NASHVILLE — State House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick says he made a “mistake” in 2012 by sponsoring a bill that abolished most legislative oversight panels, including the General’s Assembly’s Corrections Oversight Committee.
With concerns now erupting over Tennessee prison overtime policy changes and the impact on staffing and safety, McCormick said the controversy underscores the need to restore some oversight panels, including the corrections oversight.
“I think we do need to reinstitute some of the oversight committees, including corrections,” said the Chattanooga Republican. “It was a mistake for me to carry that bill in the first place. Should never have done it.”
State Rep. Gerald McCormickMcCormick said his views began shifting last legislative session when he threw his support behind an ultimately unsuccessful effort seeking to restore two oversight panels, although neither one involved corrections.
It failed to gain traction in the Senate.