111th Tennessee General Assembly Adjourns Sine Die on Second Extraordinary Session
Tennessee’s 61st special session and the 2nd extraordinary session of the 111th General Assembly adjourned sine die on Wednesday, August 12.. Last week, Governor Bill Lee called for the Tennessee General Assembly to convene for a special session to address COVID-19 liability protections, telehealth services, and laws governing the Capitol and state grounds. The state … Continued
U.S. Department of Energy Awards $20 Million Federal Grant for Oak Ridge Institute at UT
On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Energy awarded a $20 million federal grant to the new Oak Ridge Institute (ORI) at UT. The ORI is a transformational opportunity for the State of Tennessee. It answers the national call to increase America’s production of scientists and engineers in key areas such as Quantum Sciences and Artificial Intelligence to … Continued
111th Tennessee General Assembly Adjourns Sine Die
The Tennessee General Assembly adjourned sine die bringing an end the two-year legislative session shortly after 3 a.m. on Friday. The rare, early morning adjournment was due to hours of negotiations between the House and the Senate on numerous items. The legislature was primarily focused on passing a revised 2020-21 fiscal year budget in response to the … Continued
Senate Passes “Safe Harbor” Bill; Contains Protections for Higher Ed
The “Tennessee Recovery and Safe Harbor Act,” sponsored by Sen. Mike Bell (R-Riceville), passed unanimously on the Senate floor last week. The measure provides protection to a number of private businesses, non-profit agencies, and government institutions and agencies (including UT), against unsupported legal claims associated with the COVID-19 virus. Also, the measure provides an additional … Continued
Senate Passes Newly Revised Budget
The Senate passed a newly revised state budget last Thursday afternoon after a robust discussion on the proposed cuts that are to be implemented over a three-year period to lessen the impact of the state’s revenue shortages and the ability to maintain essential operations. This will be the second scaled back budget passed this legislative … Continued