Governor Bill Lee praises swift state response, says long road remains for East Tennessee recovery

Governor Bill Lee told members of a joint convention of the Tennessee General Assembly that East Tennesseans are continuing to recover from a severe disaster that the governor said caused about $1.2 billion in damage.

"East Tennesseeans continue to face an unprecedented disaster, damages to the tune of 1,200,000,000. And our initial response at the state was immediate and substantial," Governor Bill Lee said during the address.

Lee told legislators that state agencies have been on the ground for months helping recovery efforts and that local governments, churches and nonprofits also stepped up after the event. He said the General Assembly acted quickly in a recent special session to support the hardest-hit communities and asked the chamber to acknowledge county mayors attending the address.

The governor named four county mayors from hard-hit areas—Patty Woodby of Carter County, Kevin Morrison of Greene County, Larry Potter of Johnson County and Joe Grandy of Washington County—and asked members to recognize them. "Mayors, will you please stand and let us thank you," Lee said.

Lee did not provide additional line-item details for recovery spending in the portions of the address included in the transcript beyond praising the special session's actions and noting ongoing state agency involvement. The governor described the recovery as "a long road ahead" and said the state would continue work with local leaders, churches and nonprofits in affected communities.

The remarks occurred during the governor's speech to a joint convention; they were presented as both recognition for local leaders and an update on the state's immediate recovery efforts.