Tennessee lawmakers going home after the legislative session ended Tuesday and local representatives called the session successful.
Ryan Williams said he is proud of the amount of money earmarked for the Upper Cumberland region for roads. Williams said the region is getting $340 million over the next ten years. Williams said expanding Interstate 40 up Monterey Mountain to three lanes remains in the plan.
“That’s going to make a huge impact, not just getting people, through our community, but also giving the a safest passage through for those that are headed across the county or other areas in the Upper Cumberland,” Williams said. “So it’s going to be huge impact.”
Representative Michael Hale said he is proud of the state’s investment in Volunteer Fire Departments. Hale said the grant pool for departments to buy equipment has increased from ten million three years ago to twenty million for upcoming fiscal year.
“So whatever we can do for these volunteer fire departments, for them to get updated equipment and stuff, it protects their firefighters,” Hale said. “But ultimately it’s about making sure that we’ve got the best to take care of the families of our rural communities and across Tennessee.”
Both Williams and Hale said they consider their biggest accomplishment for the state is meeting the constitutional requirement of balancing the state’s budget. A $59.8 billion budget passed earlier this month.
Hale said he is happy with the legislature’s decision to put 2-Million dollars in a grant pool for courthouse renovations.
“You know, when you look at pictures, a lot of times, we notice we can tell just by a picture of the courthouse, even if you don’t see a word on the picture, you know, that is Smith County, that’s Jackson County,” Hale said. “You know, just by the courthouse, you know, so we want to make sure we take care of that and preserve that.”
