Tennesee not budging on border dispute

Tennessee lawmakers aren’t budging about the redrawing of their boundary with Georgia. Tennessee house members voted unanimously yesterday against joining a boundary commission proposed by Georgia lawmakers.

The Georgia Legislature passed a resolution last month to establish the commission to try to rectify a 19^th century survey that placed Georgia’s northern line just short of the Tennessee River.

Tennessee lawmakers say the boundary has been set for almost 200 years, and there’s no valid reason to revisit the issue.

To avoid the courts, both states and Congress would have to agree to a border change.

Lawmaker wants to redraw Georgia-Tennessee border

A Georgia lawmaker wants to push up Georgia’s boundary line with Tennessee.

Senator David Shaffer (R-Duluth) says an 1818 survey mistakenly over-drew the border about a mile south, and neither the Georgia General Assembly nor the US Congress accepted it. His bill would reset the boundary.

Shafer said it is important that this issue be settled now because of concern that Tennessee may attempt to "hoard" the water in the Tennessee River.

He then pointed out that the Tennessee River is fed by streams and creeks originating in Georgia and that there is more Georgia water in the Tennessee River than in our own Chattahoochee.