Tennessee governor pushes nuclear investment and road construction in sixth year

by Sam Stockard, Tennessee Lookout
February 11, 2025

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee touted a strong economy and opportunity for change Monday as he delivered his sixth State of the State address, even as critics said Tennessee has some of the nation’s lowest wages and teachers continue to struggle financially.

“2025 should be the year to think bigger and to think boldly about what’s possible and go there,” Lee said in the annual joint session of the House and Senate. “If Tennessee has led the nation as a beacon of opportunity, security and freedom, why can’t we be the nation’s capital of innovation too? Somebody is going to determine what the future looks like. That should be Tennessee.”

Two weeks after passing his signature private-school voucher bill and immigration enforcement to align with President Donald Trump’s plan to deport immigrants without legal status, Lee is ready to pour millions of dollars into nuclear facilities designed to bolster the state’s energy systems. He called it part of his plan for “securing the future of America” and is proposing a $10 million investment in the state’s nuclear energy fund, created two years ago, that attracted companies such as Kairos, X Energy and Orano.

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Another $50 million is to go toward development of a small nuclear reactor on the Clinch River after the Tennessee Valley Authority applied for an $800 million federal grant for the project.

The governor said his administration has recruited more than $40 billion in capital investment in his six years in office, bringing 234,000 new jobs to the state.

Lee also pushed the idea of “limited government” by saying, “More bureaucracy does not mean better service. Businesses already know this — government should do the same.”

Yet some Republicans leveled criticism against the governor’s private-school voucher program two weeks ago, calling it a new “entitlement” program that would see annual cost increases and eventually drive the state off a “fiscal cliff.” In its first year, the program and related expenses total $450 million. 

Vouchers alone are budgeted at $148 million and are expected to increase to $167 million in the second year as more new students accept $7,300 vouchers to enroll in private schools. Two-thirds of the 20,000 students slated to accept vouchers in the first year are enrolled in private schools already.

Democrats said in spite of the governor’s effort to push starting teacher pay to $50,000 by the end of his term, teachers are still making less than a decade ago, when adjusted for inflation.

Lee touched on immigration enforcement bills costing $50.5 million that the legislature passed during the recent special session and said neither immigration nor education vouchers could wait. The funds will make grants to local law enforcement agencies to arrest and detain immigrants without proof of legal residency, as well as creation of an immigration “czar” and staff to work in secret with locals and the federal government as President Donald Trump promises mass deportations.

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Lee supported Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, which is being run by multi-billionaire Elon Musk, as a way to cut expenses and said “limited” government can do more with less resources. Critics of Trump and Musk’s effort to eliminate the USAID program for international efforts say Congress is the only body with the ability to cut program spending. 

With most of his major initiatives behind him, the governor announced creation of the Alexander Institute for Environmental Education and the Sciences, named for former Gov. Lamar Alexander, which will sit along the main route to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

He is also putting $100 million into his $59.4 billion budget plan to come up with a regional water supply to take pressure off the Duck River where rapid residential growth is taking place.

In addition, Lee is backing a $25 million plan to buy temporary easements from farmers who volunteer to participate in the program in an effort to slow down development.

Lee announced creation of the Tennessee Works Scholarship, which will cover tuition and fees for all students who enroll at a Tennessee College of Applied Technology.

The governor also announced the formation of a $60 million revolving loan fund to help first-time homebuyers.

The governor is proposing $11 million to give to the Boys and Girls Clubs to serve 7,500 children across the state. Lee also wants to expand eligibility in the state’s WAGES program to help childcare workers.

In advance of the address, Democratic Rep. John Ray Clemmons of Nashville predicted Lee would present a “rosy picture” but said the governor has given billionaires and special interests priority over working people.

Clemmons pointed toward last year’s $1.5 billion business tax break to corporations.

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Democrats want to eliminate the state’s grocery tax of about 4% and lower healthcare and child-care costs, along with investing more in public schools rather than “defunding” them with private-school vouchers, Clemmons said.

New infrastructure is needed, as well, for a train system people can take to work to avoid sitting in traffic, he said. The governor’s main plan is a series of public-private partnerships to construct “toll lanes” along some of the state’s most congested interstates.

“We need a government that works for all Tennesseans, not just the wealthy few,” Clemmons said.

Tennessee Lookout is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Tennessee Lookout maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Holly McCall for questions: info@tennesseelookout.com.