Progress was made on two pieces of legislation sponsored by 70th District State Rep. Clay Doggett in the recently ended session of the State Legislature.
Dogged, who prides himself on turning suggestions from constituents into bills, has worked hard on bills dealing with adult changing tables and on another to more directly market food grown and produced by farmers to consumers.
House Bill 905 is intended to help get adult-sized changing tables into as many buildings across the state as possible, according to information in Doggett’s newsletter.
He worked with the Kevin Hood family of Giles County on the bill.
“Although we are slightly saddened to to say that House Bill 905 was not signed into law, we aren’t really that disappointed, because our goal was still achieved. A grant program was established,” Doggett said in the newsletter.
The $1 million grant program allows for $5,000 to be awarded to a person or group for a business or municipal building that wishes to have one installed, he said.
Through another bill, HJR 0755, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation was encouraged to install a changing table in each state park.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation intends to install a table at each of the state’s rest areas, according to Doggett.
He also thanked the Tennessee Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, the Tennessee Disability Coalition, State Sen. Bo Watson, and many others.
On another matter, House bill 2650 “Tennessee-Made Food for Tennesseans," did not pass the House of Representatives but was sent to summer study.
“We hope to bring back an even better bill next year, so that we can get this great idea into law,” Doggett said.
Rural Tennesseans Coalition, an organization in Leoma,in Lawrence County, also in the 70th district, supported the bill.