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NASHVILLE – Governor Bill Haslam and First Lady Crissy Haslam today honored 23 state employees who are helping Tennessee lead by providing outstanding state services every day. The employees, who were nominated by their departments’ leadership for the Governor’s Excellence in Service Awards, were invited to attend a luncheon at the Tennessee Residence for providing efficient and effective service to the state and their fellow Tennesseans. “The employees honored today are on the forefront of improving how Tennessee state government delivers services,” Haslam said. “By exceeding leadership and customer expectations, creating innovative solutions or improving processes and services, these state employees are helping provide taxpayers with the highest quality service at the lowest possible cost.”

LEWISBURG – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe announced today that Marshall County will receive a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) totaling $525,000 and a ThreeStar Competitive Grant totaling $5,000. “I want to congratulate Marshall County on receiving CDBG funding and a ThreeStar Competitive Grant,” Haslam said. “These grants help communities across the state better prepare for future economic development opportunities and continued growth. With the assistance of these grants, not only will Marshall County continue to succeed in our state, Tennessee as a whole will continue to lead in economic growth and the creation of high quality jobs.”

NASHVILLE – Governor Bill Haslam and First Lady Crissy Haslam today recognized 22 state employees for providing outstanding service to the state and their fellow Tennesseans at a luncheon at the Tennessee Residence. The Governor’s Excellence in Service Awards was launched in 2016 to honor outstanding state employees who are helping Tennessee lead by providing efficient and effective state services every day.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe today announced $9.844 million in broadband accessibility grants that will help build new broadband infrastructure in parts of 13 Tennessee counties. The grants are the result of the Tennessee Broadband Accessibility Act, Haslam’s 2017 legislation to increase broadband to more Tennesseans and offset the capital expenses of deploying broadband in areas that currently lack access. The grants will provide broadband service to more than 5,000 locations in counties across the state.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam will hold budget hearings for Fiscal Year 2018-2019 on Monday, November 6 through Thursday, November 9. The hearings will be held in the Executive Conference Room on the ground floor of the State Capitol. Haslam, Finance and Administration Commissioner Larry Martin, Chief Operating Officer Greg Adams and David Thurman, state budget director, will preside over the hearings.

RIPLEY – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today awarded state workforce development grants to two Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) institutions in West Tennessee to expand higher education opportunities and support the Drive to 55 goal to increase the number of Tennesseans with a degree or certificate to 55 percent by 2025. The Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) will expand current programs and develop new training programs at TCAT-Ripley and TCAT-Covington in communities with limited higher education options.

CHATTANOOGA – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today in Chattanooga held the first ceremonial signing for the IMPROVE Act, “Improving Manufacturing, Public Roads and Opportunities for a Vibrant Economy,” which enacts the largest tax cut in state history while delivering a safe, reliable and debt-free transportation network. “The IMPROVE Act puts money back in the pockets of all Tennesseans and has already helped us attract manufacturing jobs to Tennessee – all while putting us on the path to deliver nearly 1,000 road and bridge projects across the state,” Haslam said. “The Tennessee we can be provides not only access to opportunity but the tools to be successful. Good roads that take you to good jobs. IMPROVE is a conservative and responsible approach to build and sustain the state’s economic growth and competitiveness for the next generation of Tennesseans.”

BROWNSVILLE – Before a meeting of the Governor’s Rural Development Task Force at H&R Agri-Power, Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam held a ceremonial signing of the Tennessee Broadband Accessibility Act, the governor’s legislation to increase broadband access to Tennessee’s unserved citizens. The Tennessee Broadband Accessibility Act permits Tennessee’s private, nonprofit electric cooperatives to provide retail broadband service, and it provides $45 million over three years in grants and tax credits for service providers to assist in making broadband available to unserved homes and businesses. In addition, the plan makes grant funding available to the state’s local libraries to help residents improve their digital literacy skills and maximize the benefits of broadband.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam will hold a bill signing ceremony Tuesday, May 16, for the Tennessee Broadband Accessibility Act at H&R Agri-Power in Brownsville. Haslam will be joined by Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris (R-Collierville), Sen. Mike Bell (R-Riceville), Rep. David Hawk (R-Greeneville) and Brownsville Mayor Bill Rawls.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Nokian Tyres officials today announced the company will build a new tire manufacturing facility in Dayton. Nokian Tyres will create at least 400 new jobs and invest $360 million in the facility, which represents the largest foreign direct investment in Rhea County’s history.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today praised passage of the IMPROVE Act, a key piece of his NextTennessee legislative plan, giving the largest tax cut in Tennessee history and making the state more competitive in recruiting manufacturing jobs while delivering a safe, reliable and debt-free transportation network for the next generation of Tennesseans. “The IMPROVE Act is a conservative plan that directly addresses how we fund our roads and bridges for the first time in 30 years. I thank the General Assembly for passing IMPROVE, and especially Senate Majority Leader Mark Norris (R-Collierville) and Reps. Barry Doss (R-Leoma) and Bill Dunn (R-Knoxville) for their work carrying the legislation,” Haslam said.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today praised the passage of the Tennessee Broadband Accessibility Act, the governor’s legislation to increase broadband access to Tennessee’s unserved citizens. The House of Representatives passed HB 529/SB 1215 93-4, and it now heads to the governor’s desk for signature. The Senate passed the legislation 31-0 on April 3. Tennessee currently ranks 29th in the U.S. for broadband access, with 34 percent of rural Tennessee residents lacking access at recognized minimum standards.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced Nashville business executive Bob Rolfe as commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (ECD). An innovative business leader, Rolfe, 56, has more than three decades of experience in business and investment banking in Tennessee. “Bob Rolfe has spent his career growing companies and creating jobs, and he will bring incredible experience and energy to our work of making Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs and ensuring that success is felt throughout the state,” Haslam said. “Bringing someone of Bob’s caliber to this position says a lot about the momentum we have right now in Tennessee, and I know that will continue to flourish under his leadership.”

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today filed his NextTennessee legislative agenda for the 2017 session of the 110th General Assembly. “With the NextTennessee agenda, we’re focused on policy proposals to build and sustain economic growth and the state’s competitiveness for the next generation of Tennesseans,” Haslam said. “Because of the fiscal responsibility we have shown, the Tennessee we can be is a state with a safe and reliable transportation network that supports long-term growth, one of the best K-12 systems in the country and free access to a post-secondary degree or certificate for all Tennesseans. And we can still be the state with the lowest taxes and the lowest debt.”

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced legislation to increase broadband access to Tennessee’s unserved citizens. Tennessee currently ranks 29th in the U.S. for broadband access, with 34 percent of rural Tennessee residents lacking access at recognized minimum standards. “From the farmer and the accountant in West Tennessee whose businesses are stifled, to the East Tennessee student who can’t complete her schoolwork at home, a lack of reliable internet access is preventing too many rural Tennesseans, rural communities and our state from reaching its full potential,” Haslam said. “While there is no one solution that can guarantee broadband accessibility to every single Tennessean, this legislation provides a reasonable, responsible path to improve access in a meaningful way through investment, deregulation and education.”