The appointment of Shelby County Circuit Court Judge Valerie Smith is one of two announced Friday by Gov. Bill Lee. They are effective upon confirmation by the Tennessee General Assembly.

Eighty-six members of the Greater Memphis Chamber traveled to Nashville to meet with state legislators, officers and cabinet heads to advocate for issues relevant to the local business community.

Brian Kelsey is now an inmate at FCI Ashland in Kentucky, according to a federal Bureau of Prisons database.

A large volume of court-reform bills filed by Shelby County legislators will appear in Tennessee House of Representatives and Senate committee hearings in coming weeks.

The bill comes as a separate bridge — America’s River Crossing — is slated to begin construction by the fall of 2026. 

The operator of the last charter schools in the Tennessee’s turnaround district asks to continue managing them under Memphis-Shelby County Schools before state takeover.

Tennessee Rep. Mark White, the House Education Committee chair, has been working on the legislation for at least the last month.

The former state senator’s most recent attempt to stay out of prison alleged government misconduct and that his legal counsel was ineffective.

“All we have is our voice, and you’ve restricted that by saying, ... ‘We don’t want to hear your voice,’” state Rep. Justin Jones, D-Nashville, said during a Jan. 14 rules committee hearing on bill limitations.

Gov. Bill Lee is pushing for a major revision to Tennessee charter school law to create ways for operators to bypass their local elected school boards.

The first resolution proposes an amendment to expand the rights of crime victims, and the second would remove a defendant’s right to bail for certain violent offenses.

While the $447 million initiative has been touted as a “universal” program for anyone interested, Republican leaders included a key provision: Students living in the country illegally will be prohibited from participating.

In a letter to representatives of both the Board of Judicial Conduct and the Board of Professional Responsibility, state Sen. Brent Taylor asked for investigations into both Steve Mulroy and Judge Paula Skahan. 

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%.

Gov. Bill Lee’s inclusion of a proposed Downtown safety program comes as the city has embarked on a plan for hardening security on FedExForum game nights.

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State of the State: Gov. Lee proposes $1B toward $30B road projects backlog

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Monday proposed more than $1 billion into road projects financed by a one-time use of general state tax money and a plan to shift $80 million annually from the sales tax on tires.

The legislation would directly challenge a more than 40-year-old precedent that ensures all children access to a free public education regardless of immigration status.

Tennessee lawmakers fast-tracked Gov. Bill Lee’s $5.5 million proposal to create a state immigration division and allocate funding for training grants for local law enforcement agencies seeking immigration agreements to cooperate with federal authorities.

The Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators has a new leader in state Rep. Jesse Chism, D-Memphis.

The Education Freedom Act passed the state House Education Committe, the House Government Operations Committee, the House Finance Ways and Means Committee and the House Calendar and Rules Committee.

Gabby Salinas says she has been the beneficiary of support from all walks of life and both sides of the aisle. “That has really shaped me in my approach to the way I navigate politics.”

The governor and the legislature’s GOP leaders are seeking even more funding for the program’s first year than the legislative analysis identifies.

The Tennessee House is warning lawmakers and the crowds watching legislative floor sessions that they could be booted from the room if their behavior is deemed out of line.