John Ragan

Representative John Ragan (R), District 33, has served in the Tennessee State House since 2015. He is the chairman of the very important Government Operations Committee. Chairman Ragan has a respectable vote score of 83%, placing him #13 – 16 (ties) in a body of 99 members. His leadership grade of A sets him above the crowd at #13. Leadership grades are based on sponsorships, co-sponsorships, amendments, and other acts, both meritorious (+) and deleterious (-).

TLRC scores and grades reflect the entire process, not just end results. We count every vote on every selected bill.  Bills are selected for their value to ordinary Tennesseans, or their insult to those values. We encourage our General Assembly members to support the former and oppose the latter. When they don’t, they lose points.

Chairman Ragan supported the following TLRC endorsed bills:

• HB0800/SB1216  Eduction: No material allowed promoting/normalizing non-traditional sex
• HB1137/SB1197 – No restrictions on church activities in declared emergency
• HB1749/SB2285 – Court decisions de novo, not based on a state agency’s interpretation
• HB1867/SB1823 – Vaccine exemptions protected
• HB1871/SB1982 – Recognition that natural immunity is equal or superior to vaccine
• HB1880/SB1830 – School boards- gives the public freedom to speak
• HB1960/SB1884 – No government vaccine mandates
• HB2128/SB2245 – Election integrity measures  (weak)
• HB2316/SB2153 – No males in girls’ sports
• HB2331/SB2558 – Auditable paper trail voting machines
• HB2454/SB2292 – Redefines “obscene” to include educational material in K-12 making it unlawful
• HB2666/SB2247 – Requires Textbook Commission to provide a list of approved material to GA members
• HB2742/SB2728 – Requires HS to teach virtues of capitalism and the constitution
• HB2746/SB2188 – Makes Ivermectin available over the counter

Here are three TLRC-opposed bills that, to our disappointment, Chairman Ragan supported:

• HB1201/SB1005  Changes in campaign finance giving advantage to incumbents; limiting freedom of speech.           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK5Ov35oRx

• HB2609/SB2890 – Cincinnati Reds 80% tax-break for Chattanooga farm team

• HB8002/SB8002 – Provides $678,218,300 of taxpayer money for Ford to build an electric vehicle plant in W. TN

Corporate welfare in all forms should be opposed. Our state government should not be giving economic advantages to any public or private for-profit entities. Let the free market pick the winners and losers. Jobs would come to Tennessee if we were actually to reform our education system and to educate instead of indoctrinate. A well-educated workforce would be unique in America and every business would want to be in our right-to-work, no income tax state. Members should rethink these handouts. To his credit, Chairman Ragan opposed another corporate welfare bill:

• HB2886/SB2901 – Provides $500M for Titans to build new stadium

He also opposed:

• HB2309/SB2464 – Allows professional licenses for illegal immigrants in Tennessee.
  https://tennesseestar.com/2022/04/13/tennessee-general-assembly-may-enable-illegal-immigrants-to-acquire-commercial-and-professional-licenses/

Chairman Ragan is a leader in the battle against bigger government and constitutional principles. We need more principled members like Ragan to battle against bigger government and for our tenth amendment rights to make good policy decisions for ordinary Tennesseans by Tennesseans. We are in crisis. We can and must do better.

By listing these bills, we hope that tells you what you need to know about your General Assembly members. We encourage you to reach out and let them know how you feel about the various issues and VOTE accordingly. To contact members, go to: https://www.capitol.tn.gov