Expanding Opportunities for Tennessee’s Independent Contractor Workforce with Portable Benefits
Technology has rapidly transformed employment and given workers new opportunities to join the growing “gig” or independent contractor workforce. Tennessee has more than one-half million self-employed and independent contractors. While these individuals have chosen this work for many reasons, state law restricts companies from providing employment benefits to them. State laws are attempting to […]
Protecting Full Expensing for Businesses in Tennessee
Full expensing, or bonus depreciation, is a tax policy that enables businesses of all sizes to deduct the full value of capital expenses in the year the expenditures are incurred rather than depreciating the assets over several years. These investments may be for equipment or infrastructure to support and expand their operations. In 2023, Governor […]
Expanding Access to Life-Saving Medical Treatments with Right to Try 2.0
In 2015, Tennessee passed the Phil Timp-Amanda Wilcox Right to Try Act. This ground-breaking law, later adopted by Congress, allows terminally ill patients to access medicine that has been deemed safe by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) but that has not received the agency’s final approval. With the passage of time, healthcare innovations […]
Streamlining Housing Development with Public Input Reform
In Beacon’s statewide listening tour, the lack of housing, especially affordable housing, continues to be at the top of Tennesseans’ concerns. Studies show the shortage is not only in rental units and low-income housing but at all levels of the housing ladder. New housing options are not being developed fast enough to meet rising demand. […]
Increase Access to Healthcare by Eliminating CON Laws
Healthcare can be expensive and complex. But Tennessee’s rules and restrictions are making it worse, often for those who can least afford care. Adopted in the 1970s, certificate-of-need (CON) laws require a government permission slip before providing most healthcare services, such as opening a new hospital or purchasing high-tech medical equipment. Imagine if every new […]
Expanding School Choice in Tennessee
This year, legislators are considering a proposal to give parents across Tennessee options when it comes to educating their children. Education Freedom Scholarships would provide around $7,000 for a student to attend a school of their choice as well as pay for other approved educational expenses, like tutoring, therapies, and textbooks. Such educational choice programs […]
Have a Voice in Massive Property Tax Increases
Despite tax cuts in recent years at the state level, there have been significant tax increases at the local level, especially property taxes. In 2019 alone, more than $208 million in proposed or adopted property tax increases occurred across the state. It doesn’t help Tennesseans if their taxes are cut at the state level only […]