Governor addresses State of State; local legislators react
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Gov. Bill Lee gave the State of the State Address on Monday.
“As we enter our sixth year of working together, the state of our state is strong, resilient, and ready for the future,” Lee said.
Lee started the address by speaking about Tennessee’s economic growth. He also proposed tax cuts for businesses to make the state more attractive.
“Tennessee’s been ranked as the fastest growing economy of all 50 states. The number one state for fiscal stability, a top state for business, the second lowest tax per capita state in the nation, and the lowest debt state in America,” Lee said.
Lee also highlighted one West Tennessee county for their growth and prosperity in 2023.
“In 2023, Haywood County in rural West Tennessee had the largest capital investment and the second number of new jobs announced in all 95 counties,” Lee said.
The governor emphasized Tennessee’s status as a music capital and proposed new legislation to protect artists from artificial intelligence.
Lee also included his goal for the implementation of the controversial Education Freedom Act.
“So 2024 is the year to make school choice a reality for every Tennessee family, every family,” Lee said.
As for healthcare, the governor plans to make investments in rural healthcare and mental health.
For housing, he plans to create statewide permitting reform to make it easier and more cost-effective to build new buildings.
In public safety, Lee spoke about the addition of school resource officers at every public school and promised to continue to support local law enforcement.
The governor plans to continue to grow our state parks with new additions to the state.
“We’ve continually made investments in our state parks, the cornerstone of this conservation effort. This year’s proposed budget will take it to the next level with eight new state parks,” Lee said.
Rep. Johnny Shaw and Sen. Ed Jackson shared their reactions to the address.
Shaw says he agrees with most of what the governor said and would give him a good mark.
He was also appreciative of the kind words Lee spoke about Haywood County – which is a county in Shaw’s district.
However, he says he did not agree with Lee concerning the Education Freedom Act and said he did not want to take away from public schools.
Jackson agrees that the governor delivered a good speech.
He also voiced concern about the Education Freedom Act and said he wanted to see the bill first before he created an opinion on it.
Both men told us what topics they wanted to see treated as a priority in 2024.
“I would like for the government to consider getting someone to lead us in education across the State of Tennessee that knows what it’s like to be in the classroom rather than know what it’s like to deal with vouchers,” Shaw said.
“Mental health is a huge issue. I served on the health committee and this is a huge problem for not only our state but every state in the country. And we’ve got to address it and starting with our youth, our juveniles,” Jackson said.
Both men attended the State of the State Address in person.
See the full, unedited address below:
You can find more news from across the state here.
