1-TENNESSEE TOWN & CITY/AUGUST 31, 2009 www.TML1.org 6,250 subscribers www.TML1.org Volume 60, Number 14 August 31, 2009 Religious Freedom Act stifles local police powers BY JOSH JONES ployment Division v. Smith, 494 U.S. MTAS Legal Consultant 872 (1990). The court in Smith also recog- This year the General Assembly nized that the state is never justified passed Public Chapter No. 573 in passing legislation that directly which purports to preserve religious inhibits the free exercise of religion. freedom. With such a stated objec- However, a believer cannot gain tive, it is not surprising that the leg- exemption from neutral laws of gen- islation passed with little opposi- eral applicability based on an indi- tion. That is, of course, because the rect curtailment of free exercise. To people of the United States cherish rule otherwise, the court wisely religious freedom and provide con- states, places “the professed doc- stitutional protections for those trines of religious belief superior to freedoms surpassing any in history. the law of the land, and in effect to Upon closer examination, however, permit every citizen to become a law Public Chapter No. 573 is less about unto himself.”Id. protecting religious freedom than it The backlash from Smith re- is about excusing otherwise unlaw- sulted in the Religious Freedom ful practices when done pursuant to Restoration Act (RFRA) of 1993. professed piety. This federal law applied a strict scru- When two Oregon drug counse- tiny test on federal, state and local lors tested positive for peyote were governmental entities when a peti- fired and subsequently denied un- tioner claims a violation of the Free employment benefits, no one imag- Exercise Clause of the First Amend- ined these events would strike fear ment. Commonly referred to as the in religious organizations nation- Sherbert Test, strict scrutiny re- wide and set the stage for decades of quires a court to determine whether legislative and judicial frenzy. The the petitioner’s claim involves a sin- case was Employment Division v. cere religious belief and whether the Smith, where the U.S. Supreme government action is a substantial Court ruled that despite the users’ burden on the person’s ability to act The Tennessee General Assembly passed a new law that establishes a minimum of 16 hours of training in claim that the psychedelic cacti were on that belief. If those prongs are firefighting procedures and techniques for all full-time, part-time and volunteer firefighters. taken as part of a religious rite, the met, the government must then state nonetheless was justified in prove that it is acting in furtherance denying the benefits based upon a of a compelling state interest and state law of general application, Em- See RELIGIOUS on Page 6 Minimum training required for firefighters BY RAY CROUCH part-time and volunteer firefighters and techniques or complete equiva- Deadline to verify dependent MTAS Fire Consultant in Tennessee. lent training approved by the Ten- Any firefighter who is certified nessee Commission on Firefighting eligibility fast approaching The 2009 General Assembly by a medical doctor as medically or Personnel Standards and Education passed a new law that establishes physically unable to complete the before being allowed to actively BY KEVIN KRUSHENSKI the country are doing this same type minimum training requirements for training requirements is exempt; fight a fire. TML Research Analyst of dependent verification. Other Tennessee firefighters. however, the fire department may (2) Within 36 months after hire or companies that have verified de- The law went into effect July 1, not allow such firefighters to engage acceptance date as a firefighter, the The state of Tennessee is cur- pendents in their medical plans have 2009, and amends T.C.A. Title 4, in active firefighting operations. firefighter must have completed or rently in the process of verifying reported between 5% and 15% of Chapter 24, Part 1, by adding a new Any firefighter who is certified by must complete after joining the fire dependent eligibility for all state dependents were not eligible for section, Section 4-24-112. the fire department’s chief officer department, the “basic and live and local government employees coverage at all. We recognize that The law does three things: not to operate within an environ- firefighting” course offered by the who are enrolled in the state medical some employees may not realize (1) establishes a 16-hour class that ment determined to be immediately Tennessee Fire Service and Codes and dental insurance plans.This also their covered dependents do not must be taken by anyone who dangerous to life and health (IDLH) Enforcement Academy or an includes employees of the Univer- meet eligibility requirements. enters the fire service before they is exempt from the “live equivalent course. sity of Tennessee, Tennessee Board There are others who have been can respond to any emergency; firefighting” portion of the training Possible legal implications for fire of Regents and local education sys- covering an ineligible dependent (2) requires that every firefighter referenced in subsection (a)(2). departments in exempted counties tems. out of love and concern, but shifting complete a basic firefighter class, What are the minimum training Fire departments in counties Employees have until Sept. 4 to the cost for this coverage to our as defined by the Tennessee Fire standards required by this law? that are exempt from the training complete the verification process medical plan is not the right thing to and Codes Academy, within (1) The firefighter must previously requirements of this law should not under an amnesty grace period do because it increases the costs for three years of joining a fire de- have completed or must complete rest on their exemption too easily. where no disciplinarian action or all of us. partment; and after joining the fire department a For an exemption from a general law additional premium costs will occur (3) provides exceptions for minimum of 16 hours of initial train- to be valid, there must be a rational TT&C: How will the state benefit for enrolled ineligible dependents. firefighters who already have ing developed by the Tennessee Fire basis for the exemption. from this undertaking? five years of experience. Those who fail to meet the Sept. 4 Service and Codes Enforcement Nolichuckey Sand Co. v. Hud- Lee: This initiative is going to save This law affects all full-time, Academy in firefighting procedures See FIREFIGHTERS on Page 7 deadline will be contacted by the the state money. The average yearly state and their dependents risk los- cost per dependent is $3,200. When ing coverage. 250 dependents were dropped from Metro Animal Control barking up Tennessee Town and City inter- coverage, we paid for the cost of this viewed Laurie Lee, executive direc- verification project. Secova, the tor of Benefits Administration in the company selected through our com- the right tree with high technology Department of Finance and Admin- petitive bid process that is verifying istration, in order to answer some of eligibility for us, is charging us BY VICTORIA SOUTH the most frequently asked ques- $800,000. As of Monday, Aug. 24, TML Communications Coordinator tions. 2,808 dependents had been volun- TT&C: Why is the state conduct- tarily dropped by employees be- Revolutionizing the way it ing this verification process? cause they are not eligible for cover- handles service calls for wayward, Lee: We cover about 140,750 de- age. That’s a savings of more than abandoned, or neglected animals, pendents in all of our plans. We $8.1 million already. Metro Nashville’s Animal Control want to keep our premiums as af- has dramatically improved its per- fordable as possible and we should TT&C: What happens if people formance rate and has gained a fresh not be paying medical and dental have enrolled ineligible depen- new perspective. High technology, claims for people who don’t belong dents on their medical or dental including vehicle computers, global on our plans. The majority of plans? positioning systems (GPS), staff healthcare costs are for dependents. Lee: If you remove the ineligible training, and route planning soft- As a result, many businesses and dependent before Sept. 4, no ques- ware, helps animal control officers governmental agencies throughout See INSURANCE on Page 7 and dispatchers coordinate service routes while keeping accurate records of the numerous calls the State Comptroller proposes agency receives each day. Also, improved air conditioning new reporting requirements systems and four new trucks, have Photo by Victoria South helped reduce the number of trips “Local governments need to go troller to demonstrate they fully un- While on a call, Metro Animal Control Officer J.D. White utilizes the officers make to transport animals to into interest rate swaps and other derstand the risks involved. agency’s new computers, handheld devices and GPS technology to the cheerful Harding Place head- exotic financial agreements with That requirement could be perform his job more quickly and efficiently. their eyes wide open,” Comptroller waived if a local government can quarters in South Nashville. Justin P. Wilson said earlier this satisfy certain other conditions, in- “Everything was once done by plaint into the officer’s on-line several addresses at once establish- month in announcing a new set of cluding meeting minimum debt re- hand,” said Billy Biggs, field opera- folder and radios the officer to let ing the most efficient routes. proposed guidelines to regulate quirements, having an adopted capi- tions supervisor. An employee since him or her know it’s there. Urgent “This is the way animal control such transactions. tal improvement plan, an audit com- 1999, Biggs recalls the dreary, dis- calls are always highlighted in programs in cities need to work,” On May 1, Wilson presented mittee, or an accountant and chief organized place many animal lovers green.