NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee voters will see three proposed changes to the state constitution on the Nov. 3 ballot, listed directly after the candidates for governor, and each one needs more than a simple majority to pass.
Amendment 1 would rewrite the bail section of the constitution. Today judges can generally deny bail only in capital cases. The amendment would let a court hold a defendant without bail before trial when the proof is evident or the presumption great in cases involving a capital offense, an act of terrorism, second degree murder, aggravated rape of a child, aggravated rape, grave torture, or any crime that requires serving at least eighty-five percent of a sentence. Judges would also have to state on the record their reasons for granting or denying bail in those cases.
Amendment 2 would add language to the constitution that prohibits the Legislature from imposing a State property tax on real, personal or mixed property. Local property taxes are not part of the change.
Amendment 3 would expand the rights of crime victims, including rights to fair treatment, to take part in the parole process, to be protected from harassment, intimidation, and abuse, and to be told the minimum sentence an offender will serve and the scheduled release date.
Passing an amendment in Tennessee is harder than winning a normal race. Each one must get more yes votes than no votes, and the yes total must be more than half of all votes cast in the governor race. A voter who skips the amendment while voting for governor effectively makes passage harder.
Each measure already cleared the Legislature twice, first by a simple majority and then by a two-thirds vote in a later session, which is the process the state requires before an amendment reaches voters.
