NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee lawmakers have concluded the 107th General Assembly that was dominated by debates over guns, classroom instruction about sex and Governor Bill Haslam's efforts to overhaul state government operations.
After last year's session, the governor called for a one-third reduction in the number of bills filed. Lawmakers got part way there, introducing about 20 percent fewer pieces of legislation.
Several perennial bills were debated, but met their usual fate of getting killed for the year. They included efforts to allow supermarkets to sell wine, banning mountaintop removal coal mining and allowing adults to ride motorcycles without helmets on.
Many observers were shocked when a bill to legalize medical marijuana advanced out of a House committee. But the momentum was short-lived and the pot measure soon went up in smoke.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
