i just go this email from Scotty Campbell. We are on our way. If there was someone way to get with the Forest Service and see if we could get Holston Mountain set up as multi use trails it would be great. His comments on Adventure Tourism is in the middle of the post.
Mike
Jobs4TN Plan
Jobs, education and finding government efficiencies continue to be the focus on Capitol Hill, both in the legislature and the governor’s office, as Governor Bill Haslam announced his Jobs4TN Plan this week. The plan was developed over a 45-day period and involved interviews with more than 300 stakeholders, community leaders, and national experts as well as through seven roundtables across the state. I took part in one of those roundtables with Governor Bill Haslam in Kingsport at the Regional Center for Advanced Manufacturing.
The Jobs4TN plan focuses on prioritizing the strategic recruitment of target industries; assisting existing Tennessee businesses in expansions and remaining competitive; supporting regional and rural economic development strategies; as well as investing in innovation and reducing business regulation. The plan regionalizes job creation strategies by focusing on industry clusters where Tennessee already has a competitive advantage.
Tennessee will concentrate its recruitment efforts on six target clusters in which the state has a clear competitive advantage: automotive; chemicals and plastics; transportation, logistics and distribution services; business services; healthcare; advanced manufacturing; and, energy technologies. In addition, the Department of Economic and Community Development will fundamentally restructure its field staff to recognize efficiencies and maximize its resources. The plan includes establishing a “jobs base camp” in each of nine regions across the state. Each base camp will work with local partners to develop and/or revise a regional economic development plan.
The goal is to make Tennessee the number one location in the Southeast for high-quality jobs by creating the right business climate. Legislation considered in the House this week focusing on education, tort reform and lessening burdensome regulations on businesses are an important part of that effort.
Government Efficiency: Saving Taxpayer Money
I will be cosponsoring a bill aiming to streamline the legislative process and save taxpayer dollars has cleared the Senate Finance Committee. Senate Bill 725 avoids duplication in state government by eliminating 11 joint oversight committees and shifting their responsibilities to the standing committees of each house of the General Assembly, saving the state $851,800. This legislation is expected to pass the House State & Local Government Committee on April 26th.
Curbing Prescription Drug Abuse
Legislation designed to curb the abuse of prescription drugs at pain clinics in Tennessee received final approval this week in the Senate and is advancing in the House. This would require all pain clinics in Tennessee to obtain a certificate by the Department of Health. The Commissioner of Health, in consultation with the Boards of Medical Examiners, Osteopathic Examination, Nursing, and the Committee on Physician’s Assistants, would promulgate rules necessary to operate these clinics. They would also have the authority to examine pain clinics, their staff and patient records, to ensure compliance with those rules. This includes the ability to investigate complaints or violations. Under the bill, the respective boards would be authorized to take action against violators. Tennessee ranks second in the nation in regard to the overutilization of prescription pain medications, having exceeded the national average for controlled substance use for many years.
General Assembly Fights Tennessee’s Meth Problem
In a strong bipartisan move, the House approved HB 457—legislation that cracks down on derivatives of the deadly drug meth otherwise known as "bath salts" or "Molly’s plant food."
A wave of illicit drug production and illegal use has swept through our area where countless residents have been rushed to the hospital from the adverse effects of the drug. Various news outlets have even reported on many deaths directly linked to the rise in drug use associated with these ingredients.
Adventure Tourism / Rural Job Creation
A committee has approved legislation to enact the Tennessee Adventure Tourism and Rural Development Act. The objective is to establish a plan for Tennessee to promote outdoor recreational opportunities in rural, high-employment areas of the state. House Bill 1278 would direct the Department of Economic and Community Development and the Department of Conservation and Environment to perform a study and create a plan to promote adventure tourism and other recreational and economic development activities in rural areas.
Financial Matters, Money Management
This legislation is to ensure students have early foundation in the basics of money management. This bill is about strengthening efforts to see that Tennessee has a strong financial literacy curriculum was approved by the full Senate on Monday night. House Bill 0964 requires the State Board of Education, in consultation with the Tennessee Financial Literacy Commission, to develop guidelines to strengthen personal finance standards and require that certain financial literacy concepts are included as part of the testing standards for social studies.
To learn more about literacy efforts and curriculum in Tennessee, visit:
treasury.tn.gov/FinLit/FLCClearinghouse.htmlScottyCampbell.org | P.O. Box 388 Mountain City, TN 37683 | (615-741-2050
