From January to May every year, members of the Tennessee General Assembly are hard at work enacting, amending and repealing our state’s laws. Meanwhile, they are juggling their full-time jobs outside the legislature.
There are 33 members in the Senate, and 99 members in the House of Representatives, each bringing his or her professional experience to the body. There are lawyers, pharmacists, doctors, small business owners, teachers, and farmers. And that’s only a fraction of the professions represented.
A legislator’s full-time job outside of the Tennessee General Assembly impacts how he or she sees issues and, ultimately, how they vote.
For example, legislators working in the education sector tend to be their own best source of information about legislation that pertains to education. Legislators in the pharmacy world tend to vote for and understand legislation that benefits pharmacists.
Not only can their occupation sway how they vote, but it can also help constituents identify what a legislator may be more knowledgeable about, and where additional information might be valuable. As experienced as these men and women are, they only “know what they know” and on other issues that may be more foreign to them, they need to hear from subject matter experts to help shape their outlook. For example, someone whose full-time job is being a lawyer might not be the most knowledgeable about large employer-sponsored health plans. That is where groups like TEBA and our members come in!
Overall, it’s important to know what your legislator is involved in outside of the General Assembly because it can provide insight into the topics they are knowledgeable and passionate about. And it can help you understand how to approach your legislator about issues important to you, like keeping employer benefit costs down.
To learn more about your legislator’s interests, click on their name on Tennessee General Assembly (tn.gov).
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