SUNDAY, MAY 20, 2012 Haslam Awards $120,000 Trails Program Grant to the City of Clarksville (C.

Online)
Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam and Environment and Conservation Commissioner Bob Martineau today awarded an additional $547,000 in grants for recreational trail projects across Tennessee. $120,000 was awarded to the City of Clarksville to connect Marys Oak Trail Head and the 101st Pedestrian Bridge through Heritage Park. These grants help local governments and organizations improve amenities such as trails, greenways and recreational facilities that contribute so much to a better community and quality of life, Haslam said. The grants will help make Tennessees incredible natural beauty and outdoors more accessible to Tennesseans. The grants are through the Recreational Trails Program, a federally-funded program established to distribute funding for motorized, non-motorized and diverse recreation trail projects. The funds are available to federal, state and local government agencies, as well as non-profit organizations that have obtained IRS 501(c) (3) status and have a written trail management agreement with the agency that owns the property where the trail project is located. http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/2012/05/19/tennessee-governor-bill-haslam-awards-120000-trails-programgrant-to-the-city-of-clarksville/

TN.gov website gets a redesign (Tennessean/Cass)

The state has a newly revamped website at TN.gov, which Gov. Bill Haslams office is touting as dramatically redesigned and improved. For many Tennesseans, TN.gov is the primary way they interact with and experience state government, the governor said in a news release. The goal of this new design is to enhance this experience by presenting users with a path to the content and services they need in the most efficient and effective way possible. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120519/NEWS02/305190069/Political-NotebookCommission-bars-misleading-names?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

Unforeseen Hostility to Class-Size Flexibility Plan Surprised Haslam (TN Report)

After finishing the first third of the term in office he was elected in a landslide to serve in 2010, Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam says hes been able to check off a handful of campaign promises from his to-do list. But one of his biggest frustrations has been realizing that running government isnt always just like running a business. He says thats particularly true in education, where his initiatives have at times faced opposition from locally elected school boards and county commissions about how to implement them. To realize this isnt a company where were the main headquarters and we have all these regional offices out in the counties, and we say Heres what were going to do, and they say, W ere going to implement that, Haslam told TNReport during a sit-down interview this week. I dont say it so much as a disappointment but as a realization that if you have an effort, particularly related to education, its continuous. http://missouri-news.org/midwest-news/tennessee/unforeseen-hostility-to-administrations-class-size-flexibilityplan-surprised-haslam/17233

Commission bars 'misleading' names (Tennessean/Young)

If youre a candidate for public office and you have no money or name recognition, what do you do? One option: You try to change your name to something people cant help but notice. But the State Election Commission saw through that ploy Monday. At the recommendation of the states elections coordinator, Mark Goins, the commission voted not to allow David None of the Above Gatchell or James Tea Party Higdon to appear on the ballot for the U.S. Senate race in the ways theyd prefer. Commissioners quickly agreed with Goins that those listings would amount to confusing or misleading language, so Gatchell and Higdon will have to appear with

their given names only. Goins said Gatchell had legally changed his name, while Higdon did not appear to have gone that far. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120519/NEWS02/305190069/Political-Notebook-Commission-barsmisleading-names?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

Saving little hearts: Legislation makes simple test mandatory (Daily Times)
Legislation requiring a simple test to detect potentially fatal heart defects in newborns was signed into law by Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam April 17. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Doug Overbey (R-Maryville) and Rep. Ryan Haynes (R-Knoxville), was suggested by Karin Coulter, executive director of Saving Little Hearts Inc. According to a news release from the state senate, the bill requires the states Genetic Advisory Committee to develop a program to screen newborns for critical cyanotic congenital heart disease (CCCHD) using pulse oximetry prior to discharge from hospitals and other birthing facilities. CCCHD is a congenital heart defect, present at birth, which results in low blood oxygen levels causing the skin to look blue. Pulse oximetry is a noninvasive method in which a light emitter with red and infrared LEDs that shine through a reasonably translucent site with good blood flow. It is usually attached to the infants foot and allows medical professionals to evaluate any potential problem. http://www.thedailytimes.com/Blount_Life/story/Saving-little-hearts-Legislation-makes-simple-test-mandatory-id023926

Tennessee legislative session brings measures on immigration (TFP/Trevizo)

During the final days of Tennessee's legislative session, lawmakers approved a bill that requires anyone applying for public benefits to prove they are in the country legally. The legislation is part of the state's efforts to enforce immigration and is one of the major pieces the state has passed, said its sponsor, Rep. Joe Carr, RLascassas. Gov. Bill Haslam is expected to sign the bill, according to his office. Tennessee's more targeted approach to immigration enforcement laws differs from the approach taken by some other states. Georgia and Alabama, for example, were among a number of states that followed Arizona's lead in 2010 and introduced comprehensive bills addressing immigration in recent legislative sessions. Five, including Georgia and Alabama, ultimately enacted laws, but courts have partly or fully blocked them all from taking effect. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide on several sections of Arizona's law this summer. In the meantime, fewer immigration enforcement bills have been introduced, and those that are making it to state legislatures are standalone bills like Tennessee's, said Ann Morse, with the National Conference of State Legislatures. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/may/20/tenn-legislative-session-measures-immigration/?local

Feds ease deadline for state to create insurance exchange (Times-News)

Tennessee lawmakers wont need a special session to determine whether to set up a state health insurance exchange called for in the federal health care reform law, according to Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey. Ramsey, RBlountville, had floated the idea of holding a special session later this year on creating an exchange pending a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the law this summer. The federal government has now decided they arent ready (to implement the exchanges). ... Time is not of the essence now. Well come back in session in January and address it then, Ramsey said. Tennessees state government still faces a January 2013 deadline to develop a readiness review for an exchange, according to TennCare spokeswoman Kelly Gunderson. The reform law, also called the Affordable Care Act (ACA), says either the states or federal government can run state health insurance exchanges starting in 2014. http://www.timesnews.net/article/9046841/feds-ease-deadline-for-state-to-create-insurance-exchange

Immigrant grads rally for in-state tuition (Tennessean/Young)

Just hours before her graduation from John Overton High School, Arely Bravo, 19, stood on the steps of the Parthenon with about 50 other people and vowed to fight for tuition equality for all of Tennessees students. Undocumented students have to pay out-of-state tuition even though theyve been here since they were babies, said Bravo, whose parents brought her to Tennessee when she was about 5 years old. We just want to be able to pay as much as any other student would to continue our education. Bravo, who grew up in Metro schools, was one of about 10 students standing in cap and gown at the Parthenon on Saturday. She was scheduled to graduate later that evening in the top 20 percent of her class, she said. She plans to attend Nashville State Community College and major in criminal justice. Other students arent as lucky. According to the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, an organizer of Saturdays event, undocumented students are charged more than three times as much as their classmates to attend public universities in Tennessee. Because of the 2

financial barriers, there is only a 5 percent to 10 percent college attendance rate for undocumented high school students, the coalition said. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120520/NEWS04/305200078/Immigrant-gradsrally-state-tuition?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

Cleveland-Bradley County alliance hit by sales tax dispute (TFP/Leach)

Officials say an ongoing sales tax dispute between Bradley County and Cleveland could put future partnerships between the two governments at risk. On Monday, Bradley commissioners are expected to vote on a resolution declaring that the county won't be able to participate in joint capital projects with the city "due to a potential loss of sales tax revenues." "This dispute has an effect on a lot of stuff, period," commission Chairman Louie Alford said. "We need to mend our fences." Potentially $2 million in annual sales revenue could be at stake, and "no one's budget can take a hit like that," Alford said. Cleveland City Councilman Richard Banks recently cited the development of a new industrial park, upgrades to Interstate 75's Exit 20, the public library and the Museum Center at Five Points as examples of jointly funded programs that could suffer if the county withholds funding. Economic officials also have expressed concern. "Local government cooperation is an important part of being able to serve this community," said Gary Farlow, president of the Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/may/20/cleveland-bradley-alliance-hit-by-sales/?local

Cooper caucus looks to 'fix' Congress (Tennessean/Bewley)

Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Cooper has long said Congress is broken. Now hes starting a new caucus to fix it. The bipartisan Fix Congress Now Caucus launched at a news conference at the Capitol last week. Cooper is founding the group with three other lawmakers: Democratic Rep. Kurt Schrader of Oregon and Republican Reps. Scott Rigell of Virginia and Reid Ribble of Wisconsin. Republican Rep. Diane Black of Gallatin also will join the group, according to Coopers spokeswoman, Katie Hill. Group members say theyll start by pushing for passage of Coopers No Budget, No Pay Act. It would deny members of Congress their paychecks when they miss deadlines for budget measures and spending bills. They also plan to push for congressional term limits and change the congressional benefits plan to more closely resemble private-sector plans. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120519/NEWS02/305190069/Political-Notebook-Commission-barsmisleading-names?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

Bob Corker's money, name recognition make him heavy favorite (NS/Humphrey)
Money, name recognition heavily in senator's favor in field of 17 Not so long ago, Bob Corker was not sure he wanted another six-year term in the U.S. Senate because of frustration over congressional inaction, which he compares to "watching paint dry." "Most people who know me know that all last year, I really had to think about that myself," he said in a telephone interview from his Washington office."If you have led a productive life, you have to wonder it it's worth your time being here. "But, for what it's worth, I have become more optimistic than I have been in a long time that we will rise up and deal with our nation's problems ... just because frustrations are so high, on both sides of the aisle." With his newly formed belief that congressional frustration levels are on the verge of reaching the breaking point, especially on the overriding issue of dealing with national debt, Corker said he decided to run again. "I want to be part of solving that problem, and I think I will be," he said. By all conventional political wisdom, there's really not much doubt that Corker will be re-elected to a second term. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/may/20/bob-corkers-money-name-recognition-make-him/

Stakes high on eve of Tennessee's 3rd District Republican debate (TFP/Carroll)

An incumbent, two challengers and the voters they're courting will meet Monday in the first debate of an unusual 3rd Congressional District Republican primary. Experts and aides are predicting fireworks between U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann and W eston Wamp. It will be the pair's most direct confrontation since Wamp -- the 25-yearold son of Fleischmann's eight-term predecessor, U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp -- announced that he would try for his father's old seat. The Chattanooga Times Free Press and WRCB-TV Channel 3 will broadcast the debate live on their websites. Aides to Fleischmann scheduled a Sunday afternoon prep session at his re-election headquarters in Chattanooga, where the congressman will brainstorm 90-second responses and defend himself against anticipated lines of attack from Wamp. "We'll cover all our bases," Fleischmann campaign spokesman Jordan Powell said. "Chuck's ready to defend his record." Wamp said he's "doing a lot of reading this weekend," brushing up on entitlement reform, international conflicts and other issues of the day. 3

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/may/20/stakes-high-on-eve-of-3rd-district-debate/?local

2 Dems in congressional race have backgrounds in health care (N-S/Vines)

Two candidates with backgrounds in health care are seeking the Democratic nomination for the 3rd Congressional District, currently represented by U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Ooltewah. Mary Headrick, a Maynardville physician who has worked in area hospital emergency rooms, and Bill Taylor, a CPA who runs a health care management business in Ooltewah, are in the Aug. 2 Democratic primary. Fleischmann and three others are in the Republican primary. Headrick is pushing a theme of "people before profits" with her platform, which includes health care programs that include non-profit plans, not for-profit plans, she said. "Deceitful, misleading language like 'death panels' harms our unity to solve difficult problems, like rising costs," she says. The "death panels" term used by some opponents refers to a section of the health care reform act that includes an Independent Payment Advisory Board to make decisions regarding Medicare. In discussing "people before profits," she criticized congressional action that stopped proposals that would have limited pizza and French fries on federally fund school lunch menus. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/may/19/2-dems-in-congressionalrace-have-backgrounds-in/

No-bid contract in Chattanooga triples taxpayer tab (Times Free-Press/Smith)

Plans to save taxpayer money have backfired on federal officials in Chattanooga. A no-bid lease at downtown's Warehouse Row, initially touted as a way to save on moving expenses, instead resulted in the U.S. attorney's office paying one of the highest rents in the city. Taxpayers will foot a $5.75 million rental bill over the 10-year term. The new offices will cost the federal government $1.35 million more than the U.S. General Services Administration's initial estimate over the next decade and triple the amount now spent to house federal prosecutors in Chattanooga. GSA officials say the U.S. attorney's office needed more space and the new lease had to meet federal security and accessibility standards. The Department of Justice wanted its attorneys close to the Joel W. Solomon Federal Building, where prosecutors try civil and criminal cases. But real estate experts question why the government didn't solicit bids for needed space, which will cost $23,366 per employee for the first five years in the new fifth-floor office at Warehouse Row. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/may/20/chattanooga-no-bid-contract-triples-taxpayer-tab/?local

Johnson Citys postal operations safe for now (Johnson City Press)
Johnson Citys East Main Street office is not among the U.S. Postal Services 140 offices that will undergo consolidations during the next two years to save money during its ongoing financial hardship. This does not mean the office is immune from a second round of consolidations in 2014. In February, the USPS announced it would move its mail processing operations at Johnson Citys main post office to Knoxville sometime after May 15, absent any intervening action by the federal government. Shifting mail processing operations to Knoxville would affect mail service for those with ZIP codes beginning with 376 or 242, said Phil Clark, American Postal Workers Union president, local 365. When the USPS first announced the proposal in August, it mentioned 63 employees would be affected. A Nov. 22 release said 33 employees would be affected and more than $2 million would be saved. May 15 marked the end of a temporary moratorium on consolidations, and Congress did not enact legislation to help financially.http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php? id=100384#ixzz1vPFvnHNn

Middle TN summer jobs for young people are in demand (Tennessean/Williams)

Teens, more-experienced adults compete for jobs, as government funding dries up Joel Morrison has already been out of school for more than a week, but he hasnt found a summer job yet to earn a little spending money before returning to college in the fall. Morrison, 19, a Columbia, Tenn., resident who just finished his freshman year as a business major at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, thought itd be a breeze to land work during the summer break. After all, the states unemployment rate eased lower to 7.8 percent by the end of April, and the economic news seems brighter in Middle Tennessee. Ive put in applications all over the place, including some temp agencies, but I havent heard back from anyone yet, he said last week. I still believe Ill find a job, but Im not sure how soon it will be. Morrison faces twin problems that are affecting thousands of Middle Tennessee teens and young adults. Competition remains fierce to land the summer jobs that are available, and some government-funded summer work has disappeared amid budget cuts, particularly among federally funded programs. And while the overall state jobless rate has improved in recent months, its still relatively high in some counties. The most recent rate in Maury County where Morrison lives was 9.6 percent for March, state data 4

show. Updated county figures will be released Thursday by the state Department of Labor and W orkforce Development. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120520/BUSINESS/305200046/Middle-TN-summer-jobsyoung-people-demand?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|News

Knoxville among leaders in new manufacturing jobs (News-Sentinel/Marcum)

Mike Russell, president of Steel Plate Fabricators, lifts a stack of advertising fliers from his desk and frowns. It's a thick stack about six inches and each flier advertises an auction to liquidate the equipment of a failed manufacturing firm. Russell said he gets these in the mail all the time. "This is my motivation." Motivation to stay "hunkered down," as Russell says; to buy only equipment and materials with existing funds, to avoid debt and to continue trying to "reinvent" the Knoxville company. Doing these things has helped the business survive and grow. The company has doubled its work force over the last few years. Steel Plate Fabricators' success is part of an resurgent Knoxville manufacturing sector. According to a recent Brookings Institution report Locating American Manufacturing: Trends in the Geography of Production manufacturing jobs in the Knoxville metropolitan area increased 9.9 percent from 2010 through 2011. Knoxville lost thousands of manufacturing jobs during the Great Recession, but it is recovering at a faster pace than most metro areas. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/may/20/knoxville-among-leaders-in-new-manufacturing/

Memphis-area business lending stuck in neutral (C. Appeal/Evanoff)

In an atmosphere of wariness, a few area banks are stepping up the pace Only a few weeks ago, Triumph Bank loaned money to an expanding Memphis wholesaler. And Independent Bank, the second-largest lender based in Memphis, booked loans for two separate hotel deals. Some homegrown banks are making more business loans. But most borrowers and bankers remain wary. The overall pace of business lending appears flat across greater Memphis. "I think there's general anxiety about whether the economy is really in recovery," said Susan Stephenson, Independent's co-founder. "Last year, things looked good and then we had that swoon. Are we going to have that again?" Business loans made by 24 homegrown banks in the metropolitan area barely surpassed $4.3 billion on March 31, compared with $4.1 billion a year earlier. The figures are estimates by The Commercial Appeal based on lending data compiled by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. Banks whose headquarters are located outside metro Memphis, such as Alabama-based Regions and Georgia-based SunTrust, are not counted. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/may/20/business-lending-stuck-in-neutral/ (SUBSCRIPTION)

Study of schools 'dissolution' says response empowered suburbs (CA/Locker)

A journal article by a University of California law professor concludes that the 2011 state law allowing the creation of suburban school districts after the city and county schools merge next year "made things dramatically worse for Shelby County, including Memphis," by favoring the "strongest suburbs" over the metro area as a whole. The Columbia Law Review article by UC Berkeley Law School assistant professor Michelle Wilde Anderson examined the Memphis City Schools district's "dissolution" and the state's response to it -- the "NorrisTodd Act" of 2011 -- in the context of its larger effects on regionalism. She wrote that the state "had a critical role to play" in that process, and could have made it either an opportunity or a setback for the county as a whole -and ended up doing the latter. The article said the consolidation is of "great interest to policymakers and academics dedicated to regional equity." Anderson is a scholar of local government law, with a research emphasis on county governments and their subdivisions. Her article reviewed the history of segregation, integration and white flight in Memphis schools. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/may/20/punishing-and-pacifying-success-or-secession/ (SUB)

Mayor, director of schools to visit four schools Monday (Tennessean/Young)

Mayor Karl Dean and Metro Schools Director Jesse Register will tour four southeastern Davidson County schools in need of expansion and renovation from 10:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. on Monday. During the tour, Dean and Register will visit portable classrooms, look at how facilities are being modified to provide classroom space and visit cafeterias in need of renovation. Both will eat lunch with third-graders at A.Z. Kelley Elementary School. The capital spending plan for the proposed fiscal year 2012-13 includes $3.6 million in classroom additions at Henry Oliver Middle School, $2.65 million in classroom additions at A.Z. Kelley Elementary School, $11 million in renovations at Antioch Middle School and $6.5 million in classroom additions and renovations at Norman Binkley Elementary School. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120520/NEWS01/305200067/Davidson-County-briefsMayor-director-schools-visit-four-schools-Monday?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|News 5

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OPINION Editorial: Second chance measure for some crimes makes sense (Jackson Sun)
Legislation passed by the General Assembly giving some convicted criminals a second chance is on Gov. Bill Haslams desk and deserves to become law. Haslams office has given no indication that the governor intends to veto the measure. People make mistakes, sometimes serious mistakes that involve breaking the law. Many Tennesseans express belief in a second chance for those who make mistakes. But should it apply to those who commit crimes? We believe there are instances when it can safely be applied. As passed by the General Assembly, SB3520 and HB2865 offer some convicted criminals a chance to clear their records. The essence of the measure allows residents convicted of a single crime, as specified in the legislation, to have their records cleared if certain conditions are met. People may apply to have their criminal records cleared of some nonviolent, non-sexual misdemeanors and Class E felonies committed after Nov. 1, 1989 if: http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20120520/OPINION/305200003/Our-View-Second-chance-measure-somecrimes-makes-sense

Tom Humphrey: Post-session awards show continues with hijacks, highballs (NS)
More superlative performances from the 2012 session of the 107th General Assembly: Re-election Resolution of the Year: By remarkable coincidence, it seems the representatives who sponsored the most controversial statement-of-opinion resolutions are facing Republican primary opposition in seeking a new term. There was strong competition the production of the nonbinding resolutions, but if the objective was to rally the base with redmeat rhetoric, irritating Democrats in the process, the best was Rep. Kevin Brooks' HJR588, condemning the "nefarious and destructive nature" of United Nations Agenda 21. Gov. Bill Haslam refused to sign the measure, but then he's not facing re-election this year. Most Conservative Democrat: Rep. John DeBerry of Memphis, who often voted with Republicans on social issue legislation and occasionally brought his gift for oratory into play, as with an impassioned speech in support of the "gateway sexual activity" bill. Honorable mention goes to Rep. Eddie Bass of Prospect, who reportedly flirted with switching parties at one point during the session, and Rep. John Mark Windle of Livingston. Most Liberal Republican: No nominations. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/may/20/tom-humphrey-post-session-awards-show-continues/

Gail Kerr: 'Gateway sex' bill makes TN a laughingstock again (Tennessean)

Gov. Bill Haslam signed the ridiculous law banning public school students from learning about gateway sexual activities because, he said, it really doesnt change anything. Hes dead wrong about that. Like the infamous state law allowing us to eat road kill and the time a Metro councilman wanted to build a UFO landing pad, Tennessee has made headlines across the nation once again. We are a laughingstock. It damages every effort Haslam has made to attract companies and new jobs to Tennessee. The legislation is a confusing mess. It was just one more effort by conservative lawmakers to prove that they and only they have the wisdom to be the great guardians of Christian morality. Interestingly, a new Vanderbilt poll shows 42 percent of those surveyed believe the legislature spent too much time addressing social, cultural or religious issues. But these are lawmakers who 6

do not listen to logic. The bills aim was to make abstinence from sex the focus of sex-ed classes exclusively and emphatically. And it adds this mushy, spoofable language: Instruction of the family life curriculum shall not promote, implicitly or explicitly, any gateway sexual activity or health message that encourages students to experiment with non-coital sexual activity. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120520/COLUMNIST0101/305200064/Gail-Kerr-Gateway-sex-bill-makesTN-laughingstock-again?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

Chris Peck: Memphis needs long-term plan (Commercial Appeal)

Someone asks you: ''What's the biggest problem Memphis faces?'' How would you respond? Crime? Poverty? Race? Memphians share a certain bond of common understanding about this question. Living here, you learn quickly to use one of these chestnuts to fill in the blank when any conversation includes the comment, ''The problem with Memphis is ..." But describing crime, poverty or race as the city's biggest problem is both shallow and wrong. These hard-boiled issues, like death and taxes, are not really Memphis problems. They are eternal issues of conflict, points of friction, baked-in realities of the human condition. The Greeks and Romans talked about -- and the Bible and the Quran recorded -- the human struggles with crime, poverty and tribal conflicts. Those problems are not about Memphis at all. They're bigger, older, deeper than just us. But because we assume that crime, poverty and race are "the problems with Memphis," it's easy to get trapped in dead-end fatalism. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/may/20/inside-the-newsroom-memphis-needs-long-term-plan/ (SUBSCRIPTION)

Guest columnist: Schools work when citizens engage (Commercial Appeal)

If you really care about the children in this community, please find the time to show it in our schools. As the mother of three, education is where my heart lies. It takes a village to raise a child, the saying goes. But what does this really mean? Somehow, many of us have this idea that the "perfect" school system is determined by what plan is put on paper or how far we raise the bar on test scores and teacher performance. I dare not argue that these things are not significant, but let's not forget about the people inside the village. Consider the scenarios that might play out at these two schools: In one school, bright-faced children walk the halls. They are well nourished, well rested, hugged every day, and told regularly by someone who loves them that they can do it. Enthusiastic teachers lead the classrooms. The principals and other staffers work diligently to help the students and teachers succeed. And let's not forget the many parents who volunteer tirelessly to make the school environment more appealing and lessen the load of the faculty and staff, and a surrounding community that is supportive and proud of their neighborhood school. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/may/20/a-view-from-the-editorial-board-schools-work/ (SUB)

Clay Bennett Political Cartoon: The Candidate (Times Free-Press)

http://media.timesfreepress.com/img/news/tease/2012/05/18/120520_The_Candidate_t618.jpg? ba5b5b122dd3d37cc13d83e92a6a0ec0d5bfa32a

Frank Daniels: Note to Congress: Measure twice - sound advice (Tennessean)

Youre just cutting your nose off to spite your face. As a child, too often, that phrase would be thrust at me as an assessment of my choice of ways that I chose to punish my parents for their wanton disregard of my feelings and/or desires. The words sprung to mind last week when I saw that the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to strip the funding from the American Community Survey, a U.S. Census Bureau statistical survey that has become the largest source of information outside of the 10-year census. Information gathered from the 250,000 households surveyed each month (3 million a year) is used to allocate $300 billion$400 billion in federal funds each year. Businesses rely on the survey for planning and analysis. Most private research companies use the data as a foundation to build their statistical models. In other words, the ACS, which came into use in 2005 after more than a decade of planning, has become an essential tool for business and government to make and analyze the quality and effectiveness of decisions. After all, it makes sense to gather as much information as possible before making hard-to-revoke decisions. Measure twice, cut once. Most of us have gotten that advice. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120520/COLUMNIST0111/305200050/Note-Congress-Measure-twicesound-advice?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Opinion|p

Editorial: Commissioners need to explore funding options (News-Sentinel)

The Knox County school system isn't the only sector of county government that is seeking more funding in next year's budget. The Knox County Sheriff's Office wants to give employees raises. Some commissioners want to restore funds slashed from various programs ranging from senior citizen bus fares to economic development efforts. Commissioners should confine any property tax increase to school system funding, but that doesn't mean other requests cannot be met. Some shifting of line items in the proposed budget could resolve the funding dilemma. Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett's proposed budget came in at $673.7 million, including $13 million in natural revenue growth for the schools and roughly $3 million in excess revenues earmarked for a reading program for grades K-3. Burchett did not include an extra $35 million annual increase sought by the school system that would go toward school renovations, a merit pay plan for teachers, added support for teachers and students, an extended school calendar and other initiatives. Funding the request solely through property taxes would require a 35-cent increase in the rate, which would cost the owner of a $100,000 house about 24 cents a day. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/may/20/editorial-commissioners-need-to-explore-funding/ ###