Tag Archives: Ryan Williams

A sales tax reporting issue has been corrected and some $636,000 in revenue on the way to Putnam County from last year’s summer’s sales tax holiday. Cookeville City Manager James Mills said the Tennessee Department of Revenue reimbursed the lost money. The issue began with August tax receipts, the first month of the sales tax holiday on food, which came ... Read More »

State Representative Ryan Williams said he plans to revive a bill during this legislative session that would allow school personnel to carry concealed firearms on school grounds. Williams said he first started work on the bill several years ago. Williams said the bill has already passed three committees with a super majority. “Those places where there technically considered gun-free zones ... Read More »

State Representative Ryan Williams said he is taking a “wait and see” approach to Governor Bill Lee’s proposed private school voucher expansion. The Education Freedom Scholarship Act would provide up to 20,000 students $7,075 yearly in tax dollars to attend a private or home school. Williams said he is waiting to make a full assessment until the full bill is ... Read More »

Infrastructure, mental health, and education among the topics of discussion at the first State of the State Luncheon. Representative Paul Bailey was among the legislators present at Cookeville’s Leslie Town Center Thursday to provide updates on current projects and future initiatives to business leaders in the community. He said the luncheon helps him connect directly with constituents on issues they ... Read More »

Efforts to return some sales tax revenue to local municipalities did not make it to the final budget this year. Cities like Cookeville have been fighting for several years to get the money, estimated between $72 and $86 million, returned to the local budget. State Representiative Ryan Williams said because Governor Bill Lee did not include the change in his ... Read More »

A proposed state and local shared sales tax bill has a slim chance of passing in this general assembly. That’s according to State Representative Ryan Williams. Williams said the challenge for the legislature is that in order to enact the bill, it could affect the amount of discretionary money it has to spend. “By signing on the bill what I’m ... Read More »

Representative Ryan Williams is working on a new bill to assist in Alzheimer’s care. He said that it would create respite care for family members taking care of loved ones at home who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. “To provide assistance to those families for respite care for three or four hours a week per month,” Williams said. “With the ... Read More »

Representative Ryan Williams is collaborating with Senator Paul Bailey on a new right-of-way bill Williams said that they are exploring legislation that would have local planning and zoning departments do Nollan-Dolan testing on right-of-ways. He said that it helps cities and counties understand how much of right-of-way is necessary and whether it should be at the local government’s expense. “Developers ... Read More »

Representative Ryan Williams said that TDOT’s I-40 project in Baxter could happen at a completely different rate than has been done before. Williams said that the governor included some additional monies for roads set aside to address traffic concerns in rural Tennessee, with Baxter is one of the biggest recipients. “It takes about 16 years to get a project funded, ... Read More »

Putnam County Director of Schools Corby King fears the district could have to take days away from breaks due to COVID. State rules made effective in July for schools do not allow remote learning as a COVID solution during district closures. That means if COVID days are needed, they would come from breaks or extending the school year. “Right now, ... Read More »