MONDAY, MARCH 26, 2012 Like never before, teachers under scrutiny (Star Tribune)

Sarah Johnson's work begins long before the school bell rings. First up is a meeting with a fellow teacher to talk about how a lesson was paced. Did you finish before the class was over? Did students have a chance to ask questions? Did they seem interested? As one of nine teachers trained to evaluate first-year educators in St. Paul Public Schools, it's her job to identify the teachers who are excelling and those who are floundering. It's up to her to help them become better teachers. Never has that job been more crucial. "I think all teachers are feeling a sense of urgency and a need to improve," Johnson said. How teachers perform in the classroom is under unprecedented and intensifying scrutiny in Minnesota, where all of the state's 52,000 public schoolteachers will soon be subject to an annual evaluation for the first time. Adding to the pressure, would-be teachers will have to pass a basic-skills test before they even set foot in the classroom. Teacher seniority protections also are under fire from lawmakers and parents eager to make educators more accountable. http://www.startribune.com/local/stpaul/144099296.html

TN pain pill bill faces opposition (Tennessean/Rau)

Critics say measure raises costs, favors some drugmakers Proposed state legislation pitched as a tool to reduce prescription pain pill abuse and overdose deaths in Tennessee has drawn concern from some lawmakers who say it is really designed to steer more business to major pharmaceutical companies. The House bill would require pharmacists to dispense tamper-resistant pain pills, which are produced by pharmaceutical companies like Endo and Pfizer. The tamper-resistant pills cannot be crushed in order to be snorted or injected, a practice that proponents of the bill say increases the chances of overdose. Pointing to a rise in overdose deaths in Tennessee, supporters say the bill would reduce prescription pain pill abuse, which is a growing problem in the state. A 2010 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Tennessee ranked No. 8 nationally in drug overdose deaths. In response to the growing problem in Tennessee, the legislature passed a law last year creating unprecedented regulations for pain management clinics, where prescriptions for the drugs are most frequently written. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/NEWS0201/303260035/TN-pain-pillbill-faces-opposition?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

'Risque dressing' measure advances (Associated Press/Johnson)

Prohibits inappropriate attire in Tenn. schools Three years ago, state Rep. Joe Towns failed to make Tennessee the first state to fine teenagers for wearing saggy britches. Now the Memphis Democrat has a more comprehensive measure that would prohibit "risque dressing" in schools -- and its chances of passage are looking good. The proposal is headed for a House floor vote and is moving steadily in the Senate. The bill seeks to prohibit students from exposing "underwear or body parts in an indecent manner that disrupts the learning environment." It means that in addition to boys not letting their pants sag, female student athletes might be required to wear shirts over their sports bras if they were deemed inappropriate by school officials. "It's raising the standard of dress when they're attending public schools," Towns said. "It specifically states that they cannot come to the schools with their buttocks displayed, breast and things displayed -- risque dressing." Currently, Arkansas and Florida are the only states to target schools with a saggy pants ban, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Alabama is considering a similar bill that would ban saggy pants in public in one of its counties. That measure unanimously passed the Alabama House and is currently in the Senate. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/mar/26/risque-dressing-measure-advances/

Sponsor of pull up pants bill says its about decency, not skin color (TFP/Garrett)

If you ask 17-year-old Jassiem Robertson when and why he started sagging his pants down low, hell tell you he doesnt really remember. Ive been sagging since the cradle, Robertson said, sitting outside Howard School of Academics and Technology, waiting for the bell to ring so he can shimmy his shorts a little lower than teachers

will allow. He proudly lifts his shirt to show where he is wearing the waistline that day. Only a little underwear shows. Maybe it was the rappers on television or the guys who got out of prison and slung their pants low cause they werent allowed to wear belts in the pen. Maybe it was because people in his neighborhoods couldnt afford belts. Maybe it was just style, a way to stick it to the man, he says. Some think that saggin is swaggin, he said. It makes you feel like you got money in your pockets, said Dameion Reynolds, 18, a friend sitting nearby. But no matter the reason, the style is on the hit list of many teachers, parents, police officers and politicians black and white who want the younger generation of men, and some women, to pull their pants up and have tried just about everything to get that to happen. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/sponsor-pull-your-pants-bill-says-its-about-decenc/?local

Ed Arnold, former state representative, dies at 77 (Knoxville News-Sentinel)

Edwin "Ed" Arnold, a former state representative and assistant district for Blount, Roane and Loudon counties, has died. He was 77. Mr. Arnold was killed Saturday morning when he stepped into traffic on Interstate 40 to help his grandson, who had just been in a wreck, according to the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Mr. Arnold received his undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee and his law degree from Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tenn. Arnold was active in the Loudon community as a member of the Jaycees, Lions Club and First Baptist Church in Loudon. He served in the Legislature from 1963 to 1967 and became assistant attorney general for Blount, Loudon and Roane counties. Family will receive friends 12-1:30 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. today at First Baptist Church, 413 Wharf Street, Loudon. Services will follow at 7:30 p.m., with Rev. Richard Everett officiating. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/mar/26/ed-arnold-former-state-representative-dies-at-77/

Hamilton County facing tight budget for the 2013 fiscal year (TFP/Haman)

Hamilton Countys budget season is cranking up, and Mayor Jim Coppinger says hes asking elected officials and department heads to keep their belts cinched tight. Coppinger said hes not sure what the numbers will look like for the 2013 fiscal year that starts July 1, but he predicts it will be another lean one though not likely one requiring another round of layoffs. Last year the county cut more than 50 positions and laid off 36 workers, though about 10 were rehired in different positions. This year, he said he hopes there will be enough money to boost compensation for county employees, who have gone without a raise since fiscal 2009. The goal of this budget is to be able to present a budget without a tax increase, and also to be able to look at some type of compensation for employees, Coppinger said. Proposed budgets will be submitted to Coppinger in the next few weeks, and serious talks about priorities will take place in May, the mayor said. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/hamilton-county-facing-tight-budget-2013-fiscal-ye/?local

What to do about officers' pension? Knox County officials split (NS/Donila)

Knox County Sheriff Jimmy "J.J." Jones wants the Knox County Commission to analyze his department's multimillion-dollar pension program and decide whether voters have a say in its future. County Mayor Tim Burchett wants it left in the hands of the Charter Review Committee. Jones says it's too complicated an issue for that. He says the commission is already well-versed and wouldn't need much time to figure out what changes are needed to save money. Burchett disagrees and says a committee could be brought up to speed in 15 minutes. He doesn't want it changed. He wants it closed. The two have been advocating and opposing the retirement program for months now, and a Charter Review Committee that meets Wednesday could provide more clarity into which board tackles the issue. At this point, however, it's still somewhat foggy, but committee members appear to lean toward debating the issue themselves and not forwarding it on to the commission. http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/mar/26/what-to-do-about-officers-pension-knox-county/

3 epic days: Health care law reaches high court (USA Today)
Health coverage for more than 30 million people. The power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce. President Obama's re-election. The reputation of the Supreme Court and the legacy of its chief justice. And to hear some tell it: liberty. All that and more could be at stake today when the Supreme Court begins three days of historic oral arguments on a 2010 health care law that has become a symbol of the nation's deep political divide. Not since the court confirmed George W. Bush's election in December 2000 before 9/11, Afghanistan and Iraq, Wall Street's dive and Obama's rise has one case carried such sweeping implications for nearly every American. "There's never been anything this big that the federal government has required to which the states were not given an opt-out," says former Florida attorney general Bill McCollum, a Republican who filed the first lawsuit against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act on March 23, 2010, the day it became law. "It's the totality of this, the enormity2

of it." "You've got just unbelievable repercussions here. The stakes couldn't be any higher," says Tom Daschle, the former Senate Democratic leader who helped lead the previous effort to change the health care system in 1993-94. http://www.usatoday.com/news/story/2012-03-26/supreme-court-health-care/53768996/1

Stakes huge as Supreme Court takes up health care reform law (McClatchy)

This week, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on health care reform a historic case that will affect millions of Americans, likely have an impact on the fall presidential election and set the direction of American health care in the near future. The six hours of oral arguments over three days are the longest set aside to hear a case since 1966 and may have as far-reaching implications as 1954s Brown v. Board of Education, the decision that integrated public education. Technically, the justices are examining the Florida v. the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services case. It comes to the high court from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta and has been joined by 26 other states, including Georgia and Alabama, but not Tennessee. As I speak to the justices, I wish them the wisdom of Solomon, Dr. Clif Cleaveland said last week during a public forum at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to discuss the case and its potential political fallout. They have an enormous challenge on their plate. These are tough, tough decisions with moral implications. Retired Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Mickey Barker; Tony Hullender, general counsel for BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee; and UTC economist Bruce Hutchinson also participated in the forum held Wednesday. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/stakes-huge-supreme-court-takes-health-care-reform/?local

In Health Care Case, Lawyers Train for 3-Day Marathon (New York Times)

The three days of Supreme Court arguments that start Monday on the constitutionality of President Obamas health care law will be a legal marathon, and the lawyers involved have been training. Last week, there were so many of the mock arguments that lawyers call moot courts that they threatened to exhaust something that had never been thought in short supply: Washington lawyers willing to pretend to be Supreme Court justices. The problem, said Paul D. Clement, who represents the 26 states challenging the law, was not just the length of the arguments the court will hear, but the variety of topics to be addressed. The law itself is a sprawling revision of the health care system meant to provide coverage to tens of millions of previously uninsured Americans by imposing new requirements on states, employers and insurance companies and, through what has been called the individual mandate, by requiring most Americans to obtain insurance or pay a penalty. The decision in the case will have enormous practical consequences for how health care is delivered in the United States. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/26/us/in-supreme-court-health-care-case-training-for-a-legalmarathon.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper (SUBSCRIPTION)

Supreme Court hears first issue: jurisdiction (Stateline)

Seen by supporters as the Obama administrations signal achievement, the Affordable Care Act was challenged the day it was signed, March 23, 2010. Within months of its passage, 30 separate lawsuits had been filed against it, several involving states as plaintiffs. One brought by Florida and joined by 25 other states and the National Federation of Independent Businesses was accepted on appeal by the Supreme Court last November. The process that begins with todays arguments may lead to a clear decision by the end of June. That is, unless the court rules that the centerpiece of the law, the so-called individual mandate, is not ripe for a decision until 2015. It is this jurisdictional question that will dominate todays initial court consideration. Anti-injunction At issue is a 19th century anti-injunction statute that bars courts from litigating a tax case until the tax in question has been levied. Without that law, experts say, citizens would cry foul every time a new tax law was enacted. If judges enjoined every tax law upon enactment, the federal government would be unable to raise revenues. So courts must wait until the tax is in effect. http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=641205

Shoppers count days to Opry Mills' return (Tennessean/Marsteller)

Shuttered since 2010, mall opens Thursday For Kathy Myers, Opry Mills was more than just a mall. Sure, the Goodlettsville woman shopped at the sprawling 1.2 million-square-foot venue for shoes, clothes, home decor and other items. But Opry Mills also was where she entertained visiting family and friends. Its where she caught the latest movie releases. And its where her daughter, now in the U.S. Navy, worked her first job. That seemingly ended when the Cumberland River overflowed its banks in May 2010, swamping Opry Mills with up to 10 feet of murky water and forcing its closure. Ever since, Myers has had to shop, entertain and watch movies elsewhere grudgingly. I really missed the mall, she said. I havent forgotten it. A lot of people havent forgotten. Thats what Opry Mills officials are counting on as they prepare to reopen the venue after making an estimated $200 million in repairs. It will reopen at 10 a.m. Thursday after a ribbon-cutting ceremony. When it does, it will be in a changed retail climate. Despite recent gains in consumer spending, shoppers remain price-conscious. They also have grown3

accustomed to spending their money elsewhere during Opry Mills absence. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/BUSINESS01/303260022/Shoppers-count-days-Opry-Millsreturn?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

Time Not on Side of the Jobless (Wall Street Journal)

The job market is improvingbut not for everyone. In recent months, employers have stepped up hiring, layoffs have slowed and the unemployment rate has begun to fall more quickly. But the rosier picture hasn't been a boon to everyone without a job. In February, 3.5% of the U.S. work force was unemployed for more than six months, compared with 4.0% in February of 2010, a smaller decline than in the overall jobless rate. The average unemployed worker has been jobless for 40 weeks, a mark that has barely budged in the past six months. The diverging fortunes of the long and short-term unemployed worry many economists because it suggests the emergence of deeper, structural problems that could persist long after the rest of the economy recovers. Rather than returning to work as the economy recovers, as they have after past U.S. recessions, the long-term unemployed could effectively break off from the normal job market, ultimately forming an underclass of the more or less permanently unemployed. "It's really as though you just take a certain number of workers and just chop them off, throw them away and the rest of the economy behaves just fine," said Laurence Ball, an economics professor at Johns Hopkins University. "I've been surprised that this isn't viewed as more of a crisis." http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303812904577299982932070176.html?mod=ITP_pageone_1 (SUBSCRIPTION)

La Vergne computer repair class opens doors to jobs in IT world (Gannett)

Frank Cathey has one ground rule for students in his computer repair class at La Vergne High. I tell them to leave high school at the door, he said. When they come in here, its job training. In here, theyre my employees. Cathey began the schools computer program in 1988, when La Vergne High first opened. Back then, everything we did was writing programming, mostly in DOS, Cathey said. Now, mostly what I do is preparing students for a job or postsecondary training, mostly job prep. He stayed at La Vergne until 1994, when he left to work at Nissan. Six years later, Cathey returned to the classroom, spending two years at Blackman before moving back to La Vergne in 2002. About that time, the programs focus shifted from programming to computer repair. Cathey said he realized then that he could teach students just as much as instructors at the Tennessee Technology Center without the tuition. Several of his students have gone on to gain industry-level certifications, such as CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/NEWS01/303260020/La-Vergne-computer-repair-class-opensdoors-jobs-world?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s

School participation fees likely to rise (Gannett)

Participation fees for Murfreesboro City Schools Extended School Program are likely to increase when classes start next fall. Nearly 2,200 students, about a third of the PreK-6 districts 7,000 students, participate in the program, commonly known as ESP, said Director Terry Jolley. Students can arrive at their school for additional enrichment activities before the school day begins or remain there once the day is over. Care is also provided on inclement weather days or during school breaks. The plan calls for increasing the rates by $2 to $5 a week during the school year and as much as $10 during times school is out for winter, spring or fall break. The selfsustaining program operates solely on participation fees and grants. City Schools launched the program in the mid-1980s in an effort to provide structure for children who were often home alone until their parents or other caregivers arrived home from work. While students are at ESP, they may participate in art projects or get help with homework. Before the start of this school year, Mitchell-Neilson students were visited by health-care professionals. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/NEWS04/303260037/School-participation-fees-likelyrise?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|News

Pressing the issue (Commercial Appeal/Patterson)

Germantown rally backs separate schools, asks repeal of district ban Dick Vosburg stood on a truck bed with a bright yellow sign urging Germantown residents to vote "Yes" for the creation of a municipal school district -whenever that vote might be. "It's a good thing we didn't put dates on the signs," he said, deadpan, before a crowd of about 125 gathered Sunday to rally for local control of schools in place of a large school board that will come into power when Memphis and Shelby County school systems merge. Given that the Shelby County Election Commission denied several suburbs' requests to hold a referendum May 10, members of the grassroots My Germantown Schools group have turned their focus to the state level, where a bill in the legislature that could repeal a ban 4

on municipal districts is scheduled for consideration in a House subcommittee Wednesday. "We've got to press onward, regardless," said Vosburg. "And never, ever, ever give up." Vosburg and others at the rally urged people to contact their state lawmakers to ask them to help repeal the ban on municipal districts. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/mar/26/pressing-the-issue/ (SUBSCRIPTION)

Parents cry foul over school closings (Commercial Appeal/Roberts)

Shifting of Lakeview students to Manor Lake could impair learning, they say The unified Shelby County School Board is expected Tuesday to close three underused city elementary schools, saving taxpayers $20 million over 10 years. The schools -- Lakeview, Graceland and Georgia Avenue elementaries -- are in parts of town where population is in decline. Parents around Lakeview say they are being forced to move their children from a school in good standing to a school with poorer test scores with little time to make a better choice. "By the time you get to open enrollment, there won't be any slots for those kids," said Eddie Jones, chairman of the Memphis City Schools Southwest Parent Assembly. "The district will be sending their children to high-priority school and busing them there. They don't really have a choice in the matter," he said. The school board's solution is to move children from Lakeview to Manor Lake and sell Lakeview to a charter school. Manor Lake was built in 1972 as an open school. It has no classroom walls and few windows. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2012/mar/26/parents-cry-foul-over-closings/ (SUBSCRIPTION)

OPINION Guest columnist: AT&T invests in at-risk students (Tennessean)

AT&T is honored to help Americas children Aspire to success. We understand the importance of students graduating and being prepared to enter the workforce. Our nations high school dropout rate is alarming. One in four students more than 1 million students a year fails to graduate with their class. Over the past four years, AT&Ts Aspire program has worked with organizations to help reverse this trend to reach the national goal of a 90 percent graduation rate by 2020. Tennessee has seen double-digit increases in the percentage of high school students who graduate within four years. From 2002 to 2009, Tennessees graduation rate climbed from 59.6 percent to 77.4 percent. While we are moving in the right direction, there is still more work ahead. In our effort to address this critical issue, we are excited to launch a new phase of Aspire a quarter-billion-dollar investment planned over five years. AT&T Aspire has affected more than 1 million students, with $100 million invested since 2008. Now, we are doubling down on American students and Americas future. In Tennessee, Gov. Bill Haslam and the Tennessee General Assembly have placed a premium on education. We are delighted to have had an opportunity to play a role in their success. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/OPINION03/303260007/AT-T-invests-riskstudents?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Opinion|p

Guest columnists: Anti-science legislation offers prospect of new Scopes trial (TN)
Almost 90 years ago, Tennessee became a national laughingstock with the Scopes trial of 1925, when a young teacher was prosecuted for violating a state law forbidding the teaching of evolution. With the passage of two bills, House Bill 368 and Senate Bill 893, the Tennessee legislature is doing the unbelievable: attempting to roll the clock back to 1925 by attempting to insert religious beliefs in the teaching of science. These bills, if enacted, would encourage teachers to present the scientific strengths and scientific weaknesses of controversial topics such as biological evolution, the chemical origins of life, global warming, and human cloning. As such, the bills are misleading, unnecessary, likely to provoke unnecessary and divisive legal proceedings, and likely to have adverse economic consequences for the state. It is misleading to describe these topics as scientifically controversial. What

is taught about evolution, the origin of life, and climate change in the public school science curriculum is as with all scientific topics based on the settled consensus of the scientific community. While there is no doubt social controversy about these topics, the actual science is solid. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/OPINION03/303260004/Anti-science-legislation-offers-prospectnew-Scopes-trial?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Opinion|p

Times Editorial: No reprieve for Taft Youth Development Center (Times FreePress)
The announcement late last week that employees at the Taft Youth Development Center in Pikeville will soon receive 90-day notices, and that their jobs will be eliminated as of July 1, strongly suggests that all discussion about the future of the center that ably serves the needs of some of Tennessee's most troubled young men is over. Gov. Bill Haslam, the Department of Children's Services and other cost-cutting officials and bureaucrats appear to have carried the day. Never mind that state officials have failed to make a case for closure. Politics, it seems, triumphs over reason. There is apparently a bit of wiggle room about closing the facility. July 1, for the moment, is a tentative date, but only because Haslam's budget -- which contains no funding for the facility -- has not been approved yet. There's little doubt, though, that he'll get his way. He's shown no interest in the continued operation of Taft and his supporters control the state's legislative process. Given that, it seems that Taft's fate -and the employment future of its trained and efficient his staff -- is almost surely a done deal barring some last minute reprieve. There's little hope that will occur. Haslam and Children's Services officials have turned a deaf ear to those who correctly cite the many reasons for its continued operation. The closure, then, seems inevitable. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/no-reprieve-for-taft-center/?opiniontimes

David Cook: Learn from Oklahoma; keep Taft Youth Center open (TFP)
Here's what happened in Oklahoma. Last year, wanting to cut 5 percent from its budget, the Office of Juvenile Affairs -- Oklahoma's version of Tennessee's Department of Children's Services -- decided to close L.E. Rader Center in Sand Springs. Rader was the state's only maximum-security youth center, the place that housed the most violent youth. Just like our state's Taft Youth Center in Pikeville, Tenn., which is set to close June 30. Knowing that no proper plans had been made to update other medium-security facilities in Oklahoma to handle the potential flood of youth offenders, the Department of Justice pleaded with the Office of Juvenile Affairs, warning that things could go terribly wrong if Rader's juveniles were transferred. The Office of Juvenile Affairs ignored the warnings and began moving youths to other facilities and began to shut Rader down. Within weeks, all hell broke loose. Kids escaped from their new, less-secure facilities. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/learn-from-oklahoma-keep-taft-youth-centeropen/?opinioncolumns

Guest columnist: Keep your family healthy with these easy tips (Tennessean)
After all these years, Tennessee is still ranked as one of the most obese states in the nation. Since March is National Nutrition Month, we should take the time to look closely at the details. According to a 2011 report, nearly 32 percent of adults in Tennessee are obese. The same report also found the childhood obesity rate is over 20 percent in the state. As a Nashville-based registered dietitian, it is my hope that as a state we will start thinking about the changes we can make to improve our health, especially the health of our children. A recent Centers for Disease Control report outlined several interesting findings regarding the nutritional health of American children. First, contrary to popular belief, it found that while a percentage of calories in children and adolescent diets come from added sugars, more added sugar calories come from foods rather than beverages (59 percent to 41 percent). It also found that more added sugar calories are consumed at home vs. away from home. This report reminds us that we get our calories from many sources not just single items. So we need to take a holistic, moderate approach to a healthy lifestyle, which includes a focus on diet, exercise and education. Nutrition education is important for everyone, especially for children and it can start at home. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/OPINION03/303260006/Keep-your-family-healthy-these-easytips?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|p

Gail Kerr: Nashville looks ahead with 25-year growth plan (Tennessean)
In 1992, a gallon of gas cost $1.05 on average, Bill Clinton became president, and Microsoft released amazing new technology called Windows 3.1. Waynes World was showing in area theaters, Toad the Wet Sprocket was playing on the radio and DNA fingerprinting was invented. That was the last time that Nashville leaders laid out a big picture plan for Nashville. Mayor Karl Dean announced last week that were due for an update. Big time. Development

in Nashville is guided by a law passed in the early 1970s called comprehensive zoning. Property by property, it lists what can go where. Some areas are residential, some commercial, some industrial and so forth. But theres also an overall plan, which in 1992 was called Concept 2010 a long-term guide that focuses on a vision of how best to guide changes so that Nashville is helped, not hurt. Dean announced a new effort to update that. It will be called the Nashville General Plan, and will put down on paper how things should be done for the next 25 years. Metro Planning Executive Director Rick Bernhardt will spend the next three years working on just this. http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120326/COLUMNIST0101/303260005/Gail-Kerr-Nashville-looks-ahead-25year-growth-plan?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|p

Times Editorial: A chance to preserve Tennessee and Georgia history (TFP)

Preserving the parks, battlefields, cemeteries, shrines and buildings related to the Civil War is demanding work, but it is a worthy endeavor. That is especially so here, where one is never far from reminders of what took place in the past. Tennessee and Georgia residents can help preserve several Civil War sites in the area during Park Day on Saturday. The opportunity to provide a worthwhile public service while helping to preserve history should not be overlooked. Sponsored nationally by the Civil War Preservation Trust, the day is observed at more than 100 sites in more than 25 states and the District of Columbia. The nationwide effort, underwritten by a grant from History, formerly the History Channel, allows volunteers to help participating sites meet pressing maintenance needs. The work this Saturday includes large and small projects -- raking leaves, clearing debris, building or expanding trails and walkways, etc. Each task contributes directly to the site upkeep and preservation. If past events are a reliable indicator, the largest Park Day event in the region likely will be at the Chickamauga National Military Park. It has been so in the past. This year, volunteers there will assemble at 8:30 a.m. at the park's Visitors Center. Their tasks will include landscape restoration on the battlefield, monument and tablet cleaning, and exotic plant removal. The work session will conclude about noon. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/a-chance-to-preserve-history/?opiniontimes

Editorial: Farming families can raise their own children (Jackson Sun)
We are in agreement with Sen. Lamar Alexander regarding proposed U.S. Department of Labor rules that unnecessarily restrict youth working on family farms. Tennessee is a state that still sustains many family farms, despite the growth of huge corporate farming operations across the U.S. The updated youth proposals in the Preserving Family Farm Act go too far to usurp parental authority and good judgment. The proposed rules are a case of the federal government sticking its nose where it doesnt belong and isnt needed. The rules would restrict children under 18 from: Being near animals of a certain age without adult supervision; Participating in common livestock practices such as vaccinating and hoof trimming; Handling most animals older than six months, which would severely limit participation in 4-H and FFA activities and restrict their youth farm-safety classes; Operating farm machinery over 20 PTO horsepower; Completing tasks at elevations over 6 feet high; and working at stockyards and grain and feed facilities. Alexander stated, This regulation takes the cake. We agree. http://www.jacksonsun.com/article/20120326/OPINION/303260003/Farming-families-can-raise-their-own-children

Free-Press Editorial: Higher planned TVA fees may endanger jobs along river (TFP)
Tourism and recreation are vital parts of the Chattanooga-area economy, so anything that might adversely affect those industries concerns everyone in our region. For instance, a controversy is brewing over some higher fees planned by the Tennessee Valley Authority. While we can see why heavily indebted TVA would seek more revenue, its plan to slap potentially much higher costs on hundreds of businesses along shorelines in the Chattanooga area is worrisome. A lot of those commercial-use fees have been in the range of $400 to $1,200 per year, which TVA considers too low. So starting in 2013, the federally owned utility plans to require the affected businesses -- often marinas, campgrounds and such -- to pay either 4 percent of their gross revenue or what is deemed to be a more market-value rental rate for the use of public land. "These folks are in private business making money off of public land," said Bill Sitton, a spokesman for TVA. That may be true. But it is also true that government fees, rents and taxes do not exist in a vacuum. They ripple throughout the economy by diverting money out of the productive private sector. The shoreline businesses facing higher TVA-imposed costs provide badly needed jobs. Significantly higher costs to those businesses -- some of which are small mom-andpop operations -- are sure to reduce investment in new jobs, may make it harder for the companies to maintain their existing staffing levels and may even threaten the survival of some companies. http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/mar/26/0326b-fp1-jobs-vs-higher-tva-fees/?opinionfreepress 7

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