Meet Doug

Biography

Doug Overbey, and wife, Kay, live at 1105 N. Heritage Drive, Maryville, TN 37803. They have three daughters, Hannah, a senior at East Tennessee State University; Elizabeth, who lives in Jacksonville, Florida; and Kathleen Thomas, married and residing in Brentwood. Doug graduated magna cum laude from Carson-Newman College in 1976 with a B.A. degree and first in his class from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1979, where he was named to the Order of the Coif and Phi Delta Phi, Roosevelt Inn, Graduate of the Year.

Doug is in his twenty-ninth year of the practice of law and senior partner in the firm of Robertson, Overbey, Wilson & Beeler, which he co-founded in 1982. He is a member of the American, Tennessee, Knoxville and Blount County Bar Associations, has served as a member of the House of Delegates of the Tennessee Bar Association, and been a presenter at many continuing legal education seminars, including annual legislative updates for the Knoxville and Blount County Bar Associations.

Community Involvement

He has been active in the Blount County community, having served two terms on the Blount County Commission (82– 90), and as President of Maryville Kiwanis, President of the United Way of Blount County, Chairman of Maryville-Alcoa College Community Orchestra, Chairman of the Johnson Girls Group Home, and board member of the Blount County Chamber of Commerce and Knoxville Museum of Art. He has also served on the Maryville College Board of Church Visitors and on the board of Success By Six.

He currently serves on the Boards of New Hope – Blount County Children’s Advocacy Center, A Secret Safe Place for Newborns of Tennessee, and SunTrust Bank of East Tennessee Advisory Board. Doug is a member of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church and served ten years as Chancellor of the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee. He is the only lay person to serve as President of the Standing Committee of the Diocese of East Tennessee.

Public Service

Doug has represented the 20th house district in the 102nd, 103rd, 104th, and 105th General Assemblies, where he is a member of the Finance, Ways & Means Committee, Health & Human Resources Committee, Select Committee on Ethics, and Joint Select Committee on Children and Youth. He is Chairman of the House Health Care Facilities Subcommittee and a member of the Budget Subcommittee. In 2007 he was elected Secretary of the Joint Study Committee on Long Term Care.

During his seven years in the legislature, Rep. Overbey has been an ardent supporter of veterans and legislation that supports veterans, such as supporting veterans service officers in each county of the state, sponsoring and gaining passage of the law that has eliminated the 30-day time period for POW’s to qualify as a disabled veteran for property tax relief and the law that allows all service-related totally disabled veterans to qualify for property tax relief. In 2006, Overbey sponsored and gained passage of a bill granting property tax relief to surviving spouses of members of the Armed Services killed in combat.

Honors and Awards

In 2007, Rep. Overbey was named “Statesman of the Year” by the 650 member Tennessee Optometric Association. On July 20, 2006, Rep. Overbey was recognized by the Tennessee Silica Justice Coalition for his sponsorship and passage of the Silica Claims Priority Act. Also in 2006, he received the Tennessee Legislator of the Year award from the American Physical Therapy Association.

Due to his leadership and work on legislation requiring smoke detectors and sprinkler systems in long term care facilities, the Tennessee Association of Retired Persons named Rep. Overbey as a “Legislative Champion” for 2004. Also, because of his unwavering support of sprinkler legislation and fire service personnel, Rep. Overbey was presented the Tennessee Fire Service Coalition’s 2004 Life Safety Award.

Doug received the Tennessee Hospital Association’s 2004 Community Service Award for Public Service for his support of health care issues impacting hospitals in Tennessee, including medical liability reform and essential access payments.