The TN Promise Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) filing deadline is quickly approaching.
Friday, Feb. 1 is the final day for both TN Promise high school and college students to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to retain scholarship eligibility.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid, a federal application, is the primary financial aid application that any student enrolling in post-secondary must complete in order to determine state and federal scholarship and grant qualifications.
Students and families are encouraged to complete the 2019-2020 application as soon as possible.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid can be found at www.fafsa.gov.

The opioid epidemic is costing the economy in Tennessee hundreds of millions of dollars every year in lost personal income.
A new report from the University of Tennessee Boyd Center for Business and Economic Research details the impact drug addiction is having on the labor market in our state.
The report from UT economists’ estimates that if just 10% of people addicted to opioids got clean, it would increase the labor force in the state by about one percentage point. That would lead to an additional $825 million in personal income in Tennessee.
The study has already been used by former Governor Bill Haslam to help determine where to allocate money to fight the epidemic. Haslam used the report to unveil his $30 million plan to address the opioid epidemic. That was released earlier this month and focuses on prevention, treatment, and law enforcement.

Tennessee House Speaker Glen Casada (R-Thompson’s Station) has named State Representative Rush Bricken (R-Tullahoma) Vice-Chairman of the House Consumer & Human Resources Committee. This is an honor rarely bestowed upon first-year lawmakers.
The 12-person committee will be responsible for all consumer and human resource-related issues, as well as matters pertaining to Tennessee’s workforce.
“We are fortunate to have an extremely gifted freshman class, and Representative Bricken has already emerged as one of its leaders,” said Speaker Casada. “I am excited about the new energy and ideas he will bring to this important committee, and our General Assembly, and I have no doubt that he will be successful.”
“I am humbled that Speaker Casada has chosen me to serve as a leader of the House Consumer & Human Resources Committee,” said Representative Bricken. “I know we are committed to protecting Tennessee’s consumers and supporting initiatives that create jobs. Our efforts will ensure our state remains open for business.”
Representative Bricken was officially sworn in to office on Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019. He is also a member of the House State Government Committee, as well as the House Employee Affairs and the House Public Service & Employees Subcommittees. Bricken lives in Tullahoma and represents Tennessee House District 47, which includes all of Coffee County and part of Warren County.

Coffee County District Attorney Craig Northcott told WMSR News last week that he has asked to recuse himself from deciding the outcome of a TBI investigation into the Tullahoma Police Department launched in December.
In December, at Northcott’s request, TBI agents began investigating a complaint regarding the police department’s handling of the investigation of a November motor vehicle crash involving Chief Paul Blackwell’s son, Jonathan Paul Blackwell.
Northcott told WMSR that he has asked for a pro tem prosecutor to be assigned to review the findings of the investigation and decide what appropriate action should be taken, if any in this matter.
Northcott said he is doing this because of a professional relationship to avoid any appearance of impropriety.
The Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference in Nashville will decide who to assign to the case.
Earlier this month Chief Blackwell and Captain George Marsh were placed on administrative leave by City of Tullahoma Administrator Jennifer W. Moody.
A news release from the City of Tullahoma stated that the city has begun an internal investigation into the police department management. As a result of this investigation, Blackwell and Marsh have been placed on administrative leave with pay until further notice.
This internal investigation is not related to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s (TBI) ongoing investigation. Any action regarding the internal investigation is considered a personnel matter and cannot be discussed until due process.

A former City of Decherd employee, James Wesley Parks, 35, of Winchester recently pleaded guilty to a charge of facilitation of theft between $60,000-$250,000, according to Franklin County Circuit Court records.
Parks will serve 11 months, 29 days in jail with 100 public service hours. He will also serve 3 years, 6 months’ probation running consecutive with other cases.
Also charged in the case was a Decherd business owner, Jeffery Jerome Frame, who earlier in the month had a charge for theft of property between $60,000 and $250,000 dismissed on the condition that he pay restitution.
The charge stems from an arrest on Sept. 6, 2017, in connection with allegedly taking more than $200,000 from the city, according to Franklin County Circuit Court records.
District Attorney Mike Taylor previously said Parks and Frame are suspected of drafting bogus orders through the Water Department for equipment that was never delivered.
Comptroller Justin P. Wilson stated in a published statement that what went on in Decherd could have been prevented with the right procedures in place.
“As with so many of these cases, a significant problem within the City of Decherd allowed this scheme to go undetected for many months,” Wilson said. “The former superintendent was solely responsible for ordering and approving the purchases from Poultry Electric and Hardware. These responsibilities should be separated.”

A federal judge has released Tennessee’s Medicaid program from a 2014 injunction requiring TennCare to hold hearings for people whose applications aren’t processed promptly.
Applicants sued the state soon after the rollout of the Affordable Care Act in October 2013. They claimed thousands were left in indefinite limbo because a new computer system designed to help process applications wasn’t functional.
By law, applications for most forms of Medicaid should be processed within 45 days. Applications based on disability are allowed 90 days.
In a ruling last week, U.S. District Judge William Campbell Jr. noted Tennessee’s computer system is still not fully operational. Campbell also wrote that the state has taken measures to prevent delays. Over 99 percent of applications are now processed within the required timeframe.