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Kingsport art gallery exhibit

Art exhibit showcases talent of Kingsport city employees

A special exhibit at the Circle Gallery at Kingsport City Hall is showing a different side of city employees. Kingsport Cultural Arts, a department within the city, is hosting the exhibit of art works...
State of the Child

2025 State of the Child Report reveals concern over child poverty, childcare costs

Nearly one-fifth of Tennessee children are living in poverty as childcare costs soar above rates of in-state tuition for state colleges. Data from the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth (TCCY)...
General Assembly flag flying

114th General Assembly reconvenes

Legislators returned to Nashville on Jan. 13, 2026.  to convene the second session of the 114th General Assembly. Top priorities expected for this session include the expansion of Gov. Bill Lee’s...
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News Across Tennessee

Watertown plans railroad museum expansion

The city of Watertown, Watertown Railroad Museum, Nashville Steam Preservation Society and Tennessee Central Railroad are partnering to build a new space to honor the city’s railroad. Plans call for a 14,000-square-foot facility featuring a museum, restaurant, observation deck, outdoor park, train...

Plans underway for new city hall in New Tazewell

Plans are underway to break ground on a new city hall for New Tazewell in April as part of several projects to improve the downtown area. The $2 million city hall will be built on a vacant lot on Main Street designed to replicate the train depot. It will house the New Tazewell Police and Street...

Centrus Energy to expand Oak Ridge operations

Centrus Energy announced a major expansion to transition its Oak Ridge facility to a high-rate manufacturing plant. The expansion will create nearly 430 new jobs and result in investment of  more than $560 million over the next several years to grow workforce for production of advanced centrifuges...

Infrastructure grants awarded to 20 municipalities

Grants for water and sewer infrastructure were awarded to 20 municipalities through the Infrastructure Planning Grant (IPG) program.

East Ridge Fire Department holds push-in ceremony

Members of the East Ridge Fire Department held a push-in ceremony for Squad-1, the newest apparatus for the department. The 2025 Pierce Enforcer is part of a “continued investment” in the city’s emergency service, according to fire officials. The push-in ceremony harkens back to the days when...

LIS Technologies to expand Oak Ridge Operations

Laser Isotope Separation (LIS) Technologies officials announced the company will expand its operations in Oak Ridge, investing $1.38 billion and creating 203 new jobs. It is the third-largest nuclear-related investment since the creation of TNECD’s Nuclear Energy Fund. The new LIS Technology...
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People

TML officials meet with Tennessee Fire Chiefs, MTAS

TML, MTAS, and TFCA leaders

Officials with the Tennessee Municipal League, Tennessee Fire Chiefs Association (TFCA), and Municipal Technical Advisory Service met in Smyrna to discuss opportunities for collaboration and improving...

Comptroller announces changes in Local Government Audit Division

Jim Arnette
Jim Arnette

Tennessee Comptroller Jason Mumpower has announced changes to his office’s local government team.  

Jim Arnette, director of local government audit, will retire effective March 31, 2026, following 42 years of service to the comptroller’s office. In his role, Arnette has played a vital role in...

Chattanooga's Kelly to head regional rail initiative

Tim Kelly
Tim Kelly

Chattanooga Mayor Tim Kelly has been selected to chair a coalition of municipal and state leaders working toward the creation and enhancement of passenger rail and freight networks in the Atlanta-Chattanooga-Nashville-Memphis rail corridor. 

The Sunbelt Atlantic Compact is looking to connect the four...

Linda McCrary

Linda McCrary
Linda McCrary

Linda McCrary has been selected to fill the vacancy on the Red Boiling Springs City Council left by the death of her husband George in December. A member of the Retired Teachers Association, McCrary is a lifelong Red Boiling Springs resident and served as a librarian for the Macon County Schools...

George Edwards

George Edwards
George Edwards

George Edwards has been selected as the new fire chief for the city of Hendersonville. Edwards began his career as a firefighter with the department in 1995 and has since been promoted five times. His most recent promotion was to assistant chief of the department in 2023.  

Daniel Estes

Daniel Estes
Daniel Estes

Daniel Estes, city manager for Elizabethton, has been selected to serve on the Tennessee City Management Association Board at a special called meeting. Estes has served as Elizabethton’s city manager since June 2018. Prior to that, he was assistant town administrator for Collierville. He also served...
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State Briefs

Tennessee December 2025 unemployment remains steady

Tennessee’s December 2025 unemployment rate held steady at 3.6%. The state unemployment rate has remained at 3.6% since July, though no data was recorded for October due to the government shutdown. The U.S. rate for December was 4.4%, down one-tenth of a percentage point from the previous month...

Tennessee December 2025 revenues $82.7M above estimates

Tennessee revenues exceeded budgeted estimates for the month of December with a monthly tax growth rate of 6.09%. 

Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Jim Bryson reported that total December tax revenues were $2 billion, $82.7 million more than the budgeted estimate and $116.5...

TDEC unveils new water quality maps

A new map is highlighting sources of pollution in state waterways to improve water quality. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation unveiled a map that helps monitor water quality in streams, rivers, and reservoirs across the state. The map shows that 19,000 miles of the state’s 60...

FEMA announces $9 million in Helene recovery funds

The Federal Emergency Management Authority (FEMA) has approved nearly $9 million in federal funds to help communities across Tennessee rebuild following Hurricane Helene and other recent disasters. 

The funds are part of FEMA’s Public Assistance program, which is funded at a minimum of 75% federal...

Tennessee unemployment unchanged in November 2025

Tennessee’s November 2025 unemployment rate was recorded at 3.6%, which has remained unchanged since July. No unemployment rate was recorded for the state in October 2025 due to a lack of data from the federal government shutdown. The 3.6% rate was also one-tenth of a percentage point lower than the...

Savage Gulf State Park adds 670 acres

One of Tennessee’s newest state parks just got bigger. A private donation has added 670 acres of dense forest on the Cumberland Plateau to Savage Gulf State Park near Beersheba Springs. The addition was the result of a two-year joint effort from three conservation groups – the  TennGreen Land...
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TML Updates