tax credits

16 Nov, 2021

Despite pushes for more accountability, economic development remains opaque in Tennessee

By |2021-11-16T13:14:06-06:00November 16, 2021|Categories: economic development|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments

Taxpayers don't know what they are getting for their money despite some lawmakers pushing for more accountability and information. Why? A web of exceptions to Tennessee's Public Records laws and lack of meaningful reporting on outcomes prevent transparency in the state's economic development programs.

22 May, 2019

2019 Legislative Report: New exemptions to Public Records Act, and bills that failed or were delayed

By |2021-10-14T14:32:58-05:00May 22, 2019|Categories: economic development, exemptions, Legislature, Public Records|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |0 Comments

Following is a list of new public records exemptions and other public record laws passed by the 111th General Assembly, plus some proposals that failed or were delayed until next year. TCOG 2019 Legislative Report (If you would like to print this, here is the legislative report in PDF format without photos.) The new exemptions add to a list that is nearing 600. Citizens can expect some bills related to public records to re-emerge when the Legislature reconvenes Jan. 14, 2020. One of the more significant bills that was delayed, but attracted a lot of attention late in the session, would create a process for an injunction against a public [...]

6 Feb, 2019

An early look at open government legislation we’re tracking for 2019

By |2019-02-18T19:40:25-06:00February 6, 2019|Categories: Legislature, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: , , , , , , |0 Comments

Today is a bill filing deadline in Tennessee, so this list will be updated and most certainly will get bigger as we learn more. The larger issue for TCOG will be caption bills, which open up parts of the Tennessee Code that are not part of the Public Records Act in Title 10, Chapter 7, and are not yet clear that they aim to close records.  We hope to find out about these bills early in the process so that we can examine the language more closely. If you know of something, please let us know! We are happy to examine and vet legislation, and share our insight on how [...]

10 Dec, 2018

Tennessee lags other states in tax credit transparency

By |2020-11-19T12:54:12-06:00December 10, 2018|Categories: economic development, Legislature|Tags: , , , |1 Comment

(Update 2-8-2020: The most recent annual report on claimed tax credits from the year ending in mid-June shows the annual carryover liability has grown to $1.3 billion. You'll find this information in the footnotes.) When it comes to transparency of state business tax credits given to companies as part of economic development programs, Tennessee lags other states in how much it reveals to the public. The amount carried over in economic development tax credits to be used by businesses against future taxes is nearly $1 billion in Tennessee. But who is receiving the credits is confidential, the state says, unlike in other states. The Department of Revenue last [...]

14 Nov, 2018

What records are open and closed on the Amazon deal?

By |2020-11-19T12:37:18-06:00November 14, 2018|Categories: exemptions|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments

Now that Amazon has announced that it will locate a logistics hub with 5,000 big-paying jobs in Nashville, what documents related to the $102 million incentive deal are subject to the Tennessee Public Records Act? The incentives announced yesterday break down this way, as reported by news outlets: A $65 million grant from the state based on Amazon creating 5,000 jobs and investing $600 million within a seven-year period. The grant can be used for land acquisition, site preparation, building construction, infrastructure improvements and development, including, but not limited to, sewer, water and utility infrastructure, or "any other eligible activities," according to a Nov. 2 summary of state incentives obtained by [...]

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