Legislature Archives - Page 15 of 37 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

10 Apr, 2020

New law corrects language in public records act regarding redaction

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-09T14:41:48-05:00April 10, 2020|Categories: Legislature|Tags: redactions|0 Comments

One of the few bills that passed in the final days before the Tennessee General Assembly recessed in March was a bill that corrected a mistake in the drafting of a public records exemption in 2002. State Sen. Rusty Crowe, R-Johnson City The legislation, signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee on March 25 and effective immediately, deletes the language "subsection (a)" where it appears in T.C.A. § 10-7-504 (a)(20) and replaces it with "subdivision (a)(20)". The exemption deals with confidentiality of municipal utility records. The bill clarified that the provisions in this particular subdivision only apply to the municipal utility records made confidential in subdivision T.C.A. § 10-7-504 (a)(20) [...]

22 May, 2019

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

By Deborah Fisher|2021-10-14T14:32:58-05:00May 22, 2019|Categories: economic development, exemptions, Legislature, Public Records|Tags: 911 calls, anti-slapp, college sports, confidentiality agreements, economic development, harassment, jail booking mug shots, juvenile court records, meeting agendas, photos of public records, school bus video, settlement agreements, sexual harassment, tax credits, Tennessee State Museum, trade secrets, traffic accident reports|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 [...]

17 Apr, 2019

Bill to make 911 calls confidential to be worked on over summer

By Deborah Fisher|2019-04-17T13:38:26-05:00April 17, 2019|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: 911 calls|1 Comment

Legislation to make 911 calls and transmissions confidential was delayed after the House sponsor said he wanted to work more on the bill over the summer. State Rep. Rick Tillis, R-Lewisburg, represents Marshall and part of Franklin, Lincoln, and Marion Counties. He has filed a bill to make 911 confidential. The bill, HB 335, would have created an exemption to the Tennessee Public Records Act for all 911 calls, making them only available for use by law enforcement, the courts and other governmental agencies. The Tennessee Press Association and Tennessee Association of Broadcasters lobbied against the bill, pointing out that access to 911 calls have led to numerous news stories [...]

17 Apr, 2019

Bill to punish “harassing” public records requesters delayed until first calendars in 2020

By Deborah Fisher|2019-04-17T12:48:30-05:00April 17, 2019|Categories: adequate public notice, Legislature, requests|Tags: harassment, public records request, State Rep. William Lamberth, State Sen. Ferrell Haile|1 Comment

Proposed legislation that would allow a government entity in Tennessee to get an injunction to stop public records requesters whose requests constituted "harassment" has been delayed until next year. The bills, Senate Bill 590 and House Bill 626, sought to allow government entities to stop a public records requester from making further requests if a judge found the requests to be made "in a manner that would cause a reasonable person, including a records custodian or any staff of the public entity in control of the public records, to be seriously abused, intimidated, threatened, or harassed." The bills' sponsors, Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, and Sen. Ferrell Haile, R-Gallatin, offered different [...]

25 Mar, 2019

911 calls will be topic for House subcommittee this week

By Deborah Fisher|2019-04-17T13:11:38-05:00March 25, 2019|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: 911 calls, emergency communications board, Jack McElroy, State Rep. Rick Tillis|0 Comments

The House Public Service and Employees Subcommittee is scheduled to hear a proposal on Wednesday to make all "911 calls, transmissions, recordings of an emergency communications district and emergency communications board" confidential. The bill is sponsored by state Rep. Rick Tillis, R-Lewisburg. An amendment Tillis plans to offer on the bill clarifies that "transmission" includes video recordings and text messages of the emergency communications district and emergency communications boards. The subcommittee normally meets for Bill Review at 1 p.m. on Tuesdays on the fifth floor of the Cordell Hull building in Room 5F, in which stakeholders interested in bills can share their thoughts. The subcommittee meets in regular session at [...]