Latest from Lamar, Notes from the Senate Desk
*Important news from
this week:*
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The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
has announced additional federal funding this week for Tennessee. More
than $7 million is now headed to 143 rural health clinics across
Tennessee to help expand access to COVID-19 testing in rural communities.
-
Those in East Tennessee who were affected by the tornadoes on
April 12-13: The deadline to apply for Federal Emergency Management
Agency disaster assistance is June 23. To apply for assistance, you can
click here
[link 1]or do so by phone: 1-800-621-3362 or TTY
800-462-7585.
-
Some good news for Tennessee's farmers--President Trump and
the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced $16 billion in relief
for America's farmers, and an additional $3 billion to purchase and
distribute fresh produce, dairy and meat to Americans in need. Click here
[link 2] for more information.
-
The Scarlett's Sunshine on
Sudden Unexpected Death Act, legislation approved by the Senate health
committee I chair that will provide grants to help states prevent sudden
unexpected infant and child deaths, and help better understand the
causes of these deaths, passed in the U.S. Senate this week.
-
The
U.S. Senate passed another piece of legislation approved by my
committee -- the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities
Research Endowment Revitalization Act - which helps minority-serving
academic institutions, such as historically black colleges and
universities, foster research by clarifying eligibility for the Research
Endowment Program at the National Institutes of Health.
*Tennessee
university presidents are working overtime to go back to school in August
and go back safely *
This week, I talked [link 3] with around 90
university presidents across the state of Tennessee to discuss how we
can safely bring students back to campus in the fall. The question is
not whether we go back to school, but how can we go back to school
safely. College administrators, presidents and chancellors will have a
tremendous opportunity and responsibility over the next few months to
find a way to do this safely. I often think of our schools and colleges
as micro-cities. Well, I believe that the wise leadership at our
Tennessee institutions has enough time to make plans to make these little
cities among the safest places to live and work during the next year.
And if we are able to do that, it would help our country move back
toward normalcy from this COVID-19 crisis. The surest sign of American life
regaining its rhythm will be when 20 million students go back to
college. I appreciated hearing from our states' education leaders, and I
will continue to work with them in the coming months to find a solution
for our nation's students.
*Introducing President Trump's nominees
for the TVA board of directors *
The nation's largest public
utility, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), is on track to add two
excellent members to their board of directors. This week, I was delighted
to introduce [link 4] at a Senate committee hearing President Trump's
nominees to serve on the TVA board - Beth Harwell and Brian Noland.
They are both accomplished individuals who understand TVA's mission is to
continue to provide cheap, clean and reliable electricity throughout
the Tennessee Valley. TVA is a big and important institution. It
serves the residents of seven states by providing reliable electricity, and
a majority of those residents are in Tennessee. The scoreboard for
TVA is in rates, and according to TVA, their residential rates are in
the cheapest 25 percent of residential rates and their business rates
are in the cheapest 10 percent of business rates in the country.
*Mountain bike and hiking trails along the Foothills Parkway coming to
Cocke County*
The Appalachian Regional Commission announced a
$500,000 grant is headed [link 5] to Cocke County to design mountain bike and
hiking trails along the Foothills Parkway. Cocke County is one of
Tennessee's most economically distressed counties, and these mountain
bike and hiking trails will bring more of the 12 million visitors who
come to the Smokies each year to Cocke County, which will increase
tourism and economic development opportunities in the county. For the past
several years, I have been working with Governor Lee, Senator
Blackburn, the Conservation Fund, Cocke and Sevier county officials, state
representatives and officials from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
and the Cherokee National Forest to develop mountain bike and hiking
trails along the undeveloped section of the Foothills Parkway in Cocke
County. We heard some really good ideas in our roundtables, and
thanks to this funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission, those
ideas are going to become a reality.
*#TennesseeStrong - Tennesseans
fighting back against COVID-19 *
Here are some inspiring stories from
this week of Tennesseans who are showing their "Volunteer Spirit" and
supporting their communities:
-
Accepting the risk posed by the
COVID-19 outbreak, around 100 people volunteered [link 6] to place
flags at the headstones of fallen soldiers at East Tennessee State
Veterans Cemetery.
-
Memphis-based International Paper has committed
[link 7] to donate two million corrugated boxes to hunger-relief
organizations. These boxes are necessary to get food to those who need it.
This Memphis company also started a social media campaign to promote
this cause, which you can follow with the hashtag
#HelpFillTheBoxes
*Important news from this week: *
*Chattanooga Times Free Press:
Decisions on how to reopen schools this fall should be up to local
communities, U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander says [link 8]*
*WKRN-ABC Nashville
Channel 2*: *Sen. Lamar Alexander: Gov. Lee has 'done well' with
coronavirus response* [link 9]
*Newport Plain Talk: County to receive
grant for mountain bike and hiking trails [link 10]*
*WSMV-NBC
Nashville Channel 4: Leaders, politicians and local celebrities celebrate
Tennessee class of 2020 [link 11]*
*WJHL Johnson City Channel 11:
Senator Alexander: Tennessee schools 'may have to develop a culture of
wearing masks' next school year* [link 12]
Keep in mind that
enough small steps in the right direction will get you where you want to
go.
*#139 in Lamar Alexander's Little Plaid Book*
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