Tennessee Game Censorship Bill Dies by Sponsor's Own Hand

It's time to give credit where credit is due.

When Tennessee State Senator Tommy Kilby (D) introduced SB3981 earlier this year, the gaming community went a little crazy, and with good reason. Kilby's bill, you see, one-upped all previous game legislation by seeking a complete ban on violent game for players of any age, not just those under 18.

For whatever reason, Sen. Kilby has apparently seen the light. GamePolitics has learned that bill has been withdrawn from this year's legislative calendar. An aide told GP this morning that Sen. Kilby voluntarily pulled SB3981 over concerns about its constitutionality. There was no word on whether Kilby might introduce some type of video game legislation in the 2007 session, but his staffer confirmed that HB3981 is dead. A companion bill in the Tennessee House has also been withdrawn.

Although we certainly thought Kilby's bill was a very bad piece of law from the moment he introduced it, we must acknowledge that he fixed the problem himself, rather than wasting the time of the Tennessee legislature considering the bill and, potentially, the state's tax dollars in fighting a First Amendment challenge from the video game industry.

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