Author
Tennessee Historical Commission to review Nashville request to remove Confederate statue
Nashville parks officials are seeking state approval to remove a monument of a Confederate soldier in Centennial Park, where the life-sized bronze sculpture of a young man sits holding a rifle across a field from the iconic Parthenon. Their request for a waiver of state law that generally prohibits removal of memorials on public property […]
Bill to limit Metro Nashville Council sails through subcommittee on party-line vote
A bill that would cut the number of elected representatives on the Nashville Metro Council in half sailed through a legislative subcommittee on a party-line vote Wednesday — one of two bills proposed by GOP lawmakers this year to rejigger the Democratic-leaning capitol city’s local government, which recently bucked efforts to host the Republican National […]
GOP lawmaker: TBI is investigating current and former DCS employees
A Republican lawmaker said during a public hearing this week that the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is probing the conduct of current and former employees of the Department of Children’s Services – an investigation a TBI spokesperson later said she could neither confirm nor deny. “I’ve been made aware of a specific instance where the […]
In Sumner County, a bid by private citizens to take over a historic home leads to a lawsuit
COTTONTOWN, Tenn. – A Nashville judge has issued a preliminary injunction against Sumner County, preventing local officials from transferring ownership of a publicly-owned historic landmark into private hands. Davidson County Chancellor Anne Martin ruled last week that any decision to give away the Bridal House, a 204-year-old log cabin built by early Middle Tennessee settlers, […]
DCS seeks immediate $26.6M to add suitable places for abused and neglected kids to stay
The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services is seeking an immediate infusion of $26.6 million from the state legislature to address a crisis in care that has left kids sleeping on office floors and in hospital beds because there are no other places for them. In making the ask on Monday before the House Finance, Ways, […]
Hearing set on suit brought by former vaccine chief against Tennessee Department of Health
A federal judge in Nashville has set a hearing for March 10 to consider competing claims in a lawsuit brought by former Tennessee vaccine chief Michelle Fiscus, whose highly publicized ouster from state government during the pandemic came amidst political pushback on vaccinating teens. Fiscus is seeking a so-called “name clearing” hearing — open to […]
‘Composting’ birds: Avian flu hits West Tennessee farm and 267,000 birds are destroyed
The first sign of something awry was the road closure on the two-lane country road that goes right past Will Burton’s Weakley County farm, his fields, barns and the one-story house he shares with his fiancee and three kids. White trucks — emblazoned with the seal of the Tennessee Department of Agriculture and “fire and […]
Tennessee attorney general challenges Biden program allowing asylum seekers path to U.S.
Tennessee on Tuesday joined 19 other GOP-led states in challenging a new Biden Administration program that provides some asylum seekers from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela a legal path to entering the U.S. The parole program, announced last month, would give up to 30,000 people per month a chance to legally enter the U.S. if […]
Juvenile justice recommendations from legislature lean heavily on institutions
A legislative committee charged with reviewing the state’s troubled juvenile justice system made more than a dozen recommendations on Wednesday that are expected to serve as a blueprint for General Assembly action this year. Among the recommendations from the Ad Hoc Committee on Juvenile Justice: constructing a new secure lockup for youth, adding mental health […]
Austin Peay State University lands grant for study of grassland development
The Southern Grasslands Institute at Austin Peay State University has received a $495,000 grant to study the establishment of grasslands across millions of acres on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky and Alabama. The grant will be used to “prioritize the habitat needs for at least 185 species of conservation concern that need or […]
Calls by Tennessee veterans double after expansion of VA healthcare benefits
More than 100,000 veterans in Tennessee may have been exposed to toxic substances during their military service and could be eligible for newly expanded healthcare benefits, according to the state’s department of veteran’s services. In August, President Joe Biden signed the PACT Act into law, expanding Veterans Administration benefits for men and women who were […]
Bristol abortion clinic owner: ‘I don’t need a welcome mat’
A looming local ordinance banning abortion clinics, daily protestors and a lawsuit by her landlord do not faze Diane Derzis, owner of the newly established Bristol Women’s Health clinic located about a mile across the Tennessee border in Virginia. Since it opened in July, Derzis’ abortion clinic has also drawn condemnation from the local Catholic […]