Posted 8/25/23

Tennessee Republican lawmakers hit an impasse Thursday just a few days into a special session sparked by a deadly school shooting in March, leaving little certainty about what they might ultimately pass, yet all but guaranteeing it won't be any significant gun control change.

After advancing a few bills this week, the GOP-dominant Senate quickly adjourned Thursday without taking up any more proposals, promising to come back Monday.

But the decision also ignited outrage among the Republican supermajority inside the House as they continue to churn through a full slate of other proposals. House leaders argue that they're using the special session to take up a wide range of proposals, while the Senate has refused to budge from passing anything that wasn’t in the limited legislative agenda outlined by the governor at the beginning of the special session.

The standoff between the two chambers has added fuel to an already emotional and chaotic special legislative session, where gun-control advocates want the GOP-dominant Statehouse to consider tweaking the state's relaxed gun laws.