News Staff Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed a bill protecting school teachers who don’t use a student’s preferred pronouns.The Republican governor signed legislation preventing public school teachers from facing civil lawsuits or adverse employment action for not referring to a student by their preferred pronouns if they don’t correspond to the student’s assigned sex at birth.
A former Southwest Virginia deputy accused of going across the country and killing three people in California and then killing himself will be the center of discussion at a Washington County Virginia Board of Supervisors meeting next week.In November, Austin Edwards went to Riverside, California and killed a 15-year-old girl’s mother and grandparents then set … Read more
East Tennessee State University’s ROTC program is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year following the commissioning of 11 graduates as second lieutenants.Though the United States first established the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) through the National Defense Act in 1916, it took many years for the programs to grow and spread to colleges and universities … Read more
The Sullivan County Budget Committee voted to deny funding to Petworks Animal Services for the next fiscal year, putting into question the $75,000 request from the Kingsport animal shelter.The committee voted 6-1 against funding Petworks with Sullivan County Commissioner Gary Stidham voting yes.“I’m not giving them any funding,” County Commissioner Joyce Crosswhite said.We gave them … Read more
The Paint Creek campground in the Unaka Ranger District of the Cherokee National Forest has reopened for camping, according to the U.S. Forest Service.The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency inspected the Paint Creek campground Wednesday, removed a bear trap and recommended reopening the site, Forest Service spokesman Christopher Joyner said. Joyner adds the presence of bears … Read more
The Tennessee Department of Health has planned a June 12 public hearing that will include an opportunity for the public to comment on Ballad Health’s compliance with its Certificate of Public Advantage and to discuss revisions to its Terms of Certification.The hearing will be held 5:30-7 p.m. in the Northeast State Community College Performing Arts … Read more
The Greeneville Board of Education approved its $35.6 million budget in a called session Monday.The balanced budget for Greeneville City Schools’ 2023-24 fiscal year will be presented to the Greeneville City Council in a hearing on May 23.Highlights of the budget include a 5% raise for teachers and a $1 per hour raise for hourly … Read more
The Greeneville City Council unanimously approved an ordinance on first reading on Tuesday that would expand the Greeneville Municipal Airport Authority board.The ordinance, which will not be made final until considered and passed upon a second reading and public hearing at a future meeting of the governing body, would expand the membership of the Airport … Read more
Unfirtunately, a person 65-year-old Danny Bruce Hackney was killed after a tree fell on a vehicle during a storm in Dickenson County on Tuesday, according to Sheriff Jeremy Fleming and the National Weather Service (NWS).According to the NWS storm report, the incident happened at around 5:40 p.m. Sheriff Fleming said Hackney was driving on Dickenson … Read more
Local realtors and housing industry experts say home availability continues to be tough, but the first four months of this year saw a slowdown in new house permits in a number of area markets compared to 2022.Permits for new single family homes are down sharply in Johnson City for the first four months of 2023 … Read more