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With state lawmakers studying how to cut costs in the states HOPE lottery scholarship program, Senate Democratic leader Jim Kyle is urging them not to deny grants to thousands of college-bound kids unnecessarily. In a letter to legislators this month, Kyle called for using the lottery fund like an economic stimulus. He pointed out that, while the lottery fund indeed is running at an annual deficit now, its still flush with $373 million in reserves built up by surpluses in the early days of the seven-year-old program before many scholarships had been given. At the current rate of expenditure, it will take until 2024 to drain the surplus to $50 million, the lowest level state law allows. So, Kyle asks, why tighten scholarship eligibility now when the economys in the dumps and unemployment stands at nearly 10 percent? Our talks so far have been all about money, when they should be about putting Tennesseans back to work, Kyle said. The lottery fund was designed to give more Tennesseans the opportunity at a good education and an even better job. That should be our top priority now more than ever. http://nashvillecitypaper.com/content/city-news/republicans-dems-debate-who-should-bear-brunt-lotteryscholarship-fund-restriction
Conn. Gets Tough With Amazon, Pushing On With Tax (Associated Press)
Connecticut officials are not giving up on requiring Internet sellers to collect state sales taxes, despite signs from online retailer Amazon.com that it has no immediate plans to abide by the state's new Internet tax law.Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Amazon announced Thursday that the online retailer had agreed to begin collecting sales taxes in that state in 2014. It was part of an agreement to build two more distribution centers in the state. Amazon will be required to begin collecting sales taxes in January 2016 under a recent law in South Carolina, where the company is also building a distribution center. Kokinis-Graves said it's possible Connecticut will succeed in getting Amazon to pay the tax for those purchases made during that small window of time when it still had arrangements with its affiliates and the law was in place. She said it remains to be seen whether prolonged litigation, which would be costly for both sides, will be necessary. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=141196332
city engineer.He said the item is on the citys Planning Commission agenda for its 1 p.m. meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 19, in room 218 of City Hall. However, Griffith said this isnt a guarantee that Murfreesboro has been selected for the Amazon site. He pointed out that when the city was in the running for a FedEx facility some years ago, the company also submitted plans to multiple cities. Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce President Paul Latture said Friday afternoon that he could not confirm if Amazon has chosen Murfreesboro. We have not been officially told that we are one of the sites. We have not been told we are eliminated either, he said City officials have been closed-mouthed about the negotiations, simply referring to them as Project Tango. But that didnt stop Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam from confirming in a press conference last week that Amazon and Project Tango are one and the same. http://www.murfreesboropost.com/city-plans-submittedmatch-amazon-needs-cms-287
4 Memphis city schools could join new Achievement School District (CA/Roberts)
A year ago, Frayser High was the butt of every ugly joke and the object of wagging tongues as talk radio and TV yakked mercilessly about 90 teens there who were either pregnant or new moms. It wasn't true, and students knew it. So did first-year principal Yolanda Lunford. "It was all across the Web. I cried," said Lunford, 38. After weathering that storm, she's now in charge of a much larger undertaking -- preparing to turn the school over to someone else. Frayser will likely become part of the new state Achievement School District, an experiment in Tennessee to turn around the state's lowest performing schools. Of the five schools set for the new achievement district, four are in Memphis: Frayser, Hamilton and Northside high schools and Raleigh-Egypt Middle. The fifth is Howard School of Academic Technology in Chattanooga. Under a waiver the state Department of Education is writing, the achievement district could grow almost immediately to 85 schools -- 5 percent of the roughly 1,700 public schools in the state. The schools in the district would be overseen by their own superintendent and can be converted to charter schools, taken over by the state or managed by a combination of state and local control. Except in the case of joint control, the students and the tax dollars that support them would belong to the achievement district. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2011/oct/10/4-city-schools-could-join-new-district/
Law limits schools' liability when groups use grounds, facilities (TN/Gonzalez)
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Tennessee schools have one less obstacle to opening buildings and sports fields to their communities, thanks to a law change being applauded by child fitness advocates. State code signed into law in June and being explained to schools this fall frees schools from liability when they sign agreements to allow athletic leagues, churches and community groups to use school grounds. Our taxpayers pay for this equipment, whether its tracks or gyms. Meanwhile, communities are looking for low-cost solutions. Its really a win-win, said Chastity Mitchell, a senior director with the American Heart Association, which pushed for the change. Counties surveyed by the association said loud and clear that they were afraid of being sued for accidents, Mitchell said. Now, liability should be less of a concern (in cases of gross negligence, a school could still be liable). And because the association found that existing joint-use agreements vary in their formality, the law includes a phrase encouraging agreements to be written out and to address security, supervision, hours and maintenance policies. The association also found that wear and tear on school buildings, scheduling difficulties and the preferences of individual school principals may still be hurdles. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20111010/NEWS04/310070118/Law-limits-schools-liability-when-groups-usegrounds-facilities?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|News
http://content.usatoday.net/dist/custom/gci/InsidePage.aspx?cId=tennessean&sParam=37646025.story
Fearing budget cuts, interest groups take lobbying local (USA Today)
Sam Burnett, a retired school administrator from Toledo, is an unlikely lobbyist. But next week, the 79-year-old will drive his blue Mercury Marquis 200 miles to Cincinnati to meet with aides to House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Republican Sen. Rob Portman, one of 12 lawmakers on a congressional "supercommittee" charged with cutting at least $1.2 trillion from the federal deficit over a decade. "I just want to re-emphasize the importance of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid in the lives of our seniors," said Burnett, one of dozens of older Americans on the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare who are crusading to protect these programs from the budget ax. As interest groups scramble to protect their cherished programs, many are taking their lobbying local, turning to business leaders or community activists such as Burnett to plead their cases with home-state lawmakers who sit on the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction or others in Congress they hope will influence their deliberations. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/story/2011-10-09/special-interest-groups-try-local-lobbying-to-reachsupercommittee-deficit-panel/50713738/1
an earthquake and tsunami. One occurred at Browns Ferry Three diesel generators failed after tornadoes ripped across Alabama and knocked out electric lines serving the Tennessee Valley Authoritys Browns Ferry nuclear plant in April. Two failed because of mechanical problems and one was unavailable because of planned maintenance. Another generator failed at the North Anna plant in Virginia following an August earthquake. Generators have not worked when needed in at least a dozen other instances since 1997 because of mechanical failures or because they were offline for maintenance, according to an Associated Press review of reports compiled by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20111010/NEWS08/310110002/4-generators-failed-recently-U-S-nuclearplants?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|News
Hamilton County Schools make wish list for building projects (TFP/Hardy)
Hamilton County Schools leaders have made a wish list of $247 million in building projects. Officials circulated a list of their recommendations to school board members Thursday, but it's only in the very early stages. The facilities plan -- which comes in three phases -- hasn't been voted on by school board members or moved to the County Commission, which oversees the school district's budget. "At this point, this is just a list of staff recommendations," said Gary W aters, assistant superintendent of auxiliary services. Along with school additions and remodeling, the list includes several new elementary schools on the county's east side, including replacements for Ooltewah and East Brainerd elementaries and a new Chattanooga School for the Liberal Arts. Superintendent Rick Smith has said a new K-12 CSLA building could help alleviate overcrowding at the current K-8 school at 6579 East Brainerd Road. A new school at CSLA's current location also could open up more spaces at the Chattanooga School for the Arts and Sciences, which now takes in many CSLA students. CSAS serves grades kindergarten through 12. The CSLA project is projected to cost $46 million. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/oct/10/schools-make-wish-list-for-building-projects/?local
organizational meeting of the now-unified countywide Shelby County Board of Education promises to be the most transformative yet. The theoretical and hypothetical become reality when seven people appointed by the Shelby County Commission join the nine people who represent the Memphis City Schools district and the seven who represent the formerly all-suburban Shelby County Schools district. The 23-member "mega-board," as one schools lawyer calls it, comprises 14 Memphis residents and nine suburban residents. That ratio will loom large when the evening's most important agenda item comes forward: electing officers to represent the board. Technically, going into the meeting, David Pickler remains the chairman, a post he has held since first being chosen by his SCS colleagues in 1999. At the final meeting of the suburban-only SCS board, Pickler cast one of the crucial votes against an attempt to re-elect him as chairman for another full one-year term, which could have thrown additional legal complications into tonight's proceedings. Pickler cited a desire not to start off the unified board in a way that might be potentially "acrimonious." He also said the reality of a board with more Memphis representation makes it unlikely he can get the 12 votes required to be chairman of the expanded 23-member board. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2011/oct/10/unified-board-meets-tonight/
California: California Sets New Course in Immigrant-Student Law (W all St. Journal)
California's decision to let undocumented immigrants apply for publicly funded financial aid for college offers illegal-immigrant youths in the largest state a new benefit after a federal measure to assist undocumented students failed last year. Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown signed the California Dream Act into law Saturday, saying it would give "top students a chance to improve their lives and the lives of all of us." Despite opposition from Republicans, the bill passed easily in the Democrat-controlled legislature. Federal legislation also called the Dream Act failed last year to attract enough support in Congress. That measure would have let undocumented students qualify for six years of residency status, though the students wouldn't have been eligible for federal aid such as Pell Grants. In 2001, California and Texas became the first of a dozen states to let undocumented students pay resident tuition rates if they met certain requirements. The Texas bill also offered undocumented Texans access to state financial aid. Texas Gov. Rick Perry's support of that measure has become a problem for him during his run for the GOP presidential nomination, with conservatives criticizing Mr. Perry's suggestion in a debate last month that the law's critics had no heart. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204450804576620882443354962.html?mod=ITP_pageone_1 (SUBSCRIPTION)
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OPINION Gail Kerr: Haslam's Amazon coup is real; tale of wife's 'boyfriend' isn't (Tenn)
Gov. Bill Haslam scored probably his biggest coup since taking office when he negotiated a compromise with retail giant Amazon that will bring an additional 1,500 jobs to Tennessee. Amazon will build distribution sites in Lebanon and Murfreesboro in exchange for a getting a break on charging sales tax on Tennessee customers until January 2014. That brings Amazons total investment in Tennessee to $350 million, with a total of 3,500 jobs. Though other retailers are still angry, Haslam looked brilliant. Hes got to be loving it that news came on the heels of his securing Tennessees excellent bond rating. If it wasnt for the truth coming out about his imaginary friend, it would have been a sterling week for the governor. (He was good-natured in admitting to the serial telling of a tall tale.) But first, the Amazon deal. Haslam was on the horns of a dilemma. His predecessor, Phil Bredesen, struck up an economic development deal with Amazon. The online retailer would place two distribution facilities here and Tennessee would allow it to carry on as is. In other words, he waived sales tax. Haslam agreed to keep the states word, partly under the threat that Amazon would bail. Other retailers big and small, and lawmakers from areas where Amazon was not landing, cried foul. Haslam was stuck with a bad deal by a powerful company holding the Volunteer State hostage. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20111010/COLUMNIST0101/310100008/Gail-Kerr-Haslam-s-Amazon-coupreal-tale-wife-s-boyfriend-isn-t?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|p
Mike Turner: Ketron's attack of local Dem unneeded (Daily News Journal)
I felt it was necessary to respond to a "press conference" held by state Sen. Bill Ketron recently regarding the new voter ID law here in Tennessee. Not only is this law unneeded and politically motivated, but Ketron also feels it is necessary to single out one Rutherford County citizen, who made a terrible mistake almost 30 years ago. This is nothing more than an effort to validate his shortsighted Voter ID Act. Ketron used a sort of character assassination on Rutherford County Democratic Party Vice Chairman Tony Pegel. Pegel, who committed a felony almost 30 years ago when he was 18 years old, is a success story. He served probation for the crime and went on to earn his engineering degree in Knoxville and is now a party official in the county and an asset to the community. Tony Pegel was young when he made a mistake by committing a crime and has paid his debt to society. The error over his voting record was an honest mistake and as soon as he found out there was a problem, he immediately made efforts to correct it. The mistake was on the part of the then non-computerized election commission. Pegel, when he originally registered to vote, admitted on his voter registration that he had been convicted of a felony. http://www.dnj.com/article/20111010/OPINION03/110100306/Rep-Turner-Ketron-s-attack-local-Dem-unneeded
When you are a 96-year-old, law-abiding, conscientious American citizen, you ought to be able to exercise your right to vote easily and quickly. You shouldn't have to provide an envelope full of documents proving your identity only to be told that you still haven't shown that you are eligible to cast a ballot. Yet, that's just what happened to Dorothy Cooper earlier this month, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press. Tennessee's GOPcontrolled legislature passed a strict voter ID law, so Cooper who never learned to drive got a ride to a state driver service center to obtain a new ID card. But her rent receipt, her lease, her birth certificate and her voter registration card were not enough, the newspaper reported. Because her birth certificate pronounced her "Dorothy Alexander" her maiden name the clerk refused to give her the credential that would allow her to vote. That story ought to simply be a laughable anecdote about an overzealous bureaucrat, an officious clerk who doesn't understand the phrase "public servant." Unfortunately, Cooper's futile sojourn reflects an intentional Republican plan to restrict the franchise. Across the country, GOP-controlled state legislatures have passed measures to make voting arduous for certain citizens who have shown a marked propensity for supporting Democrats. http://www.theleafchronicle.com/article/20111010/COLUMNISTS104/110100302/COLUMN-Keeping-wrongpeople-from-polls
Congress. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/oct/10/unseemly-plan-for-stamps/?opinionfreepress