NASHVILLE, Tenn. (OSBORNE)  --  Tennessee lawmakers are sharing their legislative priorities as the 2019 session gets underway.

Jeff Yarbro is the State Senate Minority Leader. The Nashville Democrat says Medicaid expansion continues to be one of his party’s biggest legislative priorities.

“We’re one of about ten states, eleven states that hasn’t expanded Medicaid at this point, which is putting a lot of pressure on small town hospitals and lots of families unnecessarily.”

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (WMOT/TNS)  --  Tennessee’s tourism industry is happy that The Great Smoky Mountains National Park remains at least partially open during the government shutdown, but some are questioning that decision.

The park is one of Tennessee’s most important economic engines. Federal data shows the Smokies attract some 11 million visitors a year who spend in excess of $800 million annually.

Park officials are using camping and other visitor fees to keep the Smokies partially staffed. but there have been reports of trash, overflowing toilets and damaged property.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (OSBORNE)  --  Martin Luther King Day is fast approaching.

The national holiday takes place on the third Monday each January and will be celebrated this year on Monday, January 21.

You might be surprised to learn that Nashville holds one of the oldest MLK Day marches in the country. A march and convocation has been organized in the mid-state each year since 1989 by the Interdenominational Ministers Fellowship.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WMOT/TNS)  --  Human Trafficking advocates were thrilled when Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam granted Cyntoia Brown clemency earlier this month, but not everyone supported the decision to void her life-sentence for murder.

Brown was sixteen when she shot and killed Nashville resident Johnny Allen.  Allen bought the girl from a pimp who was trafficking Brown for sex. Brown shot Allen in the head, saying she feared he was about to kill her. She received a life sentence as a juvenile for that murder.

MANCHESTER, Tenn. (OSBORNE)  --  Bonnaroo tickets are now on sale. The four day Manchester music festival is set for the weekend of June 13.

Festival organizers announced the festival’s lineup Tuesday. This year’s headliners include Phish, Childish Gambino, Solange, Post Malone, Odesza, and The Lumineers.

Nashville Scene Music Editor Stephen Trageser says he sees Bonnaroo 2019 offering a nice balance between musical tastes. He also appreciates the inclusion of well-known performers along with up-and-coming acts.

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (OSBORNE)  --  Suicides are on the rise nationwide and here in Tennessee. A University of Michigan study says suicides have more than doubled since 2000.

The State of Tennessee is responding. It recently agreed to keep a more accurate count of suicides by joining a national violent death reporting system managed by the Centers for Disease Control.

The State also recently partnered with the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network to form a task force focused exclusively on suicide in Tennessee’s farm community.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (OSBORNE)  --  Some parents, teachers and board members are questioning the leadership of Metro schools director Dr. Shawn Joseph.

The controversy has been building for months, but has recently taken on racial tones. Madison and Gallatin area Board member Jill Speering is one of Joseph’s most outspoken critics. Speering is white. Dr. Joseph is black.