Lawrence County County Receives Governor’s ThreeStar Award

Governor Bill Haslam and the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development presented ThreeStar awards at the 2016 Governor’s Conference on Economic and Community Development in Nashville in October.

“The ThreeStar process provides us with an opportunity to collaborate with the public and private sectors of Lawrence County to understand the range and quality of services offered to the community,” said Ethan Hadley, President of the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce.

“Maintaining our ThreeStar certification gives us a competitive advantage when applying for state funds for projects that directly impact the quality of life for the citizens of Lawrence County.” The ThreeStar program is a vital component to Tennessee’s overall level of success, providing counties with a framework for continued economic and community strength.

Annual participation in the ThreeStar program helps communities develop a strategy and a plan to address Governor Haslam’s five priorities for public policy that include: jobs and economic development; fiscal strength and efficient government; public safety; health and welfare; and education and workforce development.

The program encourages local community leaders, representing the five program areas, the Joint Economic and Community Development Board, and other key community stakeholders to implement activities that will impact the quality of life issues and therefore, their global competitiveness.

Benefits of certification include a four percent discount on the required match rate for select state and federal grants. Participation in certain state programs, such as the TN Downtown Revitalization Program, Select Tennessee Property Evaluation Program, and the Tourism Enhancement Grant Program require the county is ThreeStar certified.

Additionally, certified counties designated as Tier 2 and Tier 3 are eligible for an annual grant to serve as seed money for activities focused on improving at least one of the measured areas of the program. To learn more about the ThreeStar program, visit TN.gov/ECD/ThreeStar.