State Briefs

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) announced five cities will share in 36 Brownfield Redevelopment Area Grants (BRAG) totaling $718,757 for remediation projects across the state. 

BRAG grants are derived from the Rural Brownfield Redevelopment Investment Act, which...

Tennessee tourism generated a record $30.6 billion in direct visitor spending and saw 144 million visitors to the state in 2023, according to newly released data from Tourism Economics and the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development. Tennessee’s direct visitor spending increased 6.2% in 2023...

Tennessee’s new record-low unemployment rate continued in June, according to new information from the Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD). June’s unemployment rate remained at 3%, an all-time low rate first recorded in May of this year. In a year-to-year comparison, the June 2024...

The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) has awarded the state of Tennessee the prestigious Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for its Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2023. The...

Tennessee State Parks have announced the availability of all-terrain wheelchairs at 10 state parks, bringing the total number of state parks with the service to 22. The new wheelchairs are the result of a collaboration between the parks system, the Tennessee Department of Disability and Aging, and...

The Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) announced significant momentum in increasing the state’s college-going rate, highlighted by a 2.4% increase for the class of 2023 over the class of 2022.

The state’s 56.7% college-going rate for the class of 2023 represents the largest year-over-year...

Tennessee had the fifth-largest population increase and a net increase of $4.7 billion in adjusted gross income on individual tax returns between 2021 and 2022, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The net increase of nearly 60,600 residents – an increase of 0.87% - also led to an...

Tennessee’s state-wide unemployment rate reached a historic, new record-low in May. The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) decreased to 3% in May, the lowest rate the state has recorded since the federal government began tracking data in 1976. The rate was a 0.1%...

Tennessee revenues for May totaled more than the state collected in May 2022 but less than the budgeted estimates.  

Finance and Administration Commissioner Jim Bryson reported that May tax revenues were $1.645 billion, which is $52.4 million more than May of last year, but $29.5 million less than...

State site development grants have been awarded to 12 municipalities as part of 15 total grants recently awarded through TNECD’s Site Development Grant program.  

Bolivar, Columbia, Crossville, Huntingdon, Milan, and Union City each received funds for site development projects. Joint grants were also...

Vanderbilt University and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have announced a partner to develop training, testing and evaluation methods that will accelerate the Department of Defense’s adoption of AI-based system in operational environments. As artificial intelligence becomes an important asset...

Tennessee has become the first state in the nation to offer free diapers through its state Medicaid program. Beginning in August, TennCare and CoverKids will cover the cost of 100 diapers per month for children under two enrolled in the programs. A statement from TennCare noted that the new...