Interning with the Tennessee General Assembly by Elisabeth Nelson '22

Winterim 2021

Independent Internship: Tennessee General Assembly

January 21, 2021

This Winterim, I have so enjoyed interning at the Tennessee General Assembly in Representative Baum’s office. I have been able to learn all about the legislative process, from the beginning of researching and drafting new bills to their journey through committee hearings, and finally to debate on the floor of both the House and Senate. Every day has been different, and I am so grateful to Dr. Baum, his legislative assistant Mr. Vallas, and everyone that I have worked with for their efforts in helping me learn about the legislature.

I have seen so many different aspects of the legislative process this January! In the first week of Winterim, I researched everything from community water fluoridation to state auto-insurance laws, and development taxes to state-sponsored auto-IRA programs. Before interning in Representative Baum’s office, I had no idea how much time our representatives spent on constituent care. Constituents email Dr. Baum everyday with their ideas for new laws, unemployment concerns, and questions about the vaccine rollout. This often meant that I would be responsible for researching to find the answer to a particular constituent question, or a question concerning an idea for a bill.

Dr. Baum wanted me to see multiple aspects of the legislative process, so in my second week of Winterim, I visited both the House Clerk’s office and Senator Reeves’s office. The Clerks examine and number each Bill before its first consideration in the House. They also keep a record, both handwritten and electronic, of everything that happens on the floor of the House and assist in running both those meetings and committee meetings. It was so interesting to learn about all of this and to spend the day inside the Capitol building preparing for the first day of session. In Senator Reeves’s office, I helped with scheduling, calling constituents, and responding to constituent emails. It was so interesting for me to observe the workings of the Senate after experiencing all of the proceedings of the House.

Additionally, during my second week of Winterim, the 112th General Assembly convened, so I was able to watch the House and Senate, as well as many different committees, meet and discuss legislation. It was also especially interesting for me to view these meetings because of the debate surrounding the consideration of the TennCare block grant waiver, which was an abnormally large piece of legislation for this time of year in the General Assembly.

As for this week, I was able to watch the beginnings of Governor Lee’s special session on education during COVID-19 today, which has been very fascinating to me so far. I look forward to seeing the results of the special session soon! I know that education is so important for the future, which is why I am so grateful that I get to attend a school that has given me such wonderful opportunities to think about my future through the Winterim program. I also look forward to work on Thursday, because Dr. Baum’s office has arranged for me to spend time in the Secretary of State’s office, which will be very interesting. 

I am so thankful for the amazing opportunities that the Winterim program has given me, and I feel as though I have gained such a better understanding on not only our government, but also what it is like to be apart of an office. I feel so lucky that I was able to start the new year with a new perspective, and I can’t wait to hear all about the experiences of the other juniors and seniors when we return to school next week.