Unemployment Reaches Its Lowest Level Since January 2020
Unemployment in the state of Tennessee reached a two-year low in December, according to new data released by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The state ended 2021 with an unemployment rate of 3.8%, which was 0.2 of a percentage point lower than the rate it recorded in November. Over the past year, Tennessee’s […]
Governor Lee, Commissioner Rolfe Announce 62 Communities to Receive Community Development Block Grants
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe recently approved $28.5 million in Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), which will assist communities with infrastructure improvements, housing rehabilitations and health and safety initiatives. “Investing in local infrastructure is one of our top priorities, and these funds will play a vital role as communities work to update their assets and keep their communities […]
TBI Agents Investigating Jefferson County Officer-Involved Shooting
Just before 11:00 a.m., the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office received a request to perform a welfare check on a man at a residence in the 1400 block of David Swann Drive in Dandridge. Upon arrival, the man was not cooperative with officers and refused to come outside. Preliminary information indicates the man eventually came outside […]
Secretary Hargett Launches 2022 Statewide Poll Worker Recruitment Campaign
On National Poll Worker Recruitment Day, Secretary of State Tre Hargett launched a new statewide campaign, Be an Election Hero. Become a Poll Worker., to encourage Tennesseans to serve their community as poll workers for the 2022 election cycle. “We cannot run elections in Tennessee without poll workers. They are the most fundamental piece of […]
TDOT Launches Plan for Pothole Repair
This month’s back-to-back winter storms have created an abundance of potholes along interstates and state highways. TDOT is using all available staffing to repair the damaged areas as quickly as possible. As the weather allows, multiple crews will be patching potholes over the coming days and weeks. Cold mix asphalt is currently being used for […]
Woman-owned business in East Tennessee caters to new demand for LOCAL food
Two Chicks and a Farm in New Market is finding great success by meeting the demands for local food and the farm-to-table movement brought on by the pandemic. It’s pretty exciting for someone like co-owner Jen Russomanno who is an Assistant Professor of Public Health at the University of Tennessee. Now, thanks to a partnership […]
Canine Distemper Case Confirmed at Area Shelter
Last weekend a puppy at the Morristown Hamblen Humane Society (MHHS) exhibited symptoms of distemper. On Monday, the mother and rest of the litter were confirmed positive after MHHS director Pam Velder submitted samples to the virology laboratory at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. MHHS staff followed best practices by immediately testing […]
Attorney General Slatery Announces $1.8 Billion Settlement with Student Loan Servicer Navient
Nashville-Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III announced today that Navient, one of the nation’s largest student loan servicers, will provide relief totaling $1.85 billion to resolve allegations of deceptive practices in originating predatory student loans. This settlement, joined by a coalition of 39 attorneys general, resolves claims that since 2009, Navient steered struggling students into […]
VITAL POLICY – Dr. Monty Sharp Facilitates Medal of Honor Character Development Training for Jefferson County High School Staff
Critics of public schools often point to the lack of patriotic education and the absence of character-related values in school curriculum. These pundits would have one less thing to complain about if they spent one afternoon with Dr. Monty Sharp, Assistant Principal, Jefferson County High School, or witnessed 2000 students reciting the Pledge of Allegiance […]
The brain pays attention to unfamiliar voices during sleep
A good night’s sleep is not as simple as it appears. While you snooze, your brain continues to monitor the environment, balancing the need to protect sleep with the need to wake up. One example of how the brain accomplishes this is by selectively responding to unfamiliar voices over familiar ones, according to new research […]
WHO recommends two new drugs to treat patients with COVID-19
The drug baricitinib (a type of drug known as a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor, also used to treat rheumatoid arthritis) is strongly recommended for patients with severe or critical covid-19 in combination with corticosteroids, says a WHO Guideline Development Group of international experts in The BMJ today. Their strong recommendation is based on moderate certainty evidence that […]
Jefferson County Clerk, Frank C. Herndon, is seeking the Republican Party’s nomination for County Clerk in the May 3rd Republican Primary
Jefferson County Clerk, Frank C. Herndon, is seeking the Republican Party’s nomination for County Clerk in the May 3rd Republican Primary. Herndon is a lifelong resident of Jefferson County and says, “I have been honored to serve the citizens of Jefferson County as your County Clerk for the past eight years, and I respectfully ask […]
Jennifer Boling Hall Seeking Re-Election In May 3rd Republican Primary
Jennifer Boling Hall, Jefferson County Trustee, announces she is seeking re-election in the May 3 Republican Primary. Hall was elected Jefferson County Trustee for her first term in 2018. She joined the staff of a long-time Jefferson County Trustee, Ginger Franklin in 2009, bringing with her nine years financial experience earned at First Tennessee Bank, […]
Tennesseans Invited to Respond to Draft Public School Funding Framework by Tuesday, January 18th at Noon CT
After months of strong engagement and conversations about public education funding in Tennessee and years of consistent feedback, today the Tennessee Department of Education released an initial draft overview of a potential student-based funding formula, informed by input of thousands of Tennesseans– parents, educators, superintendents, elected officials, business and community leaders, and citizens from across the state– and is encouraging all […]
Payroll Employment Rises by 199,000 in December; Unemployment Rate Declines to 3.9%
THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION — DECEMBER 2021 Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 199,000 in December, and the unemployment rate declined to 3.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment continued to trend up in leisure and hospitality, in professional and business services, in manufacturing, in construction, and in transportation and warehousing. This […]
