Listen Gov. Bill Haslam is on the verge of signing a measure called the Juvenile Justice Reform Act, which was supposed to bring about major changes to how Tennessee handles young people who misbehave. But some who worked on the measure say, after state lawmakers made last-minute changes, it’s coming up far short of its […]
Williamson County Officials Say More Than 900 Voters Crossed Party Lines
Listen More than 900 voters in Williamson County crossed party lines to cast ballots in this month’s Republican primary for local offices, according to the local election commission, which certified the results Monday. The count could be a precursor to a challenge of the primary election and was taken in response to Republicans who want […]
After TNReady Outages, Tennessee To Shift Some Responsibilities To Another Testing Firm
Listen The state’s top educator is promising next year’s standardized testing will go more smoothly — and she’s making some changes to try to bring that about. Education Commissioner Candice McQueen said Monday that the state is planning to strip testing vendor Questar of some of its responsibilities, following widespread outages that led many […]
Behind The Campaign To Get Gov. Bill Haslam To Veto An Immigration Measure
Listen During this year’s session, the Tennessee legislature passed a bill that seeks to punish “sanctuary cities,” but Gov. Bill Haslam has yet to sign it. And some hope this could be the rare time he chooses to veto. He’s facing pressure from those who are opposed to the measure and — from within […]
Tennessee’s Next Governor: How The Candidates Want To Close The Achievement Gap In Education
Listen Narrowing the education gap will be one challenge facing whoever becomes Tennessee’s next governor. Students in the state are doing better in math and reading, but black and Hispanic students aren’t improving as fast as their white counterparts.
Haslam Vetoes Bill To Require Insurance Coverage Of Experimental Cancer Treatment
Updated 10 p.m. with reaction from Provision Proton Therapy and legislative leadership. Gov. Bill Haslam has vetoed a measure that would have required the state’s insurance plan to cover an experimental cancer treatment. Proton therapy promises to pinpoint radiation on the places that require treatment and do less collateral damage on surrounding organs and tissue, […]
Nashville Mayor Says He’s Ready To Start On Next Transit Plan
Listen Nashville Mayor David Briley says he’s setting to work on a new plan for mass transit in Nashville following this week’s defeat of a $5.4 billion proposal featuring light rail. Briley says he’s already spoken with some opponents of the failed transit plan, and he intends to push forward with improvements to the city’s […]
Middle Tennessee Races: Escobar Wins Judge Seat In Nashville; Ketron Takes Nod In Rutherford County
Beyond the transit proposal, Democratic voters in Davidson County also had a long list of primary elections to decide. In a highly watched contest, prosecutor Ana Escobar bested former Metro Councilman Nick Leonardo for the nomination to a General Sessions judge position. Leonardo had been appointed to the seat in January, but Escobar was favorite […]
Williamson County Residents Warned About Primary Voting After Republicans Call Foul
Listen Voters in Williamson County may notice a prominent warning when they go to the polls today: A sign implying that only certain people are allowed to vote in the primaries. It’s the result of a dispute between the Williamson County GOP and two Democratic candidates over how to interpret Tennessee’s murky law about who […]
The Tri-Star State: What Could Gov. Haslam Veto From This Year’s Session?
Listen The Tennessee legislative session came to a late-night end last week, but some of the bills approved in the final hours might not make it all the way to becoming law. In this week’s edition of The Tri-Star State, Nashville Public Radio’s Jason Moon Wilkins and statehouse reporter Chas Sisk discuss what legislation could […]
On Air - 90.3 WPLN-FM