Open Meetings Archives - Page 3 of 28 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

20 Feb, 2023

Proposed law would require public comment periods
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Proposed law would require public comment periods

Legislature, public comment

Proposed law would require public comment periods

By Deborah Fisher|2023-02-20T10:02:07-06:00February 20, 2023|Categories: Legislature, public comment|Tags: public comment, Rep. Elaine Davis, Sen. Adam Lowe|0 Comments

Public comment periods would be required at governing body meetings under a bill filed by Knoxville state representative Elaine Davis and Calhoun senator Adam Lowe. The bill allows governing body members to set rules around public comment periods, such as limiting the amount of time of the period and the amount of time of each speaker. The bill requires a public comment period for citizens to comment on items "that are germane to the items on the agenda for the meeting."

24 Jan, 2023

Bill would allow local governing body members to attend meetings electronically
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Bill would allow local governing body members to attend meetings electronically

Legislature, Open Meetings

Bill would allow local governing body members to attend meetings electronically

By Deborah Fisher|2023-01-24T10:26:35-06:00January 24, 2023|Categories: Legislature, Open Meetings|Tags: electronic meetings, meeting videotape, Rep. Dave Wright, State Sen. Richard Briggs, voting by phone|0 Comments

Members of county and city legislative bodies in Tennessee would be able to attend meetings electronically, such as by videoconference or phone, when dealing with a family or medical emergency under a bill filed by a pair of lawmakers from Knox County. Sen. Richard Briggs and Rep. Dave Wright sponsored similar legislation in 2021, which failed in a House committee.

11 Jan, 2023

Bill seeks to give citizens better access to meeting agendas, material
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Bill seeks to give citizens better access to meeting agendas, material

Legislature, meeting agenda

Bill seeks to give citizens better access to meeting agendas, material

By Deborah Fisher|2023-04-11T10:57:30-05:00January 11, 2023|Categories: Legislature, meeting agenda|Tags: agendas, government websites, State Rep. Jerome Moon, State Sen. Todd Gardenhire, supplemental meeting documents|0 Comments

A proposed bill would improve citizen access to meeting agendas and board packets before public meeting by requiring they be publicly accessible, such as on a government website, for 48 hours before the meeting. The bill would also require that agendas "clearly describe the matters to be discussed" in an effort to avoid vague references to potential action.

19 Dec, 2022

Private meetings on Chattanooga redistricting violated open meetings law, lawsuit alleges
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Private meetings on Chattanooga redistricting violated open meetings law, lawsuit alleges

open meetings lawsuits

Private meetings on Chattanooga redistricting violated open meetings law, lawsuit alleges

By Deborah Fisher|2023-01-02T17:00:37-06:00December 19, 2022|Categories: open meetings lawsuits|Tags: Chattanooga, Chattanooga City Council, litigation, private meetings, public notice, redistricting, Times Free Press|2 Comments

A redistricting committee made up of Chattanooga city councilmembers violated the open meetings act when it convened privately to make decisions and deliberate on the city's new voting district maps, a lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit by the Chattanooga Times Free Press also alleges that councilmembers violated the open meetings act when the city's executive staff, at the request of the redistricting committee, met individually with council members to decide on the contours of each of their new districts.

29 Jul, 2022

Court of Appeals whittles away public notice protections of open meeting law
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Court of Appeals whittles away public notice protections of open meeting law

adequate public notice, open meetings lawsuits

Court of Appeals whittles away public notice protections of open meeting law

By Deborah Fisher|2023-04-11T11:01:48-05:00July 29, 2022|Categories: adequate public notice, open meetings lawsuits|Tags: adequate notice, agendas, Court of Appeals, Dickson County Commission, Judge Andy Bennett, open meetings, planning commission, Titan Partners|0 Comments

A Tennessee Court of Appeals rolled back the meaning of the open meetings law in a surprising ruling when it said that a governing body does not have to give public notice of an important upcoming vote as part of its agenda, even when the vote is on an issue of widespread community interest.