Bill Haslam
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam had a ceremonial bill signing for a reduction in the Hall Income tax for senior citizens on Tuesday, a press release said.
Haslam signed the legislation during a visit to Crossville. It’s the second piece of legislation cutting taxes in the governor’s 2013 legislative agenda, the press release said. [Read more…]
The Tennessee Valley Authority, along with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, will hold a public meeting on progress of the Kingston Ash Recovery Project and long-term monitoring plans.
The meeting will be held Thursday, May 30, from 5:30-7 p.m. in the auditorium of Roane County High School in Kingston. The auditorium is in Building B on the Spring Street side of the high school. [Read more…]
Bill Haslam
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam on Monday signed legislation that reduces the state sales tax on groceries from 5.25 percent to 5 percent in July.
It was the last step in a two-year effort to cut the state portion of the grocery sales tax to 5 percent, a press release said.
Haslam held a ceremonial bill signing on Monday at Sloan’s Grocery in Vonore in Monroe County. [Read more…]
The City of Norris Archives in Anderson County has received a $4,000 grant to help improve the storage conditions of and access to local government records, a press release said.
“I am proud to award this grant to the City of Norris Archives,” Secretary of State Tre Hargett said. “Archives are important because they store and preserve historical records for our county and municipal governments. It is my hope that this grant will help the city with its archival development.” [Read more…]
Bill Haslam
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has vetoed a controversial bill that would have required anyone who visually recorded livestock abuse to turn over the images or videos to law enforcement officers within 48 hours.
Haslam said the Tennessee attorney general has questioned the constitutionality of the bill, and it appears to repeal parts of Tennessee’s Shield Law without saying so. In addition, Haslam said, there are concerns from some district attorneys that the legislation would actually make it more difficult to prosecute animal cruelty cases, an unintended consequence.
In a Monday press release, he said he wants the Tennessee General Assembly to reconsider the legislation, which critics had labeled the bill the “ag gag” bill. There had been an intense campaign urging the governor to veto the measure, with most people expressing opposition, The Tennessean reported. Celebrities such as Carrie Underwood and Emmylou Harris had weighed in as well. [Read more…]
Lee Curtis
A Tennessee tourism official will be the featured speaker at a Thursday night meeting of the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association.
Lee Curtis is program development director of the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development, where she has worked since 1990, a press release said.
It said Curtis’ responsibilities include overseeing and developing the Tennessee Civil War Trails program and serving as the department’s heritage tourism contact. On Thursday, she will discuss the Civil War Trail Marker program in Oak Ridge, the press release said. [Read more…]
Local and state officials joined business executives and German officials at a Thursday ribbon-cutting ceremony for a 50 kilowatt photovoltaic solar array at Heritage Center.
Note: This story was updated at 9:25 a.m. April 29.
A Tennessee solar company and the German Energy Agency, or dena, celebrated their first U.S. solar project Thursday, a 50 kilowatt photovoltaic solar array at Heritage Center in west Oak Ridge.
The array includes seven ground-mounted trackers that are 20 feet high. They each include 28-30 solar panels. The trackers adjust themselves to capture the most sunlight, using two sensors each to adjust from east to west and tilting up and down.
It’s a public-private partnership involving dena and Vis Solis LLC of Franklin, Tenn., a subsidiary of Vis Solis GmbH in Breesen, Germany. Also involved is German manufacturer DEGERenergie.
It’s a $250,000 to $300,000 investment, said Carlos Mayer, Vis Solis chief executive officer. [Read more…]
Omega Plastics will expand its corporate headquarters in Clinton, investing $8.2 million and adding 80 new positions in Anderson County, state officials and company executives announced Wednesday.
The expansion will add an extra 85,000 square feet, more than doubling the company’s current facility in the Carden Farm Industrial Park, a press release said. It said Omega Plastics is a world leader in “plastics extrusion molding solutions for prototype and low-volume production.”
The company supplies clients across the globe in medical, consumer packaging, automotive, and security and safety productions. [Read more…]
The proposed Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex is pictured above. (Submitted image)
Many business leaders and public officials consider it a great opportunity.
The proposed Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex could cost up to $6.5 billion and employ up to 1,500 workers during the peak construction period. It’s been called the largest federal capital project in Tennessee since the Manhattan Project, and construction could last another decade.
On Monday, Tennessee officials announced they will help companies that are already in the state and interested in working on the project, and recruit out-of-state businesses, particularly in the nuclear industry. Those new companies will be encouraged to stay in the state, said Bill Hagerty, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. [Read more…]
This month’s seminar at the Anderson County Chamber of Commerce will feature a discussion of workers’ compensation reform.
Led by Amanda Inman Lowe, it’s scheduled from noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday at the chamber office in Clinton. [Read more…]
Roy Herron, chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party, will be guest speaker at a Thursday meeting of the Anderson County Democratic Party.
It’s the party’s annual chili supper and potluck, and it starts at 6 p.m. Thursday in the Claxton Elementary School Cafeteria. [Read more…]
Bill Haslam
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam on Wednesday said he will not expand TennCare rolls under the Affordable Care Act.
Instead, the governor said, he wants to use federal dollars as part of a plan to purchase private health insurance for Tennesseans who would not otherwise have access to coverage.
In a Wednesday press release, Haslam called his plan “real health care reform.” [Read more…]
