exemptions Archives - Page 10 of 12 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

13 Feb, 2015

Proposed Tennessee bills could close public records; a few open them up

By Deborah Fisher|2015-02-13T09:19:09-06:00February 13, 2015|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: driver's license information, exemptions, fees for public records, legislature, performance evaluations, State Rep. Bob Ramsey, State Rep. Courtney Rogers, State Rep. JoAnn Favors, State Rep. Karen Camper, State Rep. Mike Carter, State Rep. Roger Kane, State Rep. Steve McDaniel, State Sen. Jim Tracy, State Sen. Ken Yager, State Sen. Mike Bell, State Sen. Reginald Tate, State Sen. Todd Gardenhire|1 Comment

Lawmakers of 109th General Assembly have filed a host of bills to block or hinder citizen access to public records in the hands of government. Several of the proposed Tennessee bills could close public records, while another proposes to charge fees to inspect records. The latter would set up a hurdle that could discourage citizens from pursuing records requests. The proposed fees would cover some of the time public employees spend gathering or redacting records for disclosure. Local government would determine the hours of labor involved, which leaves open the possibility that fees could be inflated to block or discourage access. While some bills affecting public records focus on making [...]

15 Sep, 2014

City of Nashville declines records request that could help show judges’ hours at courthouse

By Deborah Fisher|2015-08-18T08:16:57-05:00September 15, 2014|Categories: exemptions, Public Records|Tags: access card data, Brian Haas, courts, Judge Philip Smith, Nashville, Open Records Act exemptions, The Tennessean|0 Comments

The city of Nashville declined part of a recent public records request by The Tennesssean that would have shown the time of day Davidson County judges used their access cards to enter or exit a courthouse or its parking garage. The request was part of a larger one by the media company for access card data that the newspaper used to analyze how many days judges showed up to work compared with each other and a state average. The city released which days the judges used their access cards, but would not release the times of day when the access cards were swiped. "Under Tenn. Code Ann. 10-7-504(i)(1), the specific times [...]

15 Apr, 2014

7 new laws affecting meetings, records in TN – plus a few that didn’t make it
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7 new laws affecting meetings, records in TN – plus a few that didn’t make it

exemptions, Legislature

7 new laws affecting meetings, records in TN – plus a few that didn’t make it

By Deborah Fisher|2019-09-11T16:55:12-05:00April 15, 2014|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: child death records, economic development records, government transparency initiatives, government websites, legislature, schools, sexual assault records|0 Comments

As the 108th General Assembly wraps up this week, here's a quick rundown on new laws affecting government meetings and open records in Tennessee: Legislation passed: Sexual assault victims: The names of sexual assault victims can now be redacted from public records under new legislation that makes their identity confidential. This only applies after a conviction or guilty plea, and sentencing has occurred. In addition to the name, any images that depict the victim (video or photo) are also confidential, as is the victim's address and phone number. The victim has a right to waive confidentiality. Sen. Becky Massey, R-Knoxville, and Rep. Mary Littleton, R-Dickson sponsored the bills. Note that [...]

23 Mar, 2014

The Tennessean takes on secrecy of execution drugs

By Deborah Fisher|2014-05-02T06:46:57-05:00March 23, 2014|Categories: execution drugs, exemptions|Tags: Claudia Bonnyman, execution drugs, legislature, Open Records Act exemptions, The Tennessean|0 Comments

The Tennessean exposes the secrecy of execution drugs in a front-page story in today's Sunday edition. State lawmakers last year passed an exemption to the Tennessee Open Records Act that allows the state to keep confidential the name of its supplier of drugs for lethal injections. With that decision, it joined other states who have marched toward similar confidentiality, driven to that secrecy because drug manufacturers have refused to supply states on moral grounds. Finding less obvious sources meant the states had to agree to keep new suppliers secret. The secrecy of the drug source has been questioned on First Amendment grounds in at least three other states. Defense lawyers challenged [...]

27 Feb, 2014

Bill would make lottery winners secret

By Deborah Fisher|2017-03-17T14:58:21-05:00February 27, 2014|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: legislature, lottery records, Open Records Act exemptions|0 Comments

A measure that would require the state lottery to include a warning label (“You will probably lose money playing the lottery”) is finding favor as it works its way through the legislature. But for those who, against all odds, actually win, perhaps another warning is needed: You will probably be hounded by cousins you didn't even know you had. State Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, seeks to help those lucky few avoid such annoyances by striking the names of lottery winners from the public record. If a winner expressly allows it, the state lottery could release the name "for marketing, advertising, or promotional purposes." Otherwise, the public doesn't get to know. Bowling [...]