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News Across Tennessee

Johnson City's Buffalo Mountain on track to become State Natural Area

Johnson City’s Buffalo Mountain State Park has moved one step closer to a state natural area designation. Staff from the state’s Division of Natural Areas recently determined the park is a candidate for participation in the state Natural Area’s Program after a recent site visit. The designation...

Kingsport honored by Public Relations Society of America

Kingsport's Public Information and Communications Department received five awards during the annual awards dinner of the local chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. The department received three Awards of Excellence for the Main Street Rebuild communications campaign, the Model City...

EV bike manufacturer to establish operations in Algood

LEV (Light Electric Vehicles) Manufacturing officials will establish its first Tennessee facility in Algood to serve as the company's primary U.S. assembly, logistics and fulfillment center. LEV Manufacturing, part of the Life EV Group, will create 288 jobs and invest $7 million as the company...

Seven municipalities join Tennessee Downtowns program

The Tennessee Downtowns program has selected seven municipalities among its latest cohort. 

Dyer, Harriman, Henning, Medina, Moscow, Red Bank, and Rutledge are now among the 97  communities selected for the program. Begun in 2010, Tennessee Downtowns is in its tenth round aiding municipalities in the...

Norris launches sports complex plans

The city of Norris is expanding its recreation opportunities at the Norris Community Building. Officials have unveiled plans to turn two tennis courts and a disc golf-course at the community facility into a $1 million sports complex, which will add four pickleball courts, a high school regulation...

Cleveland dedicates new fire engine

The city of Cleveland has dedicated a new fire engine for its Fire Station No. 5 in the Candies Creek area. The new apparatus is a Pierce Enforcer quipped with a 515-horsepower Paccar engine and a 2,000-gallon-per-minute pump, enhancing the Fire Department’s capacity to respond to emergencies and...
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People

Jonathan Jenkins

Jonathan Jenkins
Jonathan Jenkins

Jonathan Jenkins has been selected as the new assistant fire chief for the Franklin Fire Department (FFD). A 24-year veteran of the department, Jenkins will take over the role from Assistant Chief Greg Baltimore, who retired in December. Jenkins most recently spent the past six years as a battalion...

Delaney Oldham

Delaney Oldham
Delaney Oldham

Delaney Oldham will serve as a new finance and accounting consultant for UT-MTAS, based in the Nashville Office. Prior to her role with MTAS, Oldham served as a legislative auditor in the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury’s Division of Local Audit. A certified county finance officer, Oldham...

Herb Byrd

Herb Byrd
Dr. Herb Byrd III, Vice President for UT-IPS

Herb Byrd, vice president of the University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service (IPS), will retire Sept. 30 following 40 years of dedicated service to the University of Tennessee and the state.

TML Executive Director Anthony Haynes thanked Byrd for his work in public service, particularly with...

Teresa Keen

Teresa Keen
Teresa Keen

Teresa Keen has retired after 49 years of service to the city of Portland. Keen began work at Portland City Hall in 1977 and is retiring from her current role as assistant to the mayor. During her tenure with the city, Keen said she saw much of the city’s business go from handwritten to computerized...

Chris Willyard

Chris Willyard
Chris Willyard

Chris Willyard has been selected as the new fire marshal for the Hendersonville Fire Department. Willyard has served with the department of 16 years, joining after spending six years with the Hendersonville Police Department. In addition to serving as the fire marshal, he will continue to serve as...

Craig Bennett

Craig Bennett
Craig Bennett

Craig Bennett has been selected as the first town administrator for Caryville. The Caryville Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted in April 2025 to create the town administrator position. Prior to coming to Caryville, Bennett served for more than three years as an operations officer with the U.S...
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State Briefs

State releases updated roadmap for EV adoption in Tennessee

The new 2026 Roadmap for Electric Vehicles (EVs) in Tennessee has been released, building on progress since the initial strategy was implemented in 2019. The updated guide incorporates recent industry data and lessons learned in project implementation to clarify priorities and guide action across...

Tennessee outlines EV freight framework

With commercial fleets increasingly interested in adopting medium- and heavy-duty EVs for freight transport, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation’s (TDEC) Office of Energy Programs (OEP) has released the Tennessee Freight Electrification Framework This guide aims to support...

Comptroller's office unveils municipal fiscal metrics

The Tennessee Comptroller’s Office has expanded its online fiscal health metrics to now include financial metrics for Tennessee’s cities, providing a more complete picture of local government finances across the state. The dashboard, available at tncot.cc/fiscalmetrics, has historically provided...

THSO announces results of 2025 seat belt survey

While seat belt usage is on the decline in Tennessee, it still exceeds the national rate. Results from the Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO) annual roadside observational study determined a usage rate of 91.3% in 2025, a decrease of 0.9% over 2024 but still higher than the national rate of 90%...

Tennessee unemployment increases, records 9,200 job losses in February

Tennessee’s February unemployment increased slightly over the previous month but remained below the national average. The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) recorded an unemployment rate of 3.6% in the state in February, up from a 3.5% recorded in January. The rate is...

Tennessee March 2026 revenues $69.2M above estimates

Tennessee revenues exceeded budgeted estimates for the month of March.  

The Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Jim Bryson reported that total March tax revenues were $1.7 billion, $69.2 million more than the budgeted estimate and $119.2 million more than March 2025. The total tax...
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TML Updates