State Senator Tim Burchett (R-Knoxville) approached the Senate Tuesday with a new means of ensuring safety on college campuses throughout Tennessee.
The Senate unanimously adopted House Bill 0561/Senate Bill 0917, also known as the Tennessee College and University Campus Sex Crimes Prevention Act.
According to the bill, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is required to "report current sexual offender registration and verification information to the law enforcement agency of any institution of higher education in the state at which the offender is employed, carrying on a vocation or enrolled."
The new bill also requires that a sex offender complete or update a TBI sexual offender registration form within 10 days of becoming employed or enrolled as a student at any college campus in the county where the sex offender resides. This bill is designed to ensure that any sex offender that is not properly registered with the TBI can be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Burchett is optimistic about the new bill and the impact it will have on college campuses.
"Anything we can do to protect the public, especially children and students, from convicted sex offenders is a very good thing," Burchett said. "If I had my way, these predators would still be behind bars instead of being let loose on our streets where they might be tempted to prey on more victims."
The bill will not be effective until Oct. 27, 2002. The approximate cost of the new bill is $32,600, paid for by federal funding.
Rebecca Almond, a junior majoring in geography at The University of Memphis, has mixed feelings about the new bill.
"I feel like it's a good idea. But employing a sexual offender at a university isn't a good idea in the first place," said Almond.
Because the bill is a recent addition to the statutes and has yet to take effect at The U of M, its future outcome is unknown.
Sheri Lipman, legal counsel at The U of M, says that The University will have to wait on more information from the state of Tennessee before the new bill can be put into effect.
"Right now the effect that is could have is unknown," Lipman said. "It's the job of The University to put it into effect at the correct time, and we'll just see how it will pan out."
