News Around the Region from TRN...

Seniors Lock In Property Tax Rates
Volunteer State senior citizens can freeze the amount they pay in property taxes on their home...In 2007, the General Assembly enacted the Tennessee Property Tax Freeze Act. Like everyone else, senior citizens are feeling the economic crunch. To make things less stressful, anyone applying must be 65 or older, make no more than the income limit, and provide proof of ownership. Applicants must re-qualify every year. Seniors who miss a year can re-apply, but their tax rate will increase to whatever the rate is at the time.

Military Families Endure Stress from Separation
The strains and separations of no-end-in-sight wars are taking an ever growing toll on military families...Divorce lawyers see it in the breakup of youthful marriages as long, multiple deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan fuel alienation and mistrust. Even Army spouses with solid marriages, the repeated separations are an ordeal. Military officials acknowledge that the vast needs outweigh available resources for families of National Guard and Reserve members, including inadequate support for spouses and children of wounded and traumatized soldiers.

Overweight Southerners
A recent government survey found Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee are sinking to the bottom of the nation's weight chart, with more than 30-percent of adults considered obese. The Volunteer State has a large percentage of two groups with high percentages of obesity---those are rural residents and black women. Eating habits and cooking ingredients likely play a pivotal role for groups.

Tennessee's Unemployment Rate Up
Tennessee's unemployment rate was a full percentage point above the national average...The Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development says nearly 197,000 people were unemployed in June. That's 57,200 fewer people employed than the same month last year. Employment losses compared with June of last year included jobs in manufacturing, business services and jobs in leisure and hospitality services.

Agency That Inspects Truckers, Needs An Update
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, that agency responsible for cracking down on unfit truckers, acknowledges it hasn't completed any of eight recommendations U-S safety regulators have proposed since 2001. One sets minimum standards for officials who determine whether truckers are medically safe to drive.


HEAT ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 TONIGHT.

Weather Where You Are