There are 138 article(s) tagged Raumesh Akbari:
State Rep. John Gillespie, R-Memphis, and state Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, have proposed a bill allowing Shelby County to ask voters if they want to raise the local-option sales tax from 2.75% to 3.75%.
After the presidential general election, those on the prevailing side already moving on plans that were made as voters were casting ballots. Those on the losing side were weighing close margins between the ideologies.
Thursday, Aug. 1, is an Election Day that Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris called “a practice run for November.”
Local Democratic elected officials reacted to President Joe Biden’s decision to call off his reelection bid Sunday, July 21, and support Vice President Kamala Harris as the new Democratic nominee for president. Related content:
The Wells family released a letter Friday pleading with Gov. Bill Lee to meet with them before he signs the bill into law, appealing to the promise he made to them in 2023.
Rep. Justin Pearson spoke at the Tuesday, April 4, ceremony at the National Civil Rights Museum marking the 55th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
“The state of our beloved state is prosperous, hopeful, and unrivaled,” Lee said. Doctors stood outside the state House chamber protesting a bill that bans gender-affirming care for transgender youth.
As public officials expressed outrage about Tyre Nichols’ death online, the protests marking the release of the videos returned to the symbol of local protest in the age of Black Lives Matter — the bridges across the Mississippi River.
“Tennessee is in a sound financial position and can afford to provide critical funding to Memphis to repair and replace our aging water infrastructure,” said state Rep. John Gillespie.
The Tennessee constitution states “that slavery and involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, are forever prohibited in this state.” The third constitutional question on the Nov. 8 ballot proposes deleting the exception.
A rundown on the fate of every bill we’ve covered since January, organized by subject.
On the last day of the session, lawmakers put the finishing touches on a bill that would lead to books being banned from schools and on Gov. Bill Lee’s school funding overhaul.
Tennessee senators will vote on legislation affecting Germantown’s namesake schools next week. If the legislation becomes law, there is still much work on the local level.
“This bill does not ban any book,” state Sen. Jack Johnson said about the controversial Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022.
“We write to protest a recent employment action by your company which interferes with a movement potentially beneficial to our community,” say TN officials in letter to Starbucks CEO, Kevin Johnson.
U.S. Census figures show some County Commission districts have grown in population while others have lost population since a decade ago.
Lawmakers wrap up legislative session viewed differently by Democrats and Republicans.
The House is scheduled to hear legislation related to Germantown’s namesake schools Monday, but language affecting the 3Gs won’t be part of it.
A bill regarding the three Germantown namesake schools that appeared dead when it failed in the state Senate education committee Wednesday, got new life after Sen. Brian Kelsey amended the measure.
The Teacher’s Discipline Act would create a uniform referral process allowing teachers to petition for removal of a student who repeatedly or substantially interferes with classroom learning.
Lee defends his administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Democrats including Raumesh Akbari of Memphis say the state has not invested in what is important to Tennessee families. Related stories
On “Behind The Headlines,” the Republican and Democratic legislators from the Shelby County delegation to Nashville also agreed on mandatory summer school or tutoring to help students who have slipped academically during the pandemic.
Dr. Jon McCullers, a Memphis infectious disease expert, says greater ‘central control’ was needed at both the federal and state levels for a more effective response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The $8.6 billion waiver must be approved by the Tennessee General Assembly and sets a cap on TennCare funding with the state keeping a share of any savings if its spending comes in below the cap.
Gov. Bill Lee’s Administration unveiled $50 million more Wednesday, Oct. 7, in federal COVID-19 relief funds, this time designed to help businesses owned by minorities, women and veterans.