By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard SMARTT The county’s Budget and Finance Committee passed a recommended budget Monday night which will be presented to the full Warren County Commission at its Aug. 15 meeting.The total budget is $62.6 million and has no tax increase. The current $2.31 property tax rate…

By CHARLES W. JOHNSON / News Editor for the Southern Standard Humane Society officials closed the animal shelter last week due to lack of funding. Animals are no longer being accepted at the facility. The county responded by voting to completely eliminate Humane Society funding. (Charles W. Johnson photo) “We’re tired of being held hostage,”…

CHATTANOOGA (AP) — Eighty-five percent of Tennessee schools met federally mandated marks for No Child Left Behind, a 4 percent jump from 2004 that Gov. Phil Bredesen commended and school officials said should not all be credited to the 3-year-old law. State education officials in providing the 2005 No Child Left Behind results for release…

MEMPHIS (AP) — A Memphis man pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to passing along cash payoffs from undercover FBI agents to state Sen. Kathryn Bowers and former Sen. Roscoe Dixon. The plea from Barry Myers, an accused “bag man,” is the first conviction in the government’s Tennessee Waltz investigation, a two-year sting that has…

BALTIMORE (AP) — When Rafael Palmeiro became the fourth player in major league history to collect 3,000 hits and 500 home runs, his status as a future member of the Hall of Fame seemed somewhat secure. That topic is again open for discussion, along with a new one: Palmeiro’s credibility. Five months after telling Congress…

WASHINGTON (AP) — Traffic deaths declined and fewer people were killed in alcohol-related crashes on U.S. highways for a second straight year, the government said Monday. Some 42,636 people died on the nation’s highways in 2004, a reduction of 248 — or 0.6 percent — from the previous year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration…

DALLAS (AP) — Exposure to cigarette smoke raises the risk among teens of metabolic syndrome, a disorder associated with excess belly fat that increases the chances of heart disease, stroke and diabetes, according to a study. Researchers said it is the first study to establish such a link in teenagers. “The bottom line to me…

WASHINGTON (AP) — Interest groups troubled by John Roberts’ record are blitzing Internet sites and airwaves in hopes of building public support for the Senate to take a close look at the Supreme Court nominee. To keep a spotlight on Roberts during the summer doldrums, the initiative includes visits to newspaper editorial boards, rallies, petition…

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) — Issues blocking agreement on a new constitution are critical to the future of Iraq, and compromise will require more than a little statesmanship among leaders with vastly different visions for the country’s new direction. The chairman of the committee writing the constitution has asked political leaders of the Kurdish, Sunni Arab…

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush said Monday he believes schools should discuss “intelligent design” alongside evolution when teaching students about the creation of life. During a round-table interview with reporters from five Texas newspapers, Bush declined to go into detail on his personal views of the origin of life. But he said students should learn…