KNOXVILLE (AP) — Four gay couples seeking marriage licenses from the Knox County Clerk’s Office were turned down this week in what is believed to be the first such denial in Tennessee. Kip Williams and his partner Jason Marcus said they made the request Friday, along with two other men and four women, in hopes…

By AMY SATTERWHITE / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard DE ROCCO Federal officials said Friday they hear the concerns of Warren County workers affected by manufacturing job losses and will work to assist in any way possible.Following the announcement Carrier’s plant in Morrison would be closed next year, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist…

By DUANE SHERRILL / Staff Reporter for the Southern Standard DAVIS The four-lane expansion of Nashville Highway from McMinnville to Woodbury got another boost last week with the announcement of an additional $11.5 million in federal money for the project.“The highway is a priority for me and for the people of Warren and Cannon counties,”…

By JAMES CLARK / Editor for the Southern Standard The traffic on North Chancery Street can get backed up in a hurry, especially at this intersection with Hobson Street and New Smithville Highway. (James Clark photo) When Wal-Mart was just beginning construction at its current location in 1995, the city of McMinnville had a traffic…

NASHVILLE (AP) — Legislation intended to limit the size of highway billboards in Tennessee may have the opposite effect because of an amendment that has billboard opponents up in arms. “Loopholes proposed by the billboard industry have eroded the scenic beauty of East Tennessee (and) the amendment has more loopholes in it than Swiss cheese,”…

By The Associated Press All members of the state’s congressional delegation and many key state lawmakers will face opposition in the 2004 elections, according to state election officials. The state’s filing deadline passed on Thursday, and about one-third of incumbent state legislators were assured of new terms in office because they have no primary or…

By MATT GOURAS / Associated Press Writer NASHVILLE (AP) — Student leaders at Vanderbilt thought they had a great idea, and certainly a unique one: a campus beer store where meal plan cards could be used to buy favorite malt beverages. But the idea was definitely not a hit with administrators, who basically dismissed the…

By KARIN MILLER / Associated Press Writer NASHVILLE (AP) — Gov. Phil Bredesen is putting the final touches on legislation that would help him overhaul the state’s $7.8 billion TennCare program, and lawmakers will get their first look at it next week. The governor aims to curb TennCare’s growth and save $2.5 billion over the…

By CURT ANDERSON / Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Trains and buses in major U.S cities may be targeted this summer by terrorists using bombs hidden in bags or luggage, federal counterterrorism officials have told law enforcement and transportation officials in a nationwide bulletin. FBI and Homeland Security Department officials said they had received…

By LEIGH STROPE / AP Labor Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — After months of dismal job growth, the nation’s employers dusted off their help-wanted signs in March and added workers at the quickest pace in four years, swelling payrolls by 308,000. Even so, the unemployment rate inched up a tenth of a point to 5.7 percent…