So the United Soccer League Memphis franchise is to be called Memphis FC 901. The branding was launched as the Labor Day weekend began with a video that is part Rogues nostalgia, soccer at school memories and a liberal dose of Grit ‘n’ Grind rhetoric from another sports franchise just down the street from AutoZone Park. The combination is another example of sports carrying the banner for the promotion of Memphis in general.

2. Economic Development Experts Set Sights On Memphis - Thursday, August 23, 2018

Site selectors from across the country spent time in Memphis this week as local economic development teams touted the area’s available land, industrial and office space for potential companies.

3. Strickland Open to Talks About Idea of City-Only Industrial Development Board - Tuesday, August 21, 2018

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland says he is open to discussing the idea of a city-only Industrial Development Board along with other ideas to be explored by a study group approved by the Memphis City Council last week.

4. Sound System Upgrade, Locker Room Improvements Highlight Renovations to Liberty Bowl - Friday, August 10, 2018

When Memphis football fans file into Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Sept. 1 for the Tigers home opener against Mercer they will hear things a bit clearer, thanks to an upgraded sound system.

The city of Memphis, owner of the stadium, is trying to keep the Tigers’ home stadium as up to date as possible. In addition to the sound system improvements, renovations have come to coach Mike Norvell’s home locker room.

5. Sound System Upgrade, Locker Room Improvements Among Renovations to Liberty Bowl - Thursday, August 9, 2018

When Memphis football fans file into Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Sept. 1 for the Tigers home opener against Mercer they will be able to hear things a bit clearer, thanks to an upgraded sound system.

6. Few Ripples to End City Hall’s Budget Season - Thursday, June 7, 2018

The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, June 5, to a $685 million city operating budget, an $87 million capital budget and a $3.19 city property tax rate.

The votes ended City Hall’s budget season with few changes to the budget proposed by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

7. City Council Approves $685M City Budget, Takes City Tax Rate to $3.19 - Wednesday, June 6, 2018

The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, June 5, to a $685 million city operating budget, an $87 million capital budget and a $3.19 city property tax rate.

The votes ended City Hall’s budget season with few changes by the council to the budget proposed by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

8. Last Word: Lake District Recycling, The New First and The AAC 'Glass Ceiling' - Friday, December 1, 2017

The U.S. Senate vote on a tax reform plan is now set for 10 a.m. our time Friday morning following more debate in D.C. that began Thursday as the trigger provision to raise tax rates if economic growth from the proposed tax cuts doesn't materialize was ruled out of order by the Senate parliamentarian. This was the provision on which the support of U.S. Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee hinged. And Corker is leading a group of deficit hawks whose block of votes is considered crucial in what happens to a proposal that was being reshaped as midnight approached. Here's Politico with comments from Corker as of late Thursday

9. Railgarten Could Be Back At Memphis City Council - Saturday, June 10, 2017

The Memphis City Council may have more questions about the Railgarten bar/restaurant in Midtown.

The council questioned the development’s addition of intermodal containers and an outside area after the council approved a special use permit earlier this year.

10. Railgarten Could Be Back At Memphis City Council - Thursday, June 8, 2017

The Memphis City Council may have more questions about the Railgarten bar/restaurant in Midtown.

The council questioned the development’s addition of intermodal containers and an outside area after the council approved a special use permit earlier this year.

11. City Council Completes Budget Season, Says Larger Issues of Priorities Remain - Wednesday, June 7, 2017

Memphis City Council members approved Tuesday, June 6, a $680 million city operating budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1, an $81.3 million capital budget and a $3.27 city property tax rate.

12. Winds of Change - Saturday, June 3, 2017

Humans have been harnessing the power of the wind since the first Egyptians began to use sails to move their boats along the Nile. More than 7,000 years later, wind power capacity in the U.S. alone has surpassed 82 gigawatts, or enough energy to power 20 million homes, making it the largest renewable generation capacity in the country.

13. EDGE to Test Multifamily Tax Abatements - Friday, May 19, 2017

The Economic Development Growth Engine of Memphis and Shelby County has approved a trial run of a new payment-in-lieu-of-taxes program aimed at encouraging development of multifamily housing the city of Memphis feels it needs to break free of the cycle of stagnant population growth.

14. Money Behind New Zoo Parking Terms - Thursday, April 13, 2017

In the third attempt to bring an end to the Overton Park Greensward controversy last summer, Memphis City Council member Bill Morrison decided it was best not to try to reach agreement on all points, but on most points.

15. Council Brokers New Zoo Parking Compromise, Abolishes Beale Authority - Wednesday, April 12, 2017

The Memphis City Council went back into the terms for an expanded Memphis Zoo parking lot Tuesday, April 11, just nine months after brokering and approving a compromise on the project between the zoo and the Overton Park Conservancy.

16. Council Passes Pot Ordinance 7-6 - Wednesday, October 5, 2016

The Memphis City Council gave final approval Tuesday, Oct. 4, to an ordinance that gives Memphis Police the discretion to write a ticket with a $50 fine for possession of a half ounce or less of marijuana.

17. Council Sets Stage for Final Pot Ordinance Vote - Wednesday, September 21, 2016

With no debate, Memphis City Council members approved Tuesday, Sept. 20, the second of three readings of an ordinance that would allow police officers to write a ticket with a $50 fine for possession of less than a half ounce of marijuana.

18. Strickland Used Polls to Hone Campaign Strategy - Thursday, September 8, 2016

Political strategist Steven Reid calls Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland’s campaign “the perfect example” of using polling to win an election.

19. The Fading Accuracy of Political Polling - Thursday, September 8, 2016

Joe Carr says he couldn’t believe the deficit when U.S. Rep. Diane Black trounced him in the August election to recapture Tennessee’s 6th Congressional District seat.

20. City, Wiseacre Set to Discuss Brewery’s Proposal for Coliseum - Friday, August 19, 2016

The first order of business is to figure out what the city and the owners of Wiseacre Brewing Co. are negotiating about when it comes to Wiseacre’s proposal to convert the Mid-South Coliseum into a brewery.

21. Greensward Plan Awaits Shuttle Details - Thursday, July 7, 2016

The Overton Park Greensward controversy is still moving although it is much closer to a resolution with last week’s proposal by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, said City Council chairman Kemp Conrad and councilman Worth Morgan, whose district includes the park.

22. State Halts City Board From Issuing Bonds - Tuesday, April 12, 2016

The city of Memphis entity that sold $12 million in municipal bonds on behalf of Global Ministries Foundation has been told it can no longer conduct such business.

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency has temporarily de-authorized the Health, Educational & Housing Facility Board of the city of Memphis to sell bonds. The decision is related to the withdrawal of federal subsidies going to Global Ministries Foundation’s portfolio and a subsequent downgrading of those bonds as well as leadership changes at the Health & Ed Board.

23. State Halts Memphis Health & Ed Board From Doing Business - Saturday, April 9, 2016

The city of Memphis entity that sold $12 million in municipal bonds on behalf of Global Ministries Foundation has been told it can no longer conduct such business.

The Tennessee Housing and Development Agency has temporarily de-authorized the Health, Educational and Housing Facility Board of the city of Memphis to sell bonds. The decision is related to the withdrawal of federal subsidies going to Global Ministries Foundation’s portfolio and a subsequent downgrading of those bonds as well as leadership changes at the Health & Ed Board.

24. Lawsuit Seeks to Void City Decision on Greensward - Tuesday, April 5, 2016

A lawsuit filed in Shelby County Chancery Court Tuesday, April 5, seeks to void the March 1 Memphis City Council vote that gave the Memphis Zoo undisputed control of most of the Overton Park Greensward.

25. Lawsuit Seeks to Void City Decision on Greensward - Tuesday, April 5, 2016

A lawsuit filed in Shelby County Chancery Court Tuesday, April 5, seeks to void the March 1 Memphis City Council vote that gave the Memphis Zoo undisputed control of most of the Overton Park Greensward.

26. The Week Ahead: March 14-20, 2016 - Monday, March 14, 2016

How was your weekend, Memphis? Here’s our weekly roundup of local happenings you need to know about, from the first look at the Greater Memphis Chamber’s proposed diversity program to a truly Irish celebration of St. Paddy’s Day.

27. Last Word: Hedgepeth Speaks, Josh Pastner's Future and Big Box Liquor - Friday, March 4, 2016

Where else is there to begin but the Greensward controversy.
And we start with an email from Memphis City Council member Reid Hedgepeth in what is rapidly becoming a Last Word tradition and institution – the email in full.

28. Last Word: Rallings Meets the Council, Million Dollar Auditions & A Pinch Plan Emerges - Wednesday, February 3, 2016

His second day on the job, the new Memphis Police Director, Michael Rallings, met the Memphis City Council and discovered just what a huge issue police body cameras are – if he didn’t know that already.
His answers to some pointed questions about when police can turn off those cameras and why made this an uneven first encounter.
Council members told him they got an earful from constituents over the weekend in the wake of the fatal police shooting of Johnathan Bratcher in South Memphis. And some of the reaction they got was to reports that a police dispatcher ordered police trying out the body cameras to turn them off as they arrived at the scene of the shooting.
There are three cameras being tested. And one of the officers with them showed up after the shooting, according to police.
Meanwhile, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland still didn’t have a timetable for the roll-out of the cameras but did offer some specifics including hiring by the MPD of 10 new personnel to deal with the handling of what the camera records.
And Strickland’s intention is to pay for it out of the existing MPD budget.

29. Sutton Reid Finalist for Reed Awards - Saturday, January 30, 2016

The Memphis ad agency that worked on the 2015 mayoral campaign of Jim Strickland is a finalist for three Reed Awards, given nationally by the political trade publication Campaigns & Elections.

30. Sutton Reid Finalist For Reed Awards - Thursday, January 28, 2016

The Memphis ad agency that worked on the 2015 mayoral campaign of Jim Strickland is a finalist for three Reed Awards, given nationally by the political trade publication Campaigns & Elections.

31. Morgan: Permanent Overton Park Fix Will Take Time - Tuesday, January 26, 2016

The Memphis City Council member whose district includes Overton Park says there is no immediate permanent fix for the greensward controversy beyond the zoo continuing to park cars there.

“Short term, there’s really nothing that can quickly move that number of cars,” council member Worth Morgan said on the WKNO-TV program “Behind the Headlines.”

32. Memphis Zoo CEO: Mediation, Court Action Can Coexist in Greensward Dispute - Saturday, January 23, 2016

The Memphis Zoo’s move to Chancery Court next week in the Overton Park greensward controversy does not damage the mediation process between the zoo and the Overton Park Conservancy.

That’s what zoo president and CEO Chuck Brady said as attorneys on both sides of the controversy prepare to make their cases in court.

33. Zoo Goes To Court Over Greensward - Friday, January 22, 2016

The Memphis Zoo has gone to Chancery Court seeking undisputed legal control of the northern section of the Overton Park greensward.

Attorneys for the zoo filed the suit Thursday, Jan. 21, seeking a declaratory judgment in the dispute with the Overton Park Conservancy.

34. Strickland Proposes Mediation in Greensward Controversy - Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland is asking leaders of the Memphis Zoo and the Overton Park Conservancy to enter voluntary mediation over parking in the Overton Park Greensward.

35. Memphis Zoo Removes Trees From Overton Park Greensward - Thursday, January 14, 2016

When the Overton Park Conservancy’s staff noticed 27 trees had been removed from the north end of the park’s greensward Monday, they immediately called Memphis Police.

The conservancy then began calling the other institutions in the park and found the Memphis Zoo had removed the trees donated to and planted by the conservancy four years ago.

36. Memphis Zoo Removes Trees From Overton Park Greensward - Thursday, January 14, 2016

When the Overton Park Conservancy’s staff noticed 27 trees had been removed from the north end of the park’s greensward Monday, they immediately called Memphis Police.

The conservancy then began calling the other institutions in the park and found the Memphis Zoo had removed the trees donated to and planted by the conservancy four years ago.

37. Greensward Controversy Revived With New Year’s Eve Legal Opinion - Tuesday, January 5, 2016

Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland says a New Year’s Eve legal opinion on the use of the Overton Park greensward does not speak for his administration.

38. Voters Fill in City Hall Blanks In Last Election of Busy 2015 - Monday, November 23, 2015

The 2015 election season was put to rest last week: A low-turnout set of five Memphis City Council runoff elections filled in the blanks of what will be a different City Hall starting in 2016.

With a 4.8 percent turnout across the turf of five single-member City Council districts, voters in the Thursday, Nov. 19, non-partisan council runoff races defined the new council that takes office in January. The 13-member body will include six new faces.

39. Caissa Public Strategy Works Behind The Scenes for Clients - Monday, October 26, 2015

The word public, by its definition, seems to say out in the open.

For Caissa Public Strategy, that’s not how it works. In fact, the Memphis-based firm likes to work in the shadows, so to speak, where the agency helps its clients grow and protect reputations.

40. Five City Council Races Destined for Runoffs - Friday, October 9, 2015

The identity of the Memphis City Council that will take office in January with six new members was still in flux at the end of a very long and frustrating Oct. 8 election night.

The races for four of those six open seats and the seat now held by an appointee to the council are going to a Nov. 19 runoff election – one week before Thanksgiving.

41. Memphis Chamber Backs Wharton in Mayor’s Race - Friday, August 21, 2015

The political action committee of the Greater Memphis Chamber is backing Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. for re-election.

Wharton faces a strong challenge in his re-election bid from Memphis City Council members Harold Collins and Jim Strickland. And a key issue in the hard-fought campaign is the city's pace of economic development during Wharton’s tenure.

42. Memphis Mayoral Field Set at 10 - Friday, July 24, 2015

Shelby County Election Commissioners have certified the Memphis election ballot for Oct. 8.

These are the names to appear on that ballot for the 15 elected offices.

The commission met hours after the noon Thursday, July 23, deadline for candidates to withdraw from the ballot if they wished.

43. Memphis Candidates Prepare To Spend - Wednesday, July 22, 2015

How much a candidate raises in an election season attracts a lot of attention, and the second-quarter fundraising numbers for the Oct. 8 Memphis elections are still trickling out.

The reports were due July 10 but some are still arriving at the Shelby County Election Commission website. And in some cases, the reports are incomplete, showing amounts raised but not amounts spend and on hand as of July 1.

44. Memphis City Council Delays Budget Votes Until June 23 - Wednesday, June 17, 2015

Memphis City Council members put off final budget votes Tuesday, June 16, after trying for several hours to rearrange Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr.'s budget proposal.

But council members, already skeptical about the administration’s line items and dollar figures, became increasingly frustrated as their calculations of available funding didn’t match the administration’s math.

45. Wanda Halbert to Run for City Court Clerk - Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Memphis City Council member Wanda Halbert will not seek re-election in this year’s city elections and will instead run for City Court Clerk.

Halbert planned to pull a petition Monday, April 20, for the challenge of incumbent clerk Thomas Long.

46. Halbert Passes on Council Re-election Bid To Go For City Court Clerk - Saturday, April 18, 2015

Memphis City Council member Wanda Halbert will not seek re-election in this year's city elections and will instead run for City Court Clerk.

Halbert plans to pull a petition Monday, April 20, for the challenge of incumbent clerk Thomas Long.

47. Flinn Rumor Could Impact Multiple City Council Races - Monday, March 16, 2015

Even before Shea Flinn gave a “no comment” last week to a persistent rumor that he would resign from the Memphis City Council, there were potential candidates eyeing his super district seat.

48. Flinn Rumor Could Impact Multiple City Council Races - Monday, March 16, 2015

Even before Shea Flinn gave a “no comment” last week to a persistent rumor that he would resign from the Memphis City Council, there were potential candidates eyeing his super district seat.

With no qualifying petitions issued for the October ballot until next month, there is stealthy speculation about who is running for council and which seats may be sought.

49. Tax Breaks for Ikea Prompt Calls for Changes - Wednesday, January 28, 2015

When the board of the Economic Development Growth Engine approved a $9.5 million, 11-year tax abatement incentive last week for the new Ikea furniture store planned for Cordova, the decision set in motion the next wave in an already robust political discussion about such incentives.

50. EDGE Approves Incentives for Memphis Ikea Store - Thursday, January 22, 2015

Swedish furniture retailer Ikea has been awarded an 11-year tax break to develop a $64 million store near Interstate 40 and Germantown Parkway that is expected to employ 175 people.

The board of the city-county Economic Development Growth Engine on Wednesday, Jan. 21, approved the controversial payment-in-lieu-of-taxes incentive on an 8-1 vote, with Larry Jackson voting against the measure.

51. Council Raises Concerns With Ikea Tax Breaks - Wednesday, January 21, 2015

The Economic Development Growth Engine board votes Wednesday, Jan. 21, on the $8 million payment in lieu of taxes for the Ikea retail store to open next year at Interstate 40 and Germantown Parkway.

52. Harris Goes to Nashville - Friday, January 9, 2015

At his last Memphis City Council session, Lee Harris reflected this week on his three years on the council and the group of politicians he joined.

53. Concerns Raised About Ikea Incentives - Thursday, January 8, 2015

Some city of Memphis officials are concerned that offering tax incentives to Swedish furniture retailer Ikea could set a dangerous precedent, one that could open the door for other retailers, including large mall owners, to seek the tax breaks.

54. GOP Blocks Tax Hike on Firms Moving Overseas - Thursday, July 31, 2014

WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican senators blocked an election-year bill Wednesday to limit tax breaks for U.S. companies that move operations overseas.

The bill would have prohibited companies from deducting expenses related to moving their operations to a foreign country. It also would have offered tax credits to companies that move operations to the U.S. from a foreign country.

55. GOP Blocks Democrats' Minimum Wage Try in Senate - Thursday, May 1, 2014

WASHINGTON (AP) – Senate Republicans derailed a Democratic drive Wednesday to raise the federal minimum wage, blocking a cornerstone of President Barack Obama's economic plans and ensuring the issue will be a major feature of this fall's congressional elections.

56. Council Displeased With Budget Ideas - Thursday, April 3, 2014

This isn’t going to be pretty. Two weeks before Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. takes a budget proposal to the Memphis City Council, council members reacted angrily to how Wharton’s administration set the stage for its definitive recommendations.

57. Council Unhappy With Budget Plans So Far - Wednesday, April 2, 2014

The administration of Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. got a rough reception at the Tuesday, April 1, Memphis City Council session as it set the stage for Wharton’s budget proposal to come in two weeks.

58. Debt and Liability - Saturday, January 4, 2014

There is rarely a good answer to the question “How much?” in politics.

With issues including the unfunded pension liability, overall debt, and revenue estimates and their validity, City Hall’s overall money problem begins but hardly ends with the question. It won’t be that simple.

59. Latest Federal Internet Gambling Bill Proposes Tax - Tuesday, November 19, 2013

LAS VEGAS (AP) – If Congress makes no progress on a national framework for online gambling this session, it won't be for a lack of legislation.

Two lawmakers introduced bills over the summer that would legalize some form of Internet gambling nationwide. Last week, Rep. Jim McDermott, a Democrat from Washington, introduced a bill that would tax federally-sanctioned online wagering.

60. In Reversal, Obama to Allow Canceled Health Plans - Friday, November 15, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – His personal and political credibility on the line, President Barack Obama reversed course Thursday and said millions of Americans should be allowed to renew individual coverage plans now ticketed for cancellation under the health care law that is likely to be at the heart of the 2014 elections.

61. Industrial Revolution - Thursday, October 24, 2013

Frank C. Pidgeon Industrial Park was completed in 1967, but it’s only now, four-plus decades later, that the property is finally realizing its full potential.

The 3,500-acre industrial park was developed when Memphis and Shelby County paid roughly $4.5 million to buy the land in the late 1950s after city, county and Port Commission leaders saw the need for a large industrial park following the creation of Presidents Island.

62. A Deal: Voting to Avoid Default, Open Government - Thursday, October 17, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – Up against one last deadline, Congress raced to pass legislation Wednesday avoiding a threatened national default and ending a 16-day partial government shutdown along the strict terms set by President Barack Obama when the twin crises began.

63. Shutdown in Third Day With Debt Trouble Looming - Friday, October 4, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – Efforts to resolve the government shutdown were at a standstill Thursday as President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner traded barbs, the Treasury warned of a dire risk to the economy ahead and work in the Capitol was briefly halted because of gunshots outside.

64. GOP House: Keep Government Open, Hit 'Obamacare' - Monday, September 23, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – Charting a collision course with the White House, the Republican-controlled House approved legislation Friday to wipe out the three-year-old health care law that President Barack Obama has vowed to preserve – and simultaneously prevent a partial government shutdown that neither party claims to want.

65. Senate, House Ensnared in Health Care Controversy - Wednesday, September 18, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – Implacable Republican opposition to Obamacare has Congress once more veering closer to gridlock.

In the House, more than 50 conservatives support tacking a one-year delay in implementing the health care law onto a bill needed to prevent a partial government shutdown on Oct. 1.

66. Senate Moves Forward on Transportation Spending - Wednesday, July 24, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – A $108 billion measure that would boost funding for infrastructure projects and housing subsidies for the poor is moving ahead in the Senate.

The measure cleared a procedural hurdle by a bipartisan 73-26 vote Tuesday, and that sets up days of debate with the goal of passing the measure next week.

67. City Budget Woes Affect 400 Employees - Thursday, June 20, 2013

The numbers at play so far in the Memphis City Council’s long budget season are big.

Council members tallied $24.4 million in city operating budget cuts Tuesday, June 18, in a marathon seven-hour session before an overflow crowd of angry city employees.

68. US Government Collecting Huge Number of Phone Records - Friday, June 7, 2013

WASHINGTON (AP) – The government is secretly collecting the telephone records of millions of U.S. customers of Verizon under a top-secret court order, according to the chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee. The Obama administration is defending the National Security Agency's need to collect such records, but critics are calling it a huge over-reach.

69. No Deal in Sight as Deadline for Fiscal Deal Nears - Friday, December 28, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) – A last-gasp effort Thursday to avoid automatic tax increases and spending cuts got off on the same convulsive, partisan tone that marked congressional attempts to resolve the impasse before lawmakers left Washington to go home for Christmas.

70. Home Builders Association Presents Lifetime Awards - Saturday, December 22, 2012

Memphis Area Home Builders Association presented lifetime achievement awards to Jim Reid, Dudley Schaefer Sr., Monroe Pointer and Tommy Cox at the trade organization’s annual holiday gala earlier this month.

71. Fiscal Cliff Efforts Ongoing, Boehner Offers Plan - Wednesday, December 19, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner pushed ahead on negotiating a broad deal to avert the "fiscal cliff," even as the GOP leader readied a backup plan Tuesday to pressure the White House with little time left to avoid a double hit on the economy.

72. Home Builders Association Presents Achievement Awards - Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Memphis Area Home Builders Association presented lifetime achievement awards to Jim Reid, Dudley Schaefer Sr., Monroe Pointer and Tommy Cox at the trade organization’s annual holiday gala earlier this month.

73. High-Stakes Game - Saturday, December 15, 2012

At week’s end, International Paper Co. appeared ready to move forward with officially applying for a package of tax incentives as part of a plan to expand the company’s headquarters in the city.

74. High-Stakes Game - Saturday, December 15, 2012

At week’s end, International Paper Co. appeared ready to move forward with officially applying for a package of tax incentives as part of a plan to expand the company’s headquarters in the city.

75. Transcript: Luttrell Discusses Schools, Other Issues Facing County - Monday, August 13, 2012

Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell talked several weeks ago with The Memphis News editorial board about the coming merger of schools and the creation of municipal school districts.

The conversation took place a few days before voters in all six suburban towns and cities approved the creation of municipal school districts.

76. Hill Leaders May Punt Spending Bills to Next Year - Friday, July 27, 2012

WASHINGTON (AP) – With the agenda for a postelection lame duck session of Congress already stacked high, congressional leaders are considering lightening the load by punting much of the remaining budget work of Congress to next year.

77. Council Passes Sales Tax Hike Ballot Question - Thursday, July 19, 2012

The pair of questions the Memphis City Council is considering for the Nov. 6 ballot is another chapter in the council’s nearly five-year debate about the size and role of city government.

The council Tuesday, July 17, approved on third and final reading the referendum ordinance that puts a half percent local option sales tax hike proposal to Memphis voters.

78. Wharton: ‘Everything is Coming Together’ - Monday, July 9, 2012

Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. had to make a decision Monday, July 2: Get up before dawn and catch a flight to Atlanta or stick with a scheduled and extensive bus tour for newspaper editors and others of the three core city neighborhoods he has targeted in a small-business innovation effort.

79. Unified Development Code Meeting Slated for June 27 - Monday, June 18, 2012

A public meeting to discuss amendments to the Unified Development Code is slated for Wednesday, June 27, at Circuit Playhouse, 51 S. Cooper St., from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m.

80. Events - Wednesday, May 23, 2012

The Downtown Memphis Commission design review board will hold a special-called public meeting Wednesday, May 23, from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the DMC conference room, 114 N. Main St. DRB members and staff will discuss current drafts of the Downtown Memphis design guidelines and sign code.

81. Council Rejects 18 Cent Property Tax Hike - Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Memphis City Council members voted Tuesday, March 20, to reject a one-time, 18-cent property tax hike to mop up an estimated $13 million in red ink for the current fiscal year.

Instead the council voted to use $10 million from the city’s reserve fund and cut $3.2 million in the existing budget including money for a voluntary buyout program of some sanitation workers that the Wharton administration has yet to activate.

82. Elvis Presley Blvd. Center of Council Talks - Thursday, February 23, 2012

For decades what is now Elvis Presley Boulevard was the road to Memphis for those from Mississippi, whether they were coming to stay or coming to visit.

Much has changed since Elvis Presley moved into a home on a hill already named Graceland in the mid-1950s when Whitehaven was a country road not yet a part of the city of Memphis.

83. Council Weighs In on Electrolux Incentives - Thursday, January 5, 2012

Some Memphis City Council members want to at least slow the appropriation of local government funding to Electrolux North America Cooking Products if the company isn’t more responsive to hiring local for the construction of its Memphis manufacturing plant.

84. Thomison Joins PGM/Trumbull - Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Dr. John Thomison has joined Pathology Group of the Mid-South/Trumbull Labs LLC.

Hometown: Nashville

85. GOP Leaders Hope for Agreement on Payroll Tax Cut - Friday, December 9, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – The Senate rejected dueling Democratic and Republican plans for extending the Social Security payroll tax on Thursday as partisan skirmishing continued over a cornerstone of President Barack Obama's plan for breathing life back into the American job market.

86. Memphian Cobb Joins MIFA As Meals on Wheels Director - Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Trentwood Cobb has joined Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association as director of MIFA Meals on Wheels, which provides hot meals to senior citizens in the greater Memphis area.

Hometown: Memphis

87. Wharton, Fullilove & Conrad Re-Elected -- Harris-Ford to Runoff - Friday, October 7, 2011
Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. won a full four-year term of office as mayor Thursday, Oct. 6, two years after he claimed the mayor’s office in a special election.

And all 12 of the Memphis City Council members seeking re-election won new four year terms in the city election cycle, marking the largest return of incumbents to the 13-member council in the 43-year history of the mayor-council form of government.

88. Senate Democrats Add Millionaire Tax to Jobs Bill - Thursday, October 6, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – Struggling to deliver the big jobs package proposed by President Barack Obama, Senate Democrats are using the issue to force Republican senators to vote on tax increases for millionaires, picking up on a White House theme that the nation's wealthiest Americans aren't paying their fair share.

89. Vote for Me - Monday, September 12, 2011

Four years after the biggest turnover on the Memphis City Council, the Oct. 6 city elections could see the biggest return of incumbents ever on the council. Early voting begins Friday, Sept. 16.

Twelve of the 13 incumbents are seeking re-election. It would have been 13 had Barbara Swearengen Ware not taken a plea deal on an official misconduct charge.

90. Debt-Limit Votes: Senate Momentum, House Concerns - Tuesday, August 2, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – The House began debate Monday on the hard-bargained plan to avert a national financial default, even as the White House and congressional leaders struggled to round up enough votes to approve it. Supporters said momentum for the deficit-reduction compromise was on their side, but resistance from both liberals and conservatives made the outcome unclear.

91. House Nears Vote on GOP Debt Bill; Dems Oppose - Monday, August 1, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) — Partisan to the core, Congress groped uncertainly Friday for a way to avoid a government default threatened for early next week. "We are almost out of time," warned President Barack Obama as U.S. financial markets trembled.

92. GOP Retools Plan as Congress Seeks Debt Fix - Thursday, July 28, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) — Six days away from a potentially calamitous government default, House Republicans appeared to be coalescing Wednesday around a work-in-progress plan by House Speaker John Boehner to increase the U.S. borrowing limit and chop $1 trillion in federal spending. But the White House dismissed the proposal as a waste of time, and it got a thumbs-down from Senate Democrats and tea party activists, too.

93. White House Threatens to Veto Boehner's House Plan - Wednesday, July 27, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House threatened on Tuesday to veto emergency House legislation that aims to avert a threatened national default, a pre-emptive strike issued as Republican Speaker John Boehner labored to line up enough votes in his own party to pass the measure.

94. Debt Dispute Boils: Capitol's Hot, Inside and Out - Monday, July 25, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – Gridlock stubbornly held the high ground in the steamy capital Friday despite the threat of a government default in 11 days' time. Talks between President Barack Obama and House Speaker John Boehner seemed stuck in limbo, and the Democratic-controlled Senate scuttled legislation drawn to conservatives' specifications.

95. Boyd Moves Into Temp. Council Seat - Monday, July 25, 2011

It’s the week between the filing deadline for the Oct. 6 Memphis elections and the deadline for any candidates who made the first deadline to get out of the race by Thursday, July 28, at noon – the withdrawal deadline.

96. 4 Council Members - All 3 City Court Judges To Run Unopposed In Oct. Elections - Friday, July 22, 2011

Four incumbent Memphis City Council members and all three incumbent City Court Judges were effectively re-elected at the Thursday, July 21, noon deadline for candidates to file their qualifying petitions for the Oct. 6 Memphis ballot.

97. Last-Minute Filers Make Election Deadline - Thursday, July 21, 2011

A flurry of last-minute filings came at the noon Thursday, July 21, deadline for candidates in the Oct. 6 Memphis elections to turn in their qualifying petitions.

Shelby County Election Commission staffers were still checking the signatures on the petitions filed Thursday to make sure those signing were voters and lived in the districts they signed for or the city in the case of the citywide races.

98. S&P Says US Will Get Lowest Rating if It Defaults - Friday, July 1, 2011

WASHINGTON (AP) – A Standard & Poor's executive said the agency will give the U.S. government its lowest credit rating if Congress fails to raise the borrowing limit and the United States defaults on its debt.

99. Pieces of the Puzzle - Monday, June 27, 2011

Memphis City Council members left the city property tax rate at $3.19 Tuesday, June 21, as they ended their budget season.

But they added 18 cents to the tax rate on a one time basis with a separate resolution.

100. Council Approves ‘Right-Sizing’ Budget, Tax Hike - Thursday, June 23, 2011

While the Memphis City Council left the city property tax rate at $3.19 as it ended the budget season Tuesday, June 21, it added 18 cents to the tax rate on a one-time basis with a separate resolution.