must not be submitted individually, but said petitions must be coordinated and compiled in batches, by county of voter registration, of not less than 25 voters per county in a bundled batch.