The DeKalb County unemployment rate dropped to 3.7% in September, down from 4.4% in August and well below the 6% rate recorded in September 2016.
The local labor force for September 2017 was 7,790. A total of 7,500 were employed and 290 were without work.
Jobless rates for September among the fourteen counties in the Upper Cumberland region were as follows from highest to lowest:
Jackson:3.7%
DeKalb: 3.7%
Clay: 3.6%
Fentress: 3.6%
Van Buren: 3.4%
Cumberland: 3.3%
Overton: 3.2%
White: 3.2%
Pickett: 3%
Warren: 3%
Putnam: 2.8%
Cannon: 2.7%
Macon: 2.7%
Smith: 2.6%
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Burns Phillips announced that in September 2017, for the first time ever, the jobless rate was below 5 percent in every county across the state. This is the second consecutive month rates have declined in each of Tennessee’s 95 counties.
September also marked the fourth consecutive month Tennessee experienced a historic low statewide unemployment rate. At 3 percent, Tennessee has the lowest unemployment in the southeast and the eighth lowest rate in the nation.
“With every county seeing unemployment rates below five percent and with a record statewide unemployment rate, Tennessee’s fiscal strength is clear and the investment in our workforce is paying off,” Haslam said. “Employers know that Tennessee is a place where they can find skilled workers, so they continue to expand and relocate here.”
Williamson County reported Tennessee’s lowest unemployment rate in September at 2.1 percent, down from 2.7 percent in August. Davidson County recorded the second lowest rate at 2.2 percent, falling from 2.7 percent the previous month. Rutherford, Cheatham, Wilson and Sumner Counties all have a September rate of 2.3 percent, down more than 0.5 percent from August.
“Many of the most notable decreases in September took place in counties with the highest unemployment rates, pointing out the economic growth and opportunity in some of Tennessee’s most distressed counties,” Phillips said.
Rhea County continued to have the highest percentage of unemployed workers in Tennessee, but in September its rate fell from 6 percent to 4.9 percent. In January, Rhea County recorded a 10.2 percent unemployment rate. Each of the counties with the highest unemployment rates in the state saw similar decreases in September.
This is the fourth time in 2017 unemployment rates have decreased in all 95 counties. Rates also dropped in every county during February, April and August.
The improved county statistics for September follow the fourth consecutive month Tennessee experienced a record low statewide unemployment rate, which was 3 percent, down 0.3 percent from August. The national unemployment rate also dropped in September to 4.2 percent.
The statewide and national unemployment rates are seasonally adjusted, but the county rates are not. Seasonal adjustment is a statistical technique that eliminates the influences of weather, holidays, opening and closing of schools and other recurring seasonal events from an economic time series.
Additional information about Tennessee’s labor statistics, as well as job search resources and postings, can be found at Jobs4TN.gov.

Applications will be available for pickup for the 22nd Annual Angel Tree Project from Monday, October 30th through Friday, November 3rd.
Spokesperson Laura Stone said that the application turn in date has been set for one day only. “Applications can be picked up October 30th through November 3rd. You will continue to pick up your applications at the Department of Human Services, but the application must be returned in person on Thursday, November 9th at the Smithville First Baptist Church Life Enrichment Center,” she said.
“Completed applications must be returned to the First Baptist Church Life Enrichment Center Building in downtown Smithville (on the corner across from First Baptist) on Thursday, November 9th from 2:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Applications not returned to the Church LEC Building on November 9th WILL NOT be accepted. There are no exceptions to the requirements of the application process. It is very important that you understand we will only accept applications this one day only,” said Stone.
“Applications can only be picked up at the Department of Human Services on October 30th through November 3rd and can only be returned to the Church LEC Building on November 9th. In addition to bringing the completed application, applicants must provide photo identification of the person applying and social security cards and birth certificates for ALL children listed on the application. We will only be keeping the application; all other documents will be returned to the applicant. If an applicant cannot appear in person, their application can be submitted by a family member as long as all of the required information is presented.” Stone continued.
“Eligible children must live in DeKalb County and be no older than age 12 by December 25, 2017. The Department of Human Services will only be passing out the applications. Nothing will be returned to them and any questions should be directed to Laura Stone at 615-464-7135”. Do not contact anyone at the Department of Human Services or First Baptist Church or anyone other than Laura. Your application will be denied if these directions are not followed. Stone adds that “the Angel Tree has been such a tremendous success in the past and with economic times extremely tough for many in our area, we want this years Angel Tree to be no exception. The Angel Tree helps so many families who are struggling to make ends meet. It is sad to think about, but many of these children would not otherwise have a single present for Christmas. With the economy still struggling, we are expecting demand to be high.”

DeKalb West Cheerleaders attended the Universal Cheerleading Association Cheer Camp, June 7-9. It was a camp packed with rigor and skills with little down time. DWS cheerleaders performed cheers, jumps, motion techniques, chants, and dance for extreme routines. UCA staff evaluated the team members each day. On the final day of camp, all DWS cheerleaders were eligible to try out for the honor of All-American Cheerleader; skills in jumps, dance, motion, and cheer were evaluated by UCA staff. Makayla Cook, Ellie Vaughn, Zoi Hale, Kortnee Skeen, and Faith Tripp were selected as UCA All-Americans. Each All-American selected is eligible to perform with other UCA All-Americans at Disneyland in November. Other individual awards were Makayla Cook-jumps, and Zoi Hale-dance. The “Most Persistent for Perfection” Award went to Alonna Christian and Ellie Vaughn. The squad won the following awards: 1 superior “Gold” – chants and sidelines, 1 superior-extreme routine/dance, and 1 excellent -cheer/builds. The DWS squad also was presented with the “Superior” overall trophy. All DWS cheerleaders participated in an optional service award partnered by UCA and St. Jude; each DWS cheerleader received a service pin for their participation.
DWS Cheerleaders are cheering on the Bulldogs this upcoming year. They started their year cheering at the Back-to-School Celebration, and the DWS PAWS pep rally.
Once again, congratulations to DWS Cheer Alumni. DCHS football and basketball Cheerleaders, Haley Dies, Hannah Evans, Emily Roehner, Breanna Gibson, Mariah Mofield, and Holly Evans, who all were nominated for All-American. Rosa Payne will continue to cheer. She was selected as a Cumberland University Football Cheerleader and Collegiate Competition Cheerleader. Congratulations to all DWS cheerleaders (present and past)!

A total of 95 persons have taken advantage of early voting in the 17th Senatorial District Special Primary election with four days left.
Seventy three have voted in person and there have been 22 absentee voters . A further breakdown shows 53 have voted in the Republican Primary and 42 in the Democratic primary.
Early voting continues through November 2 at the following times: Monday 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday 9 a.m. until Noon, Wednesday 9 a.m. until Noon and Thursday 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. All early voting is on the first floor (basement) courtroom of the courthouse.
Two candidates are seeking to fill the remaining months of the unexpired term of former State Senator Mae Beavers, who is now running for Governor.
Mark Pody is unopposed for the Republican nomination. Mary Alice Carfi is unopposed for the Democratic nomination. The primaries will be Tuesday, November 7.
The general election will be December 19

The DeKalb County Tigers have punched their ticket to the TSSAA Class 4A Playoffs after defeating the Cumberland County Jets 16-8 at Crossville in the last game of the regular season Friday night.
The Tigers (3-7 overall, 1-3 region), who finished 4th in Region 3, will travel to Lewisburg next Friday night to take on Marshall County (7-3 overall, 5-0 region) who finished 1st in Region 4.
(CLICK LINK BELOW TO HEAR TIGER TALK FROM FRIDAY WITH COACH STEVE TRAPP AND TIGER PLAYS NICK MAY, TYLER CANTRELL, AND JESSE SMITH)
http://www.wjle.com/audio/tiger-talk-october-27th
The only score of the first half Friday night came on a 45 yard touchdown pass play from Tiger quarterback Tyler Cantrell to Bradley Miller. Andrew Fuson added the extra point and DeKalb County led 7-0 with 11:49 left in the 2nd period.
The Tigers scored twice in the 3rd period. Andrew Fuson booted a 32 yard field goal to give DeKalb County a 10-0 advantage. Grayson Redmon then caught a touchdown pass from Tyler Cantrell good for 79 yards. The extra point try was no good but DeKalb led 16-0 with 2:08 left in the 3rd period.
After a fumbled punt, the Jets scored on their next possession with 11:44 left in the 4th period on a 27 yard touchdown run by Jacob Kerley. They added 2 more points on the conversion but DeKalb County went on to win 16-8.
WJLE will have LIVE coverage next Friday night, November 3 from Marshall County. Kick-off will be at 7:00 p.m.

The DeKalb County Republican Party will be hosting a FREE Fall Picnic at Green Brook Park on Saturday, November 4, 2017, from 11:00AM-1:00PM. All DeKalb County residents are invited to come and share in fellowship and hear from our Republican candidates and campaigns.
Candidates/Representatives from the following campaigns have been invited to attend and introduce themselves: Mae Beavers for Governor, Diane Black for Governor, Randy Boyd for Governor, Beth Harwell for Governor, Bill Lee for Governor, Marsha Blackburn for US Senate, Andy Ogles for US Senate, Stephen Fincher for US Senate, Judd Matheny for Congress, John Rose for Congress, Mark Pody for State Senate, Terri Lynn Weaver for State Representative, Chad Williams for State Representative, Menda Holmes for State Representative, and Clark Boyd for State Representative. In addition to these federal and state candidates, local elected officials and candidates have also been invited to attend. This includes Sheriff Patrick Ray, Trustee Sean Driver, Road Superintendent Butch Agee, and Assessor of Property Shannon Cantrell.
“2018 is shaping up to be a huge year for Republicans in Tennessee,” GOP Chair Mingy Bryant said. “We are expecting record Republican turnout in DeKalb County in 2018 and this picnic is a great way to learn about the candidates. This also serves as a get out the vote event for the Special Election for State Senate, District 17. We look forward to doing all that we can to help elect Mark Pody as our next State Senator on December 19.”
Voter registration will be available. Again, this is a free event and open to all residents of DeKalb County. For more information, go to our Facebook Page at DeKalb County Republican Party.