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NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Burns Phillips today announced the March 2018 statewide unemployment rate for Tennessee remained near historic lows and matched the revised rate from the previous month. The preliminary, seasonally adjusted rate for March was 3.4 percent, which mirrored the revised rate for February and was nearly one percentage point less than the March 2017 rate of 4.2 percent. Tennessee’s statewide unemployment rate has remained below 4.0 percent since last May, hitting an all-time low of 3.3 percent last September.

The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) announced today the counties chosen to participate in the latest round of the Select Tennessee Property Evaluation Program (PEP).

The Tennessee Department of Human Services (TDHS) wants parents in East Tennessee to be on the lookout for an important letter arriving in the mail soon. Select families with school-age children in Greene, Hancock, and Hawkins counties will receive a Tennessee Summer EBT for Kids card by May 15. Each card will be loaded with $30 in monthly food benefits per eligible child that can be used for food purchases from May 25 through August 31.

NASHVILLE – Students in 15 Tennessee counties will benefit from over $11.68 million in funding to support college access and success efforts thanks to a federal grant. The funding is part of the U.S. Department of Education’s Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) grant, which aims to increase the number of low-income students in Tennessee who are accessing and succeeding in higher education. The Tennessee Higher Education Commission, which secured the federal grant, announced the communities that will be a part of Tennessee’s GEAR UP project, GEAR UP TN, following a competitive selection process.

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI) has received approval from the Chancery Court overseeing the receivership of Galilee Memorial Gardens cemetery (the “Cemetery”) in Bartlett, Tenn. to notify certain persons who may have items on the Cemetery property, specifically granite markers with the names of persons etched on them, and of the procedure to make a claim for such items.

Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Colorobbia USA, Inc. officials announced today that the ceramics supplier will invest $5 million to establish operations in Cookeville.

NASHVILLE – Home is the place people feel safest from fire, but it’s actually the place they’re at greatest risk. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), approximately 80 percent of all U.S. fire deaths occur in the home. Most home fire fatalities, however, are not caused by burns, but by smoke inhalation. To help prevent these tragedies, the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office (SFMO) is reminding residents that the early detection capabilities of a working smoke alarm can mean the difference between life and death.

CLARKSVILLE - The Special Investigations Section of the Tennessee Department of Revenue conducted the investigation that led to the guilty plea of Amer Ibrahim, 46, to three counts of sales tax evasion and one count of theft over $2,500. Ibrahim is the owner of ASR Tobacco and Beer located at 231 10th Street in Clarksville, Tennessee.

NASHVILLE – The arrival of spring means Tennesseans will head outdoors to spruce up their homes and properties. Homeowners often burn debris and brush during spring time, which can lead to an increase in dangerous uncontrolled burns and wildfires.

NASHVILLE – With the April 17 tax deadline just days away, the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance’s (TDCI) Division of Consumer Affairs is reminding Tennesseans to be on the look out for consumer scams which involve criminals pretending to be affiliated with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Van Hool NV officials announced today that the Belgian company will establish its first U.S. manufacturing operation in Morristown and create nearly 640 jobs over the next five years.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced a partnership with the Country Music Association (CMA) Foundation to launch a $1 million competitive grant opportunity focused on expanding students’ access to high-quality music and arts education. Tennessee: State of the Arts is a first of its kind public-private partnership to ensure more students across the state of Tennessee will have access to a quality arts and music education. School districts in Tennessee will have the opportunity to apply for funding to improve or develop their music education programs. The statewide initiative will kick-off with the 2018-19 school year.

NASHVILLE – An increase in dog attacks are proving that man’s best friend can be costly for Tennessee homeowners who don’t follow leash laws. As part of National Dog Bite Prevention Week (Sunday, April 8, through Saturday, April 14), the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance (TDCI) reminds Tennessee homeowners to take leash laws and education seriously in order to help reduce liabilities and dangerous encounters with pets.

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced that more than 10,000 adults have applied for Tennessee Reconnect, the state’s program for adult learners to earn an associate degree or technical certificate tuition-free. The application for Tennessee Reconnect opened on February 15 and 10,497 applications had been submitted as of April 10. Tennessee Reconnect is Haslam’s groundbreaking program that covers tuition and mandatory fees at a Tennessee community or technical college for eligible adults that do not yet have a college degree.

A Kentucky native with roots in family farming, Meghreblian has been active in environmental and business advocacy across Tennessee for more than two decades. She was appointed by Gov. Haslam in 2015 to serve on Tennessee’s Rural Development Task Force. In 2013, she was appointed by the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) to serve as the chair of its Federal Facilities Forum. She is also a board member of the West Tennessee River Basin Authority. Meghreblian has more than 20 years of combined experience in private sector manufacturing and environmental management systems. She holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Management and a master’s degree in Engineering from Vanderbilt University, and a bachelor of science in Marketing/Economics from Western Kentucky University.