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Clinch River TVA First Mini Nuclear Plant

Tennessee's aging utilties face challenges from growing technology, population base

With Tennessee’s population projected to hit 9 million by 2050 and the increased electricity needed for electric vehicles and data centers, municipalities need to be more proactive than ever when...
NLC Housing

NLC provides guidance on how municipalities can use new federal housing plan

The most comprehensive federal housing plan in more than three decades, the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act provides municipalities with new incentives, grants, and supports to reduce housing costs...
Tim Ellis

Goodlettsville's Ellis discusses career, future of city management

After nearly 40 years of service in local government, Goodlettsville City Manager Tim Ellis will retire Sept. 30, 2026.
Ellis caps off his distinguished career in public service after 15 years as...
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News Across Tennessee

New Tazewell officials break ground on town hall

Officials with the town of New Tazewell groundbreaking ceremony for the new complex housing its town hall and police department. The new facility to be located at 403 Main Street has been designed to resemble the former New Tazewell Train Depot. The depot was originally the centerpiece of the town...

Dickson officials break ground on new municipal complex

Officials with the city of Dickson have broken ground on a new 44,204-square-foot city center that will replace their existing 71-year-old municipal building. The new facility will also consolidate the city’s police department, courtroom, and city administrative offices into a single facility. The...

Samsung to invest $100 million in new Oak Ridge nuclear facility

Samsung C&T is investing up to $100 million in the Kairos Power nuclear plant currently under construction in Oak Ridge. Samsung will make direct investments and provide in-kind engineering services to build the Hermes 2 Demonstration Plant, subject to regulatory approval. Samsung will also provide...

ArtiCast to create 100 jobs at new Jackson facility

ArtiCast Jackson will establish a Tennessee presence by moving into the facility formerly occupied by Pace Industries in Jackson. The company will invest $10.3 million and create 100 jobs at the new facility to meet increasing demands from the aerospace, drone, defense, humanoid robotics, automotive...

Elizabethton opens new park funded through donation from Vietnam veteran

Elizabethton officials and local residents gathered to open a new city park made possible through donations from a late city resident. Sandra Renee Greene Park is a new 1.3-acre park with a fenced-in playground along the city’s Mill Race Linear Path and was made possible through donations from late...

Goodlettsville dedicates park in honor of late mayor

The family of late Goodlettsville Mayor John Coombs joined city staff and community members to dedicate the park next to Goodlettsville City Hall in his honor. Coombs was elected to the Goodlettsville City Commission in 2006 and was elected mayor by his fellow commissioners in 2012, 2014, and 2016...
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People

Meet the Mayor: Cleveland Mayor Kevin Brooks

Cleveland Mayor Kevin Brooks

Get to know Cleveland Mayor Kevin Brooks.

Valk, Viar join MTAS staff

Courtney Viar
Courtney Viar
Sarah Valk
Sarah Valk

The University of Tennessee’s Municipal Technical Advisory Service (UT-MTAS) has welcomed two new employees. 

Sarah Valk has joined MTAS as a legal consultant and will be working of the Johnson City office. She comes to MTAS from Kingsport where she served as assistant city attorney. 

Prior to that...

Michele Betty

Michele Betty
Michele Betty

Michele Betty, Germantown’s city clerk, has been named the 2026 Clerk of the Year by the Tennessee Association of Municipal Clerks and Recorders (TAMCAR). Betty was recognized for her 25 years of dedicated service to Germantown, during which she has served residents, city staff, and elected...

Jacky Cagle

Jacky Cagle
Jacky Cagle

Jacky Cagle, longtime East Ridge City councilmember, died Sunday, Sept. 13, 2026, at the age of 78. Cagle spent 44 years in service to the city, both on the city council and as a city employee. He joined the city’s vehicle maintenance department in 1976, working his way up to supervisor before...

J. Blake Anderson

J. Blake Anderson
J. Blake Anderson

J. Blake Anderson, the longest-serving municipal judge in the city of Jackson’s history, died Sept. 5, 2026, at the age of 71. Anderson was first elected municipal judge for the Jackson City Court in 1996, serving until his death. A Jackson native, he earned his bachelor’s degree in political...

NLC honors Kluth for years of service

Debbie Kluth and Anthony Haynes

TML Director of Corporate Sponsorship and Conference Expo Debbie Kluth has been honored by the National League of Cities (NLC) with an award for 25 years of service. 

Kluth was presented with NLC’s John G. Stutz Award for her contributions made to the advancement of municipal government through...
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State Briefs

TVA records several power demand records in September 2026

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) has reported it set multiple high power records in September due to unseasonably high temperatures across the region. TVA said the powerful heat dome sent temperatures above 100 degrees, leading to homes, businesses, and industries consuming significantly more...

TACIR: Tennessee faces $400M budget shortfall in highway maintenance

Tennessee has a $400 million gap in the cost of operating, maintaining, and improving its highways, according to a a recently released report by the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR). The study conducted by TACIR found that either increasing taxes or borrowing...

Tennessee's August 2026 unemployment rate remains steady

Tennessee’s August unemployment rate held steady for a second month at 3.4%. Data from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) indicates the rate for July and August is the lowest unemployment Tennessee has experienced this year, and is down one-tenth of a percentage...

Tennessee's August 2026 revenues $54.6M above estimates

Tennessee revenues exceeded budgeted estimates for the month of August with Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Jim Bryson reporting total August tax revenues were $1.7 billion, $54.6 million more than the budgeted estimate, and $88.1 million more than August 2025.  

The total tax...

Tennessee launches Music Advisory Council

The state of Tennessee has created a new Tennessee Music Advisory Council (TMAC) aimed at building and sustaining a community-led music advocacy organization that supports music professionals through economic opportunity, professional development, stronger networks and accessible spaces while...

TNECD unveils QUBIT program

The Tennessee Department Economic and Community Development (TNECD) has announced the launch of the Tennessee Quantum Utilization Buildout Infrastructure and Technology (QUBIT) Grant Program, housed under TNECD’s Office of Innovation. The program will allocate $43 million to support the physical and...
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TML Updates