There are 43 article(s) tagged Jeff Yarbro:
‘We are in a crisis situation,’ said Sen. Raumesh Akbari of Memphis, who chairs the Senate Democratic caucus. A GOP spokeswoman responded that the Republican Party is proud of its record on education since taking control of the legislature in 2010.
Gov. Bill Lee says a move to bolster Tennessee’s unemployment insurance trust fund saved businesses $837 million in tax premiums, but some legislators believe the system is structurally flawed.
While some Republicans shied away from the notion they were targeting protesters with legislation toughening penalties for rowdiness, Democrats said the GOP-controlled Legislature put a "knee on their neck" during the 111th General Assembly second extraordinary special session.
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tennessee lawmakers passed legislation Wednesday, Aug. 12, setting a "higher bar" for people to sue businesses, schools and healthcare facilities accused of making them sick through negligence.
Senate committees are set to consider competing legislation Tuesday dealing with COVID-19 liability immunity and the punishment of protesters in the Legislature’s special session.
The state attorney general would have authority to file criminal charges against protesters under legislation introduced for a special session of the General Assembly, overstepping local district attorneys general.
Gov. Bill Lee, faced with opening schools in the midst of a pandemic, promised more “transparency” Tuesday, Aug. 4, on reporting COVID-19 cases in schools but declined to say the public will be given case numbers for every school statewide.
Tennessee leaders are weighing the prospects for a special session to consider a COVID-19 liability immunity bill and several other issues in early August.
Gov. Bill Lee is not considering making a statewide mask mandate or shutting down parts of the economy again to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, even as cases surge.
The state Senate approved a $40 billion budget for fiscal 2021, using a chunk of reserve funds to cover about $1 billion in tax shortfalls caused by the COVID-19 crisis, but refused to restore money for education and postpartum health care.
Tennessee will observe Nathan Bedford Forrest Day on July 13, but the governor won’t have to sign a proclamation recognizing the observance under legislation passed by the Senate Wednesday.
The state House and Senate sent conflicting signals Tuesday, June 9, on the fate of Nathan Bedford Forrest’s bust in the State Capitol and a special day honoring his life. A Senate panel voted to keep Forrest Day while state Rep. London Lamar persuaded a House committee to get rid of the special day.
The Lee Administration will take about $600 million from its $4 billion in reserves to bolster the budget this year and next, but it won't go deep into those funds, instead opting to add more to the rainy day fund.
Legislation allowing Memphis Rep. John DeBerry to renew a re-election bid is to be considered Thursday by the full Senate after Democrats kicked him off the ballot.
A Senate committee defeated legislation designed to let more people vote without going to the polls this fall as the COVID-19 crisis is expected to stretch on for months.
State Rep. Tom Leatherwood is pushing for a full review of Tennessee’s state of emergency law and executive order rules, while state Rep. G.A. Hardaway says a legislative oversight panel could be convened for the rest of a state of emergency.
The Lee Administration is projecting COVID-related budget problems that will force the state to trim department budgets by 12% and to push off tax cuts such as phasing out the Hall income tax.
With the Legislature set to reconvene June 1, the House and Senate are at odds over the scope of legislation to be considered in what is expected to be a short get-together to deal mainly with the budget and COVID-related bills.
Grappling with finances in the pandemic era, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee says the entire budget is up for review, including funds tied to the Education Savings Account, though he favors keeping the program intact as the Legislature gets ready to convene June 1.
When state lawmakers return to Nashville to grapple with the state budget in a flagging COVID-19 economy, they'll have an incomplete picture of the state's economy because state revenue is trickling in and business tax collections have been delayed until July.
Gov. Bill Lee's second year in office morphs into crisis mode, forcing him to make decisions on the fly, many of which he is reversing in a matter of days to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gov. Bill Lee is seeking help from Vanderbilt University Medical Center on a “unique” model to project the COVID-19 spread in Tennessee that will enable the state to determine its effect on hospital capacity and personal protective equipment as well as the next hot spots.
Lt. Gov. Randy McNally calls it the “black swan,” an unforeseen event capable of shaking Tennessee’s foundation, yet one the state must be prepared to handle, this time using a military approach on a worldwide scale.
Democrats say Tennessee’s controlling Republicans took care of Gov. Bill Lee’s permitless carry and anti-abortion initiatives even though a terrible tornado killed people across the state and left a path of destruction.
The governor’s main initiatives on K-12 education, abortion and family leave are running into obstacles – legislative and legal – in his second year in office.
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