Public Records Archives - Page 26 of 78 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

9 Nov, 2018

TBI Director announces more transparency on internal investigations

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-16T14:25:42-06:00November 9, 2018|Categories: Public Records|Tags: David Rausch, Phil Williams, TBI|0 Comments

TBI Director David Rausch has announced that the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation will no longer shield from the public the outcomes of internal investigations into possible misconduct by its agents. TBI Director David Rausch Previously, if a member of the public complained about an agent's actions, the department would conduct an investigation, but claimed that those investigations were confidential under the public records law exemption that makes all TBI investigation documents confidential. "What I am doing is on our internal complaints that come from the public, we will make those an administrative investigation. And administrative investigations, when they are concluded, are open to public review," announced Rausch, who [...]

8 Nov, 2018

Bill Lee says he will lead “complete overhaul” of public records, open meetings laws

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-08T19:31:15-06:00November 8, 2018|Categories: Legislature, Open Meetings, Public Records|Tags: ACOG, Bill Haslam, Bill Lee, exemptions, Open Records Ad Hoc Committee|1 Comment

Governor-elect Bill Lee announced today on the priorities page of his new website that he "will lead a complete overhaul of our open records and open meetings acts" and receive public comments before he signs new laws. Gov.-elect Bill Lee says he will lead an overhaul of the public records and open meetings law to make government more transparent for citizens. Under "Open and Responsive Government," the priority says: "Tennessee taxpayers deserve a transparent and open government. Bill will initiate a new program to invite and receive public comments on new laws before signing, and he will get out of the bubble of Nashville to deliver State of the [...]

16 Oct, 2018

Judge rules against Phil Williams saying public records can be withheld if relevant to an investigation

By Deborah Fisher|2019-03-25T16:42:24-05:00October 16, 2018|Categories: public records lawsuits Tennessee|Tags: Chancellor Anne Martin, Deputy Attorney General Janet Kleinfelter, investigative exemption, Jason Locke, NewsChannel 5, Phil Williams, Ron Harris, TBI|0 Comments

Another blow was dealt to public records access in Tennessee this month when NewsChannel 5 lost a case in Chancery Court in Davidson County related to a recent controversy involving former TBI Director Jason Locke. Nashville investigative reporter Phil Williams had requested travel records, phone logs and credit card purchase summaries, among other records, after allegations arose that Locke had been conducting an affair with another state official using public resources. Around the same time of the public records request, the Davidson County district attorney began an investigation into the allegations. Though Williams had made his request to the Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and to [...]

30 Sep, 2018

TCOG lists 13 exemptions, exemption categories that need revision or elimination

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-09T08:19:46-06:00September 30, 2018|Categories: exemptions, Public Records, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: economic development records, investigation exemption, investment records, lottery records, Open Records Ad Hoc Committee, prisons, private entities, public hospital boards, tax credits, TBI, University of Tennessee, vendor names|1 Comment

Tennessee Coalition for Open Government recently provided the Open Records Ad Hoc Committee 13 exemptions or categories of exemptions that are interfering with the public's right to know what government is doing. Deborah Fisher, executive director of TCOG "As you will see, many of the exemptions listed have problems related to overbreadth or vagueness that we suspect may exceed the public purpose of the exemption. We know that some of the considerations we are bringing forward were not part of the debate when the exemptions were passed by the legislature," TCOG's letter said. "While this list may not cover every exemption that impairs transparency in government, we wanted [...]

30 Sep, 2018

Google’s secrecy agreement with the Montgomery County IDB should be undone

By Deborah Fisher|2020-11-19T12:35:59-06:00September 30, 2018|Categories: economic development, exemptions, Legislature|Tags: economic development, Google, Jack McElroy, Montgomery County Industrial Development Board, Open Records Ad Hoc Committee, PILOTS, trade secrets|0 Comments

The Google groundbreaking via WRKN February 2018. On Dec. 22 2015, the Industrial Development Board of Montgomery County entered into a “Payment in Lieu of Tax Agreement” with Google “to induce” it to build and operate an information technology center near Clarksville. It provided that: Google, through its company Foxman LLC, would take over property (which the government had purchased with taxpayer funds) through a lease agreement; The industrial development board would issue as much as $2 billion in industrial revenue bonds to help Google finance additional facilities and equipment on the property, and; Google would be relieved from paying any taxes on the land for 20 years, [...]