Tennessee Gov. Lee visits Texas amid politicized immigration clash, offers to send more guard support

Posted on by Michael Randle

Gov. Bill Lee has offered to send additional Tennessee National Guard to Texas amid an increasingly politicized clash between state and federal officials over border patrol issues.

Lee joined Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and a contingent of other Republican governors in Eagle Pass, a Texas border city that has emerged as a flashpoint over immigration issues. Lee on Sunday called it a crisis, and the state previously sent 125 National Guard members to the area in October.

“It’s obviously been a crisis for many years now,” Lee said. “Republican governors have been sounding that alarm for many years.”

Lee issued public support for Abbott in January following a U.S. Supreme Cout ruling that allowed federal Border Patrol agents to remove razor wire bouys installed by Texas along the Rio Grande. Critics have called the razor wire inhumane and largely ineffective at addressing wider immigration issues. Last year, a woman and two children drowned trying to cross the river. Knoxville News Sentinel

Read More

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves again calls for phasing out personal income tax

Posted on by Michael Randle

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves is renewing his call for legislators to phase out the state’s personal income tax over several years, and he is asking them to spend more money on economic development, highways and the judiciary.

The Republican governor is also requesting additional spending on Capitol Police as the state-run agency is set to gain a wider territory to patrol within the capital city of Jackson.

Reeves on Wednesday released his budget proposals for fiscal 2025, which begins July 1.

The Republican-controlled Legislature could consider the document as they decide how to spend state money. But House and Senate budget writers have a long history of largely ignoring budget recommendations from governors, even when they’re from the same party.

Jackson Clarion Ledger

Read More

CORE X Partners establishing cold storage operations in Gulfport, Miss.

Posted on by Michael Randle

CORE X GULFPORT, a subsidiary of CORE X Partners, is establishing cold storage operations at the Port of Gulfport. The project is a more than $73 million investment and will create 73 jobs.

CORE X Partners is a leader in the global supply chain and cold storage industry. As part of a national network of full-service, cold chain operations, CORE X GULFPORT will serve food producers and manufacturers throughout the region from a new 150,000-square-foot cold storage facility. The project, which will be located two miles from the port’s main entrance, is the first investment in cold storage infrastructure since Hurricane Katrina.

The Mississippi Development Authority is providing assistance through the Mississippi Flexible Tax Incentive, or MFLEX program.

CORE X GULFPORT expects to break ground on the project by the end of the year. The company plans to create 48 jobs in its first year of operation, with projected growth to 73 new jobs by its second year of operation.

Mississippi Development Authority

Read More

For the Osage In Oklahoma, This Century’s Fight Is Over Wind Turbines

Posted on by Michael Randle

In Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” which was nominated for 10 Academy Awards, members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma faced a murderous conspiracy to steal their wealth. 

A century after those crimes, tribe members say their ownership rights were again disregarded.

This time the fight doesn’t center on oil, but rather one of the 21st century’s new energy sources: wind.

In a 13-year battle with Italian utility Enel, a federal judge has sided with the Osage, saying the company’s U.S. subsidiaries trespassed when they built a wind farm on tribal land northwest of Tulsa, Okla. The judge said the project violated the historically valuable mineral estate held in trust for the Osage Nation.

“You come attack a small Indian tribe in Oklahoma and not want to recognize our reservation?” said Everett Waller, chairman of the Osage Minerals Council who also appears in the movie. “I just had to say that I can’t allow that.” 

The Wall Street Journal

Read More

Nova Molecular Technologies Expanding Operations in Sumter County, S.C.

Posted on by Michael Randle

Nova Molecular Technologies (Nova), a high-purity solvents manufacturer, today announced it is expanding its operations in Sumter County. The company’s $23.75 million investment will create 20 new jobs.

Founded in Texas in 1991, Nova is a leader in high-value solvent recovery technology. The company’s Recover and Return model launched in 2017 and helps customers reduce their environmental impact by recovering chemicals that would otherwise be sent to waste disposal. Nova also manufactures and markets chemicals that are used in the biopharma, analytical and agricultural markets.

Since establishing its South Carolina operations in 2014, Nova has expanded to four Sumter County locations, including two production facilities. The company later sold its Texas facility to concentrate manufacturing operations solely in South Carolina. Nova’s latest expansion will add additional square footage to its existing facility located at 1123 Race Track Road, which will enable further development of the processes and technologies needed to meet growing customer needs.

Sumter Edge

Read More