About one in three Tennesseans are classified as obese and a report released by survey company WalletHub names four Tennessee cities including Memphis, Chattanooga, Knoxville and Nashville in the top 15 of its Fattest cities in America list of 2016. The analysis looked at the percentage of inactivity, amount of fruits and vegetables consumed and, of course, weight. Chattanooga registered dietitian and nutrition therapist Pam Kelle says while survey results like this may accurately indicate a societal challenge, they can be harmful to individuals who are actively battling a weight problem. “How can we educate and teach people about...

A controversial bill seeking to declare the Holy Bible the official book of Tennessee is headed back for a vote in the full state Senate. The measure narrowly passed the House last year, but the Senate sent it back to committee amid constitutional concerns raised by the state attorney general. Republican Sen. Steve Southerland of Morristown revived the measure Tuesday, and it cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee on a 7-1 vote. Southerland said it is aimed at highlighting the historical significance of the Bible in Tennessee, not as an official endorsement of a religion. Opponents like Republican Senate Speaker...

An audit of the state Department of Human Services by the Comptroller has called into question management and spending in the children’s food program. Media outlets report most of the spending questioned in Tuesday’s audit involved an $80 million food program intended to provide meals to kids who lack access to nutritious food in Tennessee. It also called into question more than 10 percent of the program’s annual operating budget. The audit described multiple violations of federal regulations and basic accounting practices, including examples in which DHS provided cash advances for food purchases to agencies that never requested them....

On Monday Tullahoma Police received a call about a vehicle that had struck Carroll Street Liquors and left the scene. Officers made contact with the subject who was asleep in her vehicle at 1309 Old Estill Springs Road after finding the vehicle had damage that was consistent with the report and matched the description of the vehicle that had left the scene. According to the arrest warrant police found the female with slurred speech and unsteady on her feet. Also in the warrant, the female identified as Casie Tennille Williams age 35 of Love Lane Road Hillsboro admitted to...

“Rocky Top” is “home sweet home” for an increasing number of people, according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data released this week. The growth is apparent particularly in metro areas like Nashville, says Ben Bolender, chief of the bureau’s Populations Estimates branch. “Nashville was amongst the top 20 fastest-gaining, in terms of numeric change, between 2014 and 2015,” says Bolender. “In general across the country, we do see the metro areas account for a large amount of the growth.” Between 2014 and 2015, Nashville gained 36,000 residents, accounting for more than half the people who moved to Tennessee....

Just as a project in Grundy County nears completion to redirect Fiery Gizzard Trail around one private landowner who wants the trail off his land, a second property owner is forcing another reroute of the trail. Park Manager George Shinn tells the Chattanooga Times Free-Press the first reroute request was made last summer. Now, Dr. Hugh P. Liebert has asked that the trail be moved from his property by Dec. 1. Officials started routing the path onto preserved park land to satisfy the first property owner, and the additional mile of work isn’t viewed as a serious problem because...

Tennessee Republican Party officials, including Chairman Ryan Haynes, were in Coffee County on Tuesday to announce a current Coffee County commissioner serving Manchester was changing parties. The Republican Party announced that Steven Jones was leaving the Democrat Party for the Republican Party. Jones took an official oath of allegiance during a ceremony at the Coffee County Administrative Plaza. Jones is currently in his second term as District 2 county commissioner and is planning on running for mayor of Manchester in the August 4...