NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Randy McNally was elected as the new speaker of the Tennessee Senate on Tuesday, and fellow Republican Beth Harwell unanimously won a fourth term in charge of the House.
The votes came as lawmakers convened the first session of the two-year 110th Tennessee General Assembly.
The legislative session is expected to be dominated by debate over Republican Gov. Bill Haslam’s efforts to boost transportation funding, likely through the first gas tax hike since 1989.
That discussion comes as several sitting lawmakers – including Harwell – are considering bids to succeed the term-limited governor next year. Harwell said she wants to concentrate on the legislative session before making up her mind about a gubernatorial bid.
“We are waiting on the governor’s proposal and it will be fully debated and vetted in this chamber,” Harwell told reporters. “This General Assembly does not take raising taxes lightly, so I predict that if we look at increasing the user tax on gas, we would also look at lowering the tax somewhere else.”