Open Meetings Archives - Page 10 of 28 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

27 Jun, 2020

Judge: Nashville board violated Open Meetings Act by failing to provide adequate notice of soccer stadium vote

By Deborah Fisher|2020-06-29T10:55:50-05:00June 27, 2020|Categories: adequate public notice, Open Meetings, open meetings lawsuits|Tags: adequate notice, Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle, Duane Dominy, Metro Nashville, Nashville sports authority, open meetings violations|0 Comments

Artist rendering of planned soccer stadium in Nashville. A Nashville judge said the Nashville sports authority board violated the Open Meetings Act when it did not provide adequate notice of the meeting in which it approved a $192 million construction management project for the stadium. A Davidson County chancellor ruled that Nashville government violated the Open Meetings Act in 2018 by failing to provide adequate notice of a Metro Sports Authority board meeting in which a $192 million construction contract was signed for a soccer stadium. Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle in her June 25 order ruled the action taken in approving the contract with Mortenson/Messer Construction Company is void and [...]

15 Jun, 2020

TCOG survey documents state’s experience with electronic meetings

By Deborah Fisher|2020-06-15T08:47:06-05:00June 15, 2020|Categories: Open Meetings, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: audibility of public meeting, COVID-19, electronic meetings, open meetings|0 Comments

News reporters, citizens and some government officials provided assessments on governing body meetings held electronically as part of TCOG's informal statewide survey. This screenshot is of a meeting of the Hamilton County Board of Education. An informal survey by Tennessee Coalition for Open Government on governing body meetings held in April and May has for the first time documented the state’s widespread experience with electronic meetings under the Open Meetings Act. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the governor on March 20 temporarily suspended part of the Open Meetings Act to allow governing bodies to meet and conduct business by electronic means rather than being required to gather a quorum [...]

6 May, 2020

Gov. Lee extends order allowing governing bodies to meet electronically through June 30

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-09T13:09:12-05:00May 6, 2020|Categories: Open Meetings|Tags: COVID-19, electronic meetings, executive order, Gov. Bill Lee, open meetings|0 Comments

Gov. Bill Lee extended provisions in Executive Order No. 16 allowing members of governing bodies to meet electronically through June 30. The order previously was scheduled to expire on May 18. The new order makes no changes in the earlier provisions other than extending the date. Under Executive Order No. 16, a governing body subject to the Open Meetings Act in Tennessee may "meet and conduct its essential business by electronic means, rather than being required to gather a quorum of members physically present at the same location, if the governing body determines that meeting electronically is necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of Tennesseans in light of [...]

29 Apr, 2020

TCOG joins open meetings lawsuit against Registry of Election Finance board over email vote

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-09T13:11:31-05:00April 29, 2020|Categories: open meetings lawsuits, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: attorney-client privilege, Bill Young, email vote, Registry of Election Finance, Tennessee Attorney General, Tom Lawless|1 Comment

In an effort to uphold the Open Meetings Act, the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government today joined news media organizations, journalists and press associations in filing an open meetings lawsuit against the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance. See lawsuit here. (Read: Media groups sue campaign finance board over email vote, contend violation of open meetings law - By Joel Ebert, The Tennessean, Tennessee media groups, watchdog sue over vote by email - By Travis Loller, AP, Reporters Committee group files lawsuit over Towns decision - By Sam Stockard, The Daily Memphian.) On the evening of April 1, the election finance board took an email vote in secret to reduce by [...]

29 Apr, 2020

Electronic meetings survey: We need your observations!

By Deborah Fisher|2020-05-09T13:12:54-05:00April 29, 2020|Categories: Open Meetings, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: COVID-19, electronic meetings|0 Comments

Knoxville City Council using Zoom on March 24, 2020. Tennessee Coalition for Open Government is collecting information on how governing bodies have conducted meetings during COVID-19, including electronic meetings. What went well? What didn't? And how can things be improved? Governor Bill Lee on March 20 issued Executive Order No. 16, temporarily suspending the requirement that members of a governing body gather a quorum of members physically present at the same location to conduct business. It allowed governing bodies to instead meet by electronic means in light of the COVID-19 outbreak so long as they provided live access, or a clear audio or video recording afterward. The order expires on [...]