Whitney Jones

The Senate has passed its own version of legislation that would require students to stay in school until they're 18, up from the current dropout age of 16. The vote was 36 - 2 yesterday. The House unanimously passed a similar proposal last week. Each chamber will consider the other's legislation.

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee is promising to delay the Army Corps of Engineers from restricting access near Cumberland River dams and says he might even restrict their funds. Alexander is the senior Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee's Subcommittee on Energy and Water, which has jurisdiction over the Corps.

From NPR: In-N-Out Burger has one, Dairy Queen has one, and now Panera Bread has a secret menu too. Many restaurants keep old items or concoct special orders to make customers feel like they’re insiders. But sometimes they do it just because they don’t want to print out a whole slew of new menus.

Kentucky Auditor Adam Edelen is promising a closer review of cybersecurity within state government agencies. Edelen says he is concerned about dozens of findings in a yearly audit related to security breaches, including the accidental posting of the Social Security numbers of more than 100 current and former state employees on a publicly accessible website last April.

A Kentucky State Senate panel has approved two measures requiring legislative approval before the Commonwealth could expand Medicaid or operate a marketplace that sells insurance.  The bills passed along party lines in the Senate Health and Welfare Committee, which has a Republican majority.

The proposals now go to the Republican-controlled Senate for a full vote. The bills are expected to die in the mostly Democratic House.

A bill to allow Tennessee handgun carry permit holders to store loaded firearms in their vehicles no matter where they’re parked has cleared its final legislative committee before a full state House vote.

The House Civil Justice Committee advanced the measure Wednesday after supporters stressed it would not stop employers from banning weapons on their property.  They say it would simply remove employers’ ability to call for criminal charges against violators. 

A top Illinois Republican is scrutinizing a new state pension overhaul that would make a state income tax hike permanent. Senate Republican Leader Christine Radogno says several pension proposals are on the table, but there isn't consensus.

From NPR: A small not-for-profit group called Cinereach is aiming to tell stories that Hollywood overlooks. The mission of the group founded by 20-something New York University grads is to tell “vital stories, artfully told,” and they have financial backers who support that mission. Cinereach had its first big success: the Oscar-nominated Beasts of the Southern Wild, which it helped fund. The not-for-profit started in 2006 when it just had 30 proposals to consider. Now it has 2,500.

Legislation to tighten enrollment requirements at online-only schools is advancing in the Tennessee House. Gov. Bill Haslam’s administration bill passed the House Education Committee on a voice vote Tuesday and is being scheduled for the House floor.

The proposal would allow beginning online schools to start with an enrollment of 1,500 and continue to expand as long as they meet performance requirements. The measure originally sought to cap online school enrollment at 5,000. 

Tennessee’s Senate Judiciary Committee has narrowly decided to delay voting on a bill seeking to ban the federal enforcement of state firearms laws in order to ask for an opinion from the state's attorney general about whether it would be constitutional.

Republican Sen. Mae Beavers of Mt. Juliet told the committee on Tuesday her bill would make it a felony for federal agents to enforce gun laws she considers unconstitutional.  Fellow Republican Judiciary Chairman Brian Kelsey of Germantown asked for the delay to determine whether the state has the power to nullify federal laws.