Category: News

Tennessee lawmakers are considering a bill that would cap payday-loan interest rates in the state. Photo credit: cohdra/morguefile.com

Payday lending is alive and well in Tennessee, but consumer advocates are critical of its high interest rates and what they call predatory business practices. A bill in the state House of Representatives aims to cap the interest rate charged by lenders at 28 percent. Currently, lenders can charge as much as 375 percent interest. Andy Spears, executive director of Tennessee Citizen Action, said payday loans are targeting people who have run out of options. “People go to these places when there’s nowhere else to turn for money,” he said. “It really is kind of a last effort to get out of a tough situation, so I don’t think people should be trapped in a cycle of debt.” House Bill 317, the Short Term Loans and Lenders Bill, is in a House subcommittee. The University of Chicago Business School compared households in states that have access to payday loans and those that do not. Researchers found that families with access to payday loans face hardship, have difficulty paying bills and have to delay health care. Supporters of payday lending argue that, at times, it’s a person’s only access to much-needed cash. Eighteen states and the District of Columbia prohibit high-cost payday lending. If you are in need of quick cash, Spears said, it’s important to exhaust all of your options before approaching a payday lender. “They should try every other option first,” he said. “Ask your friend, ask a boss, ask your family member, and I would be a lot more comfortable with payday lenders if you could cap their interest rates.” The Consumer Federation of America also warns of car-title and tax-refund anticipation loans. In Tennessee in one year alone, more than 18,000 cars were repossessed by car-title loan companies. More information is online at paydayloaninfo.org. Information on HB 317 is at openstates.org.

Manchester Police Department is partnering with the Tennessee Governor’s Highway Safety Office to step up seat belt enforcement from May 18 to 31, just ahead of one of the busiest travel weekends of the year.
“Every day, unbuckled motorists are losing their lives in motor vehicle crashes,” said Sgt. Chris Patterson. “As we approach Memorial Day weekend and the summer vacation season, we want to make sure people are doing the one thing that can save them in a crash – buckling up.”
Tennessee reached its highest seat belt usage percentage last year at 87.71%. However, Tennessee is still considered a “low use” state on a national level. According to the Department of Safety and Homeland Security, over half of Tennessee’s traffic fatalities in 2014 were not restrained at the time of the crash.
Each year, the University of Tennessee Center for Transportation Research performs an observational seat belt survey. The results of this survey indicate that male pickup truck occupants have the lowest rate of seat belt use statewide. This statistic holds true for both rural and urban areas.
Last month, Governor Haslam signed a bill that will increase Tennessee’s seat belt fine beginning in January 2016. “The fine is more than doubling,” said Tennessee Highway Patrol Colonel Tracy Trott. “The statistics speak for themselves – when we have more people buckling up, we have more people walking away from crashes. Start making the smart decision now before it costs you.”
“Our law enforcement partners receive funding each year specifically to take part in this campaign,” said Governor’s Highway Safety Office Director Kendell Poole. “They will be looking for seat belt violators, and they will ticket you. If you think not wearing your seat belt doesn’t impact anyone but you, you are wrong. Every citizen is impacted by medical and emergency expenses, lost productivity, increased insurance premiums, and property loss. This doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of the pain and suffering of your friends, family, and the law enforcement and emergency personnel working the crash.”
For more information on seat belt safety, visit www.tntrafficsafety.org

Over the past few days the Tullahoma Police Department has received numerous reports of vandalism to vehicles across the city involving a BB or Pellet gun. Anyone with information regarding these crimes or those who may have witnessed suspicious activity in their neighborhood is asked to call the Tullahoma Police Department at 931-455-0530.
Please continue to be vigilant within your communities and neighborhoods. All area law enforcement ask you to report any suspicious activity to them immediately.

With the summer’s festival season approaching, the State Fire Marshal’s Office is reminding residents that it is illegal to fly flame-fueled sky lanterns in Tennessee without a professional fireworks license.
Also known as Chinese or wish lanterns, they can cause fires on the ground or on rooftops when they land and can also be a hazard to livestock that might consume them.
Under a 2011 state law, sky lanterns can be confiscated and destroyed if found in the possession of anyone without a proper license for flame effects, pyrotechnics or outdoor displays.
According to the fire marshal’s office, sky lanterns pose an additional danger this year because of dry conditions in many areas of the state.

The price of cigarettes is going up in Tennessee, but the proceeds won’t be landing in state tax coffers.
The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports that under a new law signed by Republican Gov. Bill Haslam, the minimum markup on cigarettes – which retailers say covers the “cost of doing business” – will rise from 41 cents on each pack of cigarettes to 76 cents per pack over the next two years.
That 85 percent increase in the markup is projected to direct $129 million into retailers’ bottom lines by the third year of the law. It’s the first change in the state’s cigarette markup in 65 years.
Tennessee is among 25 states that enacted similar laws largely between the 1940s and 1960s to protect smaller retailers from competition.

Inmates being transported to the new county jail after Tuesday’s fire.

On Tuesday night just before 7pm Coffee County deputies, Coffee County EMS along with Manchester Fire & Rescue were dispatched to the old Coffee County Jail at 300 Hillsboro Blvd.
A fire had apparently been ignited in cell 6. Jail personnel evacuated the inmates to the rear and front of the building. Firemen were able to quickly extinguish the fire.

Manchester Fire & Rescue on the scene at the old county jail.

At the request of sheriff department authorities, Tim Morris Director of Transportation for Coffee County schools had two buses brought to the jail to transport inmates to the new county jail at 3176 Hillsboro Highway in Manchester.
No injuries were reported.

Despite oil reaching its highest price of the year, the national average price for gasoline declined Sunday, for the first time since rising 27 cents during a period of 25 consecutive days.
U.S. gas prices are now exactly $1 cheaper than this time last year and motorists are saving an average of $15 on a full tank of gas.
“This is great news for motorists who are shaping their Memorial Day travel plans,” said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA – The Auto Club Group.
The recent price increase at the pump has been worsened by regional refinery issues, but is primarily the result of more expensive crude oil. The price of West Texas Intermediate crude has climbed since March and last week settled above $60 per barrel for the first time since December 10.
In Tennessee the current average price of $2.41, 1-cent more than last week, 27 cents higher than a month ago and $1.06 less than this time last year. In Manchester the low price as of Tuesday night was $2.44 and in Tullahoma the low price was $2.40.