Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A proposal to allow student identification issued by state higher education institutions to be used for voting is advancing in the Senate.

The measure sponsored by Republican Sen. Bill Ketron of Murfreesboro unanimously passed the Senate State and Local Government Committee 8-0 on Tuesday with little debate.

The proposal doesn’t allow library cards issued by local governments, an issue that's been debated in court for about a year now.

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) — Kermit Davis wants his Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders to seize control of their postseason destiny this year.

The Blue Raiders thought they had an NCAA tournament team a season ago before losing their regular season finale and in the Sun Belt Conference tournament quarterfinals. They wound up in the National Invitation Tournament.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP/WMOT) — A couple who fled to Middle Tennessee from Germany with their five children has asked a federal appeals court to grant them asylum in the U.S.

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided this week to hear oral arguments in April.

Uwe and Hannelore Romeike removed their children from a German school in 2006 because they felt it was turning the children against the family's Christian values.

Attendance in a state-approved school is required in Germany, and parents who violate the law can face fines, jail and possible custody loss.

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) — The mother of two young children who died after being left inside a hot car in Smyrna has been indicted on charges of murder.

The Daily New Journal reports the Rutherford County Grand jury has charged Samantha Harper with two counts of felony murder and two counts of aggravated child neglect for the Aug. 2 deaths of her children.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — The Ku Klux Klan has applied for a permit to hold a rally next month in Memphis over the decision to strip off Confederate names from Memphis city parks.

WMC-TV in Memphis reports that the city received an application from the group. Police said the KKK is planning a rally on March 30.

Chief Administrative Officer George Little said if approved, they’ll be treated like any other group.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Republican Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey is opposing a National Rifle Association-backed effort to block public access to the state's handgun carry permits.

Ramsey tells The Associated Press that the ability to scrutinize the identities of people with handgun carry permits strengthens gun advocates' arguments that they are worthy of carrying loaded firearms in public.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Senate has voted to place a proposed constitutional amendment before Tennessee voters to ban a state income tax.

The chamber approved the income tax measure this morning on a 26-4 vote. If the House concurs, the amendments would be placed on the ballot in next year's general election.

The political fallout from failed efforts to impose a state income tax more than a decade ago has already made renewed efforts exceedingly unlikely.

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — Georgia lawmakers are again contesting the state's border with Tennessee in a long-standing dispute involving the ongoing war over water between the two states.

The Georgia General Assembly began work on a resolution earlier this month which, if passed, would lead to a proposal to Tennessee government: You give us access to the Tennessee River at Nickajack Lake, and we'll acknowledge the current boundary as the official border.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Nashville mosque was vandalized early Monday.

Police told WTVF-TV that the windows were broken out at the Al-Farooq Mosque before sunrise Monday morning. Two funeral cars in the parking lot also had their windshields broken.

Mosque member Hassam Mohamed told the station a man went through a window to get inside and demolished property there.

A taxi-cab driver who was driving by told members he saw the man trying to get into a vehicle in the parking lot. The man then ran off, wearing only boxer shorts.

TULLAHOMA, Tenn. (AP) — Officials at Arnold Engineering Development Complex are making plans to deal with potentially deep cuts to the federal defense budget.

Officials tell the Chattanooga Times Free Press that employee cuts are not anticipated, but other actions to reduce spending may be taken. They include a civilian hiring freeze, canceling non-essential flights and putting limits on supply orders.