Bill Gibbons Named Commissioner of Safety and Homeland Security

Shelby County District Attorney Bill Gibbons was named today as Commissioner of Safety and head of Homeland Security in the Haslam Administration. Gibbons served as a Shelby County Commissioner before being appointed DA. He was a candidate in the Republican Primary for Governor earlier this year before dropping out of a crowded field , citing an inability to raise sufficient funds.

House Caucus Meeting - Also Additional Cabinet Announcement Expected

New legislators are in town for orientation. The House Republican Caucus is meeting this afternoon to vote on leadership positions. The Senate Republican Caucus meets tomorrow. The Haslam administration is planning a press conference this afternoon around 2:00 to make a "transition-related" announcement. In addition, the qualifying deadline to run for two vacancies in the General Assembly is tomorrow. Will update on these issues as information becomes available.

Tennessee Shows Slight Improvement in Health Ranking

Tennessee has moved up two notches on America's Health Rankings from number 44 to number 42. Reasons for the improvement include a decrease in the percentage of people smoking, a lowering in the rate of preventable hospitalizations and a dip in the violent crime rate.

For more on this issue, see this article from the Tennessean.

Commissioner of Agriculture Named

Last night, at the TN Farm Bureau Convention, Gov-Elect Haslam announced his cabinet appointee for the position of Commissioner of Agriculture. He named Julius Johnson, CAO for the TN Farm Bureau for the last 15 years, to lead the Department. Governor-elect Haslam stressed the importance of having a Commissioner of Agriculture that understands farming and the role agriculture can play in job creation, especially in the rural parts of our state that remain the hardest hit by unemployment.

For more on this appointment, go to the Nashville Post site here.

Haslam has named his legal counsel (Herbert Slatery), special assistant (Mark Cate) and deputy governor (Claude Ramsey). Johnson is the first commissioner named in the new Haslam cabinet. For more information on the Haslam transition, you can follow his administration at http://www.billhaslam.org/

Familiar Faces Coming to New Positions in Nashville

Late last week there were reports of two high-profile appointments. One was the announcement of Claude Ramsey as Deputy Governor in the Haslam administration. Claude was recently elected to his fifth term as the Hamilton County mayor. He was an essential player in the efforts to recruit Volkswagen to Tennessee and has experienced tremendous sucesses in recruiting business and industry to his region during tough economic times. Prior to serving as mayor, Claude served a stint in the General Assembly in the 1970's, was a county commissioner in Hamilton County and the assessor of property.

Meanwhile, the Comptroller of the Treasury, Justin Wilson, announced the appointment of former Representative Jason Mumpower to his staff. Rep. Mumpower did not pursue re-election this year after serving as Republican Majority Leader. Mumpower will serve as the Executive Assistant to the Comptroller. His duties will include serving as a liaison to the General Assembly, representing the Comptroller on several boards and commissions and dealing with the overall management of the Comptroller’s office.

Commissioners Compensation and Benefits Survey Going Out

Each year the Tennessee County Commissioners Association surveys its membership about a number of things pertaining to the compensation and benefits provided to members of the legislative body in all 95 counties. These surveys also ask for updates on who is currently serving as chair of the commission and when the commission's regular meetings are scheduled. The surveys are going out to county mayors and chairs of commissions today. Once we compile the information, it will be available on the main TCCA website. Last year's survey is currently available here.

High Unemployment Streak Could Exceed 1980's

With November's rate expected to be 9.6%, that will mark the 19th consecutive month that the unemployment rate was over 9 percent. That would exceed the length of high unemployment during the 1980s recession. The Federal Reserve forcasts that the rate will still be near 9% at the end of 2011. For more, see this article from USA Today.