
Andy Sher is a Nashville-based staff writer covering Tennessee state government and politics for the Times Free Press. A Washington correspondent from 1999-2005 for the Times Free Press, Andy previously headed up state Capitol coverage for The Chattanooga Times, worked as a state Capitol reporter for The Nashville Banner and was a contributor to The Tennessee Journal, among other publications. Andy worked for 17 years at The Chattanooga Times covering police, health care, county government, politics and general assignment beats. He was won public service, investigative, deadline and project awards from the Tennessee Press Association, Common Cause of Tennessee, the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists and Remove Intoxicated Drivers. Andy grew up in Chattanooga. A graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Andy is a past chairman of the Tennessee Capitol Hill Press Corps and served as an acting director of the Regional Reporters Association while in Washington. Contact Andy at 615-255-0550 or asher@timesfreepress.com
Upset by the Tennessee Historical Commission's March 8 vote to remove the state Capitol's bust of Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, some GOP legislators are pushing to cancel appointments of all 29 commissioners on the panel — members who were mostly named by Republican Gov. Bill Lee.
by Andy SherTennessee's two U.S. senators and nine congressmen are urging President Joe Biden to accord a state funeral to the nation's last remaining World War II Medal of Honor recipient when the time comes.
by Andy SherAn amended Tennessee House bill would prohibit state legislators from having a "controlling interest" in firms seeking to provide services to state government and applies criminal penalties as well as a permanent ban on holding future public office for anyone convicted of violating it.
by Andy SherState Rep. Robin Smith, R-Hixson, said she supports an effort by Tennessee's House and Senate speakers to bar lawmakers from contracting with the state for services, including handling their legislative colleagues' taxpayer-funded constituent surveys and updates.
by Andy SherAlthough the state Historical Commission last week approved removing the Tennessee Capitol's bust of Confederate cavalry general and early Ku Klux Klan leader Nathan Bedford Forrest, don't count on the long-controversial bronze image departing any time soon.
by Andy SherTennessee's top House and Senate leaders are pushing a bill to bar legislators from doing any business with the state following the Jan. 8 FBI raids on two lawmakers who as political consultants handled taxpayer-funded constituent mail for some colleagues as well as for themselves.
by Andy SherNASHVILLE — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Thursday criticized the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, signed into law earlier in the day by President Joe Biden, with the Republican governor saying the country "didn't need it."
by Andy SherTennessee Historical Commission members on Tuesday approved Gov. Bill Lee's proposal to remove the bust of Confederate general, slave trader and early Ku Klux Klan leader Nathan Bedford Forrest from the state Capitol.
by Andy SherState senators gave nods Monday to proposed Tennessee constitutional amendments that, if agreed to by the House, would put before voters next November decisions over whether to enshrine the state's current "right to work" law in the Tennessee Constitution along with a second amendment effectively giving legislators veto power over who gets appointed state attorney general.
by Andy SherTwo Tennessee lawmakers have introduced legislation that seeks to force news outlets reporting about criminal charges or civil lawsuit claims to follow up on case outcomes if subjects of the articles demand it.
by Andy SherA bill barring Tennessee cities and counties from imposing residency requirements on police and other first responders passed the state Senate by a 29-6 vote on Thursday.
by Andy SherA bill ending Tennessee local governments' ability to impose residency requirements when hiring police and other first responders is sounding the alarm for some Chattanooga state legislators.
by Andy SherThe name of elusive political vendor Phoenix Solutions LLC doesn't appear in any campaign financial disclosures filed last year by Tennessee Republican House candidate and now-Rep. Todd Warner of Chapel Hill in his District 92 race.
by Andy SherUpset Tennessee Senate Republicans are urging the heads of state universities and colleges to stop student-athletes from kneeling during the national anthem after a Feb. 15 basketball game in Chattanooga.
by Andy SherA Republican political campaign vendor whose firm received $202,600 in payments from Tennessee House Republicans during the 2020 election cycle was also involved in independent expenditures aiding at least two Senate GOP incumbents last fall, records show.
by Andy SherTwo Tennessee Republican lawmakers are pressing a bill to allow any man believing he got a woman pregnant to obtain a court injunction blocking her from getting an abortion.
by Andy SherA Tennessee legislator says he's both stunned and delighted by the response he's getting in Tennessee, the U.S. and from all over the world on his effort to commission and place a statue of country music legend, actress, businesswoman and humanitarian Dolly Parton on the state Capitol's grounds.
by Andy SherTennessee Gov. Bill Lee on Monday unveiled a $41.8 billion budget proposal with new spending and policy priorities while also touting his administration's health and economic responses to the coronavirus pandemic and praising Tennesseans for their resiliency.
by Andy SherAs Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee prepares to outline his spending and policy priorities Monday during his annual State of the State address, the state's largest teachers' union is challenging the Republican to go big on education funding in the fiscal year 2022 budget he will propose.
by Andy SherA few Republicans in the House broke ranks Thursday to support removal of U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from her two committee assignments, but none from Tennessee or Georgia.
by Andy Sher