Southcomm

5 Mar, 2015

TSSAA seeks carve-out from Tennessee Public Records Act

By |2020-02-23T10:10:43-06:00March 5, 2015|Categories: exemptions, functional equivalent, Legislature|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments

The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association is asking the Legislature on Tuesday to close records that in the past were used to expose possible cheating in recruiting high school athletes.  It appears the people who regulate athletics for thousands of Tennessee youth want to be able to hide what they do and don’t do. The TSSAA, until last year, did not believe it was subject to the Tennessee Public Records Act. But a trial court and the Court of Appeals in Nashville courts affirmed that it is. Now a proposal in the Legislature, which is scheduled for the Senate State and Local Committee on Tuesday, seeks to statutorily relieve them [...]

1 Dec, 2014

After three years and a lawsuit, records from TSSAA finally made public

By |2020-02-23T10:11:13-06:00December 1, 2014|Categories: functional equivalent, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

The Nashville Scene finally received records sought three years ago from the Tennessee Secondary School Athletics Association as part of an investigation into rule-breaking by an elite private school in Nashville. When the TSSAA refused to turn over details about rule violations regarding tuition assistance for athletes at Montgomery Bell Academy, the now-defunct City Paper in Nashville sued and won. City Paper was owned by Southcomm Inc.; Southcomm also owns the Nashville Scene. Steve Cavendish, now news editor for the Nashville Scene and former editor at the City Paper, wrote that  the TSSAA finally turned over the records in November after the Tennessee Supreme Court declined to take the TSSAA's appeal [...]

7 May, 2014

Behind the TSSAA ruling: Preserving public oversight over government functions

By |2020-02-23T10:11:33-06:00May 7, 2014|Categories: functional equivalent, public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |1 Comment

An Appeals Court finds that regulating high school sports is a government function, so the regulator should be subject to open records law.  Should the agency that regulates high school athletic competitions in Tennessee – making rules, conducting investigations, deciding eligibility and collecting millions of dollars in gate receipts – be subject to the same public scrutiny as public high schools and school boards? The Court of Appeals in Nashville said yes in a significant April 30 decision that opens up records of an organization that touches nearly every community in the state. The City Paper in Nashville two years ago sought records from the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association’s [...]

1 May, 2014

Appeals court: TSSAA subject to Public Records Act

By |2020-02-23T10:11:53-06:00May 1, 2014|Categories: functional equivalent, public records lawsuits Tennessee, schools|Tags: , , , , , , , |0 Comments

The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association meets the standards of a "functional equivalent" of government and therefore is subject to the Tennessee Public Records Act, an appeals court in Nashville ruled today. The decision means the organization, which was created in 1925 and has an annual budget of $5 million, must abide by the same rules as government agencies when it comes to access to its records. Court of Appeals Judge Frank G. Clement Jr. The case arose in 2012 after TSSAA refused to give The City Paper  records related to an investigation into tuition for athletes at Montgomery Bell Academy, arguing it was not subject to the [...]

Go to Top