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Bill Lee for governor

Bill Lee is a seventh-generation Tennessean who was raised in Franklin where he still resides today with his wife Maria on his family’s farm. He’s the proud father of four adult children (Jessica, twin sons Jacob and Caleb, and Sarah Kate) and nine grandchildren.

After attending Williamson County Schools, Bill went to Auburn University, where he studied Mechanical Engineering. When he graduated, he returned home to Franklin to join the family business his grandfather started in 1944. He held several roles at Lee Company before becoming president of the company in 1992.

Under Bill’s leadership, the company grew into a comprehensive facilities solutions and home services company. It now employs more than 1,200 individuals and it has won numerous awards for work culture and business accomplishments.

In 2018, Bill entered the race for governor as a conservative outsider and became the first back to back Republican governor elected since Reconstruction in Tennessee. During his first term, Bill prioritized rural improvement, expanding parents’ role in education, tackling violent crime, pursuing criminal justice reform and growing economic opportunity in Tennessee.

As governor, Bill chairs the Republican Governors Public Policy Committee which has been a stabilizing force for challenges with the supply chain, border security and pushing back on federal overreach.

Bill and Maria are people of strong faith. They are active in Grace Chapel Church and in numerous faith-based ministries, which have taken them all over the world to serve people in need, including to Africa, Central America, and the Middle East.

FREEDOM:

  • Cut taxes for small businesses and paused grocery taxes during record inflation
  • Issued a 90-day freeze on new government regulations
  • Signed the Adoption and Religious Freedom Act to ensure private agencies are protected

PUBLIC SAFETY

  • Expanded Tennessean’s 2nd Amendment rights with Constitutional Carry
  • Expanded treatment and rehabilitation to ensure incarcerated individuals do not re-commit crimes
  • Reduced law enforcement shortages with aggressive out-of-state recruiting
  • Established a $100 million violent crime intervention program
  • Strengthened penalties against drug traffickers, human traffickers, and criminals who commit gun crimes
  • Deployed Tennessee National Guard to the Southwest Border to stop illegal crossings and drug trafficking

FAMILY

  • Passed the strongest pro-life laws in the country, including the Heartbeat Bill
  • Expanded maternal health and postpartum coverage for TennCare recipients
  • Launched TN Fosters Hope to secure permanent homes for kids in foster care
  • Reformed Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

EDUCATION

  • Reformed a 30-year-old funding approach to fund students, not bureaucracies
  • Expanded access to career and technical training for middle and high school students
  • Established the Future Workforce Initiative to ensure students have access to STEM educational opportunities
  • Banned CommonCore from all Tennessee schools
  • Put phonics back in the classroom

OPPORTUNITY

  • Tennessee unemployment is at the lowest rate in Tennessee history
  • Nearly 70,000 jobs added to Tennessee’s economy since 2019
  • Raised teacher pay to the highest level and closed bureaucratic loopholes to ensure a teacher raise is a teacher raise
  • Secured Ford Motor Company on the Megasite of West Tennessee, marking the largest private sector investment in Tennessee history
  • Doubled investments and expanded private sector partnerships to bring high-speed broadband to underserved areas

AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM

  • Established high-quality civics education in public schools, including a required civics exam in high school
  • Established the University of Tennessee Institute of American Civics
  • Shut down the Chinese Communist Party’s Confucius Institutes at public universities