The $46,000 Tennessee logo.Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today defended the state's new logo design, saying the Volunteer State needs a consistent source of identification.
Haslam, in Chattanooga to announce a grant of $300,000 to Chattanooga State Community College's Kimball campus, said the state currently has 172 different logos.
"Any enterprise will tell you that you need to have a consistent way to communicate," he said.
The state spent $46,000 for the design of the new logo.
The Republican governor said the state couldn't use the "tri-star" because it can't get a trademark for it.
"We need our own logo that we can trademark," he said.
The new logo features the white letters TN on colors patterned on the state flag.
Multiple state departments have requested exemptions from having to use the new logo.
See more in Friday's Times Free Press.