Becky Duncan Massey
Tennessee State Senator · Chair, Senate Transportation & Safety Committee
Session: From Ruling to Responsibility — Building on Lt. Governor McNally's welcome
Who Is Senator Massey?
Becky Duncan Massey is a member of the Tennessee Senate, representing the 6th District since November 2011. She Chairs the Senate Transportation and Safety Committee and also serves on the Senate Health and General Welfare Committee.
She was elected after Republican senator Jamie Woodson resigned, defeating Democratic candidate Gloria Johnson with 64 percent of the vote, and has been reelected in 2012, 2016, 2020, and 2024. She served as a delegate to the 1988 Republican National Convention.
Born on January 2, 1955, she is the daughter of John Duncan, Sr., Mayor of Knoxville and U.S. Representative for Tennessee's 2nd congressional district, and sister of Jimmy Duncan, who held the same congressional seat from 1988 through 2018. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in 1977.
Prior to elected office, she served as executive director of the Sertoma Center, providing residential and day services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Knoxville. She is Past-President of Tennessee Community Organizations and a board member of Habitat Tennessee, Tennova Healthcare, the UT College of Nursing, and the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Massey is married to Morton Massey, a retired software developer. They have two daughters, Courtney and Kristen, and a granddaughter, Bailey.
WHAT WE'LL BE DISCUSSING
As Chair of the Senate Transportation and Safety Committee, Senator Massey offers the legislative perspective on how Tennessee can use its affirmed state authority to require proper verification and transfer of custody at the dock — before freight ever reaches the state's highways.
- Tennessee transportation and safety policy and the state's responsibility for its own roads
- The role of the states under the FAAAA safety exception, as clarified by Montgomery v. Caribe
- Driver legitimacy — confirming that the driver, CDL, carrier, vehicle, insurance, and shipment authorization match before freight is released
- CDL and identity issues that allow unlicensed, uninsured, and illegal drivers to operate
- Proper transfer of custody at the dock — the last check before freight enters the highway
- Cargo theft and fraudulent pickups where verification is not in place
- Public safety on Tennessee roads and the protection of motorists and communities
- What Tennessee and other states can do legislatively and through enforcement to verify the driver and confirm custody
These are the topics and issues that will be part of the Summit discussion. No specific policy position or statement should be attributed to the speaker unless confirmed by the Initiative.
The Nashville Summit
WHO'S BEHIND THE WHEEL?
Driver legitimacy is a public-safety issue.