Unclear how City of Oak Ridge affected by president’s vaccination mandate

The Oak Ridge Municipal Building is pictured above on Tuesday evening, May 5, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The City of Oak Ridge does not currently require its employees or residents to be vaccinated against COVID-19 under a state law passed this year, a municipal attorney said Tuesday.

But it’s not clear if that state law could be in conflict with a vaccination or testing mandate that President Joe Biden announced this month.

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The Oak Ridge Municipal Building is pictured above on Tuesday evening, May 5, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The City of Oak Ridge does not currently require its employees or residents to be vaccinated against COVID-19 under a state law passed this year, a municipal attorney said Tuesday.

That state law, Senate Bill 187 and House Bill 13 (Public Chapter 513), bars the city from COVID-19 vaccination requirements, said Alexander J. Cramer, staff attorney in the City of Oak Ridge Legal Department.

The Oak Ridge Municipal Building is pictured above on Tuesday evening, May 5, 2020. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

The City of Oak Ridge does not currently require its employees or residents to be vaccinated against COVID-19 under a state law passed this year, a municipal attorney said Tuesday.

But it’s not clear if that state law could be in conflict with a vaccination or testing mandate that President Joe Biden announced this month.

The rest of this story is available if you are a member.

Already a member? Sign in here.

Not a member? Subscribe here:

Basic

Pro

Temporary

If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:

Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831

We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.

We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.

Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!

Next Breakfast with Legislators is Monday

McNally-Ragan-Calfee-at-Breakfast-with-Legislators-April-25-2016

Pictured above at a Breakfast with the Legislators on April 25, 2016, are, from left, Tennessee Sen. Randy McNally, Rep. John Ragan, and Rep. Kent Calfee. (File photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

  The Oak Ridge League of Women Voters will host Breakfast with the Legislators on Monday, March 25. The meeting will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike. A free continental breakfast will be served, a press release said. Tennessee senators Randy McNally and Ken Yager and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to speak about this session of the Tennessee General Assembly, and respond to questions and hear opinions from the audience, the press release said. The public is invited to attend. “The popular community event offers firsthand information on upcoming legislation and House and Senate committee activities, while prompting dialogue among legislators and citizens, and providing a great networking opportunity for members of the community,” the release said. [Read more…]

Hear from state legislators at Monday breakfast

The Oak Ridge League of Women Voters will have its first Breakfast with the Legislators event of the year on Monday, January 28. The meeting will be held from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike. A free continental breakfast will be served.

State senators Randy McNally and Ken Yager and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to speak about the legislative outlook for this session of the Tennessee General Assembly and respond to questions and hear opinions from the audience, a press release said. The public is invited to attend.

“The popular community event offers firsthand information on upcoming legislation and House and Senate committee activities, while prompting dialogue among legislators and citizens, and providing a great networking opportunity for members of the community,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Breakfast with Legislators is Monday

The Oak Ridge League of Women Voters will host Breakfast with the Legislators on Monday, April 23.

The meeting will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. Monday in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center, which is at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike. A free continental breakfast will be served.

Tennessee Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally, Senator Ken Yager, and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to provide a summary of the legislative session of the Tennessee General Assembly, and respond to questions and hear opinions from the audience, a press release said. The public is invited to attend. [Read more…]

Breakfast with Legislators is Monday

The next Breakfast with the Legislators is Monday. It’s hosted by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge.

Tennessee senators Randy McNally and Ken Yager and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to speak about this session of the Tennessee General Assembly, and respond to questions and hear opinions from the audience, a press release said. The public is invited to attend.

The meeting will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. Monday in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center, which is 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike.  A free continental breakfast will be served, the press release said. [Read more…]

Breakfast with Legislators on Monday

League Women Voters Oak Ridge Logo

The Oak Ridge League of Women Voters will have this year’s first Breakfast with the Legislators on Monday, January 29. The meeting will be held from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. in the Social Room of the Oak Ridge Civic Center, which is at 1403 Oak Ridge Turnpike. A free continental breakfast will be served.

Tennessee senators Randy McNally and Ken Yager and representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee have been invited to speak about the legislative outlook for this session of the Tennessee General Assembly and respond to questions and hear opinions from the audience, a press release said. The public is invited to attend.

“The popular community event offers firsthand information on upcoming legislation and House and Senate committee activities, while prompting dialogue among legislators and citizens, and providing a great networking opportunity for members of the community,” the press release said. [Read more…]

Presentation on Oak Ridge Airport scheduled for Tuesday

Image from a Billy Stair presentation on the Oak Ridge Airport project to Roane County officials at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017.

Image from a Billy Stair presentation on the Oak Ridge Airport project to Roane County officials at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017.

 

A presentation that will provide information about the status of the Oak Ridge General Aviation Airport project has been scheduled for Tuesday evening.

The presentation is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Tuesday, January 16, in the Robertsville Middle School Library. It’s part of a joint work session between the Oak Ridge City Council and Oak Ridge Board of Education that will begin at 6 p.m.

The airport presentation will be given by Billy Stair, aviation consultant, and Bill Marrison, president of the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority. In December, Stair gave a presentation about the airport to Roane County officials.

After that meeting, Oak Ridge Today reported that Tennessee officials have appropriated $15 million that could be used for the proposed airport at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site in west Oak Ridge. The appropriation, which is pending approval of the Oak Ridge Airport by the Federal Aviation Administration, would be enough to cover about 33 percent to 38 percent of the current estimated project cost of $40 million to $45 million. [Read more…]

State appropriates $15 million that could be used for Oak Ridge Airport

Image from a Billy Stair presentation on the Oak Ridge Airport project to Roane County officials at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017.

Image from a Billy Stair presentation on the Oak Ridge Airport project to Roane County officials at the Roane County Courthouse in Kingston on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2017.

 

KINGSTON—Tennessee officials have appropriated $15 million that could be used for the proposed airport at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site in west Oak Ridge.

The appropriation, which is pending approval of the Oak Ridge Airport by the Federal Aviation Administration, would be enough to cover about 33 percent to 38 percent of the current estimated project cost of $40 million to $45 million.

The appropriation was announced by Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John C. Schroer in a November 8 letter to members of the Tennessee General Assembly. Oak Ridge Today received a copy of the letter on Monday.

The $15 million that could be used for the Oak Ridge Airport is one half of a $30 million appropriation approved by the Tennessee General Assembly for the Aeronautics Economic Development Fund earlier this year, said Billy Stair, a former communications director at Oak Ridge National Laboratory who is now a consultant helping with the airport project. That half was to support the construction of new general aviation airports like the project in Oak Ridge, and Oak Ridge received all of the $15 million for general aviation airports, Stair said.

“MKAA (Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority) is the only public entity in the state with planning documents for a new airport currently under review,” Schroer said in his November letter to legislators. The $15 million will be allocated to the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority, which would own and operate the Oak Ridge Airport, pending FAA approval. [Read more…]

League of Women Voters lobbyist will review actions in state legislature this year

Stewart Clifton

Stewart Clifton

Stewart Clifton, lobbyist for the League of Women Voters of Tennessee, will review major actions in the state legislature this year during a lunchtime talk in Oak Ridge on Tuesday.

Stewart Clifton will be the guest speaker at Lunch with the League on Tuesday, May 16, from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Social Hall of the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church, which is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike. The community is invited to attend.

In this presentation, he will review important actions of the recently completed Tennessee General Assembly, a press release said. Some attention will be given to a discussion of legislative advocacy skills. There will be time for questions and answers, the release said.

Lunch with the League is sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Oak Ridge, and it is open to the public. There is no cost to attend, and reservations are not needed, the press release said. Box lunches will be available starting at 11:30 a.m. on a first-come basis for $8, or you may bring your own. Coffee and tea are provided. [Read more…]