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Daily Dose for May 01, 2008
Bredesen Calls for Layoffs
Bredesen Calls for Layoffs -- Gov. Phil Bredesen says the state budget shortage is so bad he'll have to layoff some state workers. University of Tennessee economist William Fox said Tuesday that the state might be facing a $600M shortfall in a worst-case scenario should sales- tax revenues fall as they did the first three months of this year. Bredesen says he will also institute a pay increase freeze. Critics of the plan say they are shocked Bredesen is choosing to layoff state workers, given there is over $750M in the state's rainy day fund. More here.
Alexander Furious Over Graves Hold-up -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has been holding up two nominations to the TVA board and TN's Senior Senator is not too happy about it. Lamar Alexander ripped into Reid in a letter saying the nomination of Bishop William H. Graves to the TVA Board, pending since last July, be taken up, along with the nomination of Susan Williams of Knoxville. Graves was the first African American to serve on the TVA board since 1933 and was renominated. Reid informed Alexander in a letter April 14 that he did not support proceeding with the nominations, citing the number of Republicans approved for the board, even though Graves is a registered Democrat. Alexander in his letter to Reid: "Your actions insult the Mid-South's largest city, Memphis. Until Bishop Graves' appointment in 2006, a Memphian had never served on the TVA board. Your actions are an affront to more than one and a half million African-Americans in the seven-state TVA region. Until the appointment of Bishop Graves -- the presiding bishop of the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church -- an African-American had never served on the TVA board."
Tim for County Mayor -- The Knoxville-based MetroPulse reports on an earlier rumor that State Sen. Tim Burchett may be gearing up for a run for Knox Co. Mayor in 2010 - a move that will open up a coveted State Senate seat in East TN. The candidate mentioned to replace Burchett? None other than blogging state Rep. Stacey Campfield. Establishment Republicans are hoping to recruit another sometimes wacky conservative to split the vote and ensure another candidate gets in. Their recruit? Knox Co. Commissioner Greg "Lumpy" Lambert, whose Commission room antics revial the worst blog postings.
Technical Corrections Allows Sommet to Pay off Debt -- A clause in the state's annual omnibus “technical corrections bill,” which affects tax policy and targets loopholes, will allow sales taxes collected for non-hockey events at the Sommet Center to go toward paying the debt on the facility. Currently, only sales taxes collected at Predators’ games goes toward the debt service under state law, but Bredesen added the provision to the bill at the behest of Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. The change in state law was part of the deal struck between Mayor Karl Dean and the Predators local ownership group.
