| Next week, the Tennessee General Assembly kicks off its 114th session, and I couldn’t be more excited to get back to work for District 59. Representing you is a tremendous honor, and this year, with so many new faces joining us, we have a real opportunity to make meaningful progress and stop some of the harmful policies we’ve been fighting for years. I want to thank everyone who responded to the fall newsletter survey. Addressing gun violence and community safety was at the top of your minds, followed closely by women’s rights and healthcare access. You’re deeply concerned about protecting our public schools from voucher schemes, and you want healthcare that doesn’t break the bank. One of your comments really stuck with me, you want your representatives to “build coalitions, not enemies.” That’s exactly how I’m approaching this session – finding common ground where possible while standing firm on our values. I took that to heart and in addition to my own legislation, I am going to be working in a bi-partisan manner to co-sponsor a few bills that focus on healthcare access for seniors, covering biomarker genetic testing for cancers, providing free school meals, and making school boards create policies to limit the use of cell phones by students during instructional time. This year, my legislative agenda is rooted in common-sense solutions that make life easier for Tennesseans. That’s what government should be about – finding real answers to real problems and putting people first. Here’s what I’m working on to make life better for District 59 families:  Fixing the Maternal Mortality Crisis Tennessee’s maternal mortality rate is a moral emergency that demands immediate action. Working alongside healthcare experts statewide, we’ve crafted comprehensive legislation to provide better tools and resources for healthcare providers and support mothers before, during, and after pregnancy. This isn’t just policy – it’s about saving lives. Making Healthcare Work for Tennessee Families The healthcare system isn’t working for ordinary people, and I’ve uncovered a big reason why. Big healthcare companies are using loopholes in Tennessee code to bypass anti-trust laws, driving up prices and limiting your choices. This isn’t just wrong – it’s fixable. Our anti-trust legislation will close these legal loopholes, increase competition among providers, and give you more choices in care. When we bring down costs through market competition, everyone benefits. |
| Making Tennessee Safer Gun violence costs Tennessee over $18 billion annually, but the human cost is immeasurable. That’s why I’m working on establishing a State Office of Gun Violence Prevention to study root causes and coordinate evidence-based solutions across agencies. This office will provide communities with prevention resources and track outcomes to ensure our strategies actually work. After countless conversations with law enforcement and responsible gun owners, Senator Jeff Yarbro and I refined our safe storage bill to address the epidemic of guns stolen from vehicles. The solution is simple: if you leave a gun in your car, secure it properly. This common-sense approach protects both rights and public safety. Improving Student Mental Health This fall, I sat down with school counselors and education experts to understand how we could better support students’ mental health. What I learned was surprising – when students transfer schools, their counseling and discipline records don’t follow them. Counselors are forced to start from scratch with our most vulnerable kids, losing critical time and context. Our bill creates a secure records transfer system that ensures continuous care for transferring students. This gives counselors the tools they need from day one to support kids effectively. Protecting Consumers and Property Rights Last session, we passed major legislation making ticket fees transparent – so successful it became a model for federal policy. Now we’re taking on ticket speculation with Senator Campbell. Our new bill will ban the sale of tickets sellers don’t actually possess and create meaningful penalties for fraudulent sales. We’re protecting consumers from price gouging while ensuring real fans can access events at fair prices.After catching someone poaching on my lease via trail cam, I discovered our game and fish violation fines haven’t changed since 1961. Working with TWRA, we’re modernizing these penalties by raising maximum fines to $500. This creates real deterrents for repeat offenders while protecting landowner rights and preserving our wildlife. Making Hot Chicken State Official Here’s something different from our usual policy fights: I’m partnering with Senator Charlane Oliver to make hot chicken an official state food. But this is more important than just recognizing local food – it’s about celebrating the entrepreneurs and family businesses who turned a Nashville specialty into a national icon. From Prince’s start in North Nashville to today’s thriving hot chicken scene, this dish represents decades of local innovation and perseverance. When visitors come to Nashville, hot chicken isn’t just on their must-try list – it’s become a symbol of our city’s unique culture and entrepreneurial spirit. Hopefully, we don’t have a food fight over this one!  Defeating the Governor’s Voucher Scheme… Again I’m proud to share that I’ll be serving in a leadership role on a newly created, Voucher Task Force. As a public school parent, I see firsthand what’s at stake. We’ll fight this with data-driven arguments and coalition building across party lines, focusing on fiscal responsibility and protection of local control.I’m seeing momentum shift around this issue. While the governor’s bringing in D.C. special interest groups, more and more Republican colleagues are questioning this scheme. They’re realizing it diverts critical funding from public schools and uses property taxes to fund private education without accountability. I’m fully committed to halting this bill in its tracks once again this session. |
| Looking Ahead Let’s talk numbers, because they impact everything we can do. We’re working with a $58.6 billion total state budget, with $25.5 billion coming from state revenue and $24.5 billion from federal funding.The remainder comes from services, bonds, and other sources. Here’s our challenge: we only have $377 million in new revenue to work with, while state agencies have requested $4.2 billion.That means every dollar must count, and every bill, every vote, every negotiation must focus on delivering real results for Tennessee families. |
Rep. Hemmer volunteered with the Nashville Rotary to deliver food to MDHA residents at Christmas.
| I encourage you to stay involved in the legislative process. You can always reach me directly by email (rep.caleb.hemmer@capitol.tn.gov) or call the office at 615-741-2035. My agenda this session comes from you – your stories, your challenges, your hopes for Tennessee. While we won’t win every fight, we can make progress by staying focused on real solutions that help real people. In service, Caleb Hemmer State Representative, District 59 A Quick Note About Support Before we dive into the legislative session next week, I wanted to be direct with you. State law prevents legislators from accepting donations during session (starting Tuesday at noon), and I rely on contributions from neighbors like you to keep fighting for our district.If you believe in the work we’re doing – standing up against extremism and fighting for a better Tennessee – I’d be grateful for your support before the deadline. The resources we have going into session will determine how effectively we can push back against harmful policies and fight for our community in the months ahead. If you can chip in before Tuesday, it would mean a lot. |
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