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Gov. Bill Lee defended Thursday the state’s decision to award a no-bid, over-the-budget contract to an outside vendor for the implementation of school vouchers.
The controversy comes after the Tennessee Department of Education awarded Florida-based ClassWallet a $1.2 million deal to manage the early rollout of the program and track expenses. Earlier this week, Republican lawmakers expressed strong criticism of the move.
The results of the March primary will be pivotal for those seeking the Democratic nomination, especially for the former New York mayor.
Republican lawmakers hinted that Gov. Bill Lee’s administration’s plans to roll out the program early could be in jeopardy.
Early voting for the presidential primary starts Wednesday in Tennessee.
Republican and Democratic voters will see multiple options on their ballots, but not all of them are still in the race.
Gov. Bill Lee has been talking about plans to reform the criminal justice system in Tennessee since the campaign trail.
He studied the issue during his first year in office with the expectation that this would be the year for legislative action. But WPLN’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán says the proposals are less sweeping than expected and some are a bit tougher on crime.
