News - Page 26 of 125 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

29 Jun, 2020

Gov. Lee extends order allowing remote governing body meetings through Aug. 29 — what’s a citizen to do?

By Deborah Fisher|2020-07-03T10:01:02-05:00June 29, 2020|Categories: Open Meetings|Tags: COVID-19, electronic meetings, Gov. Bill Lee|0 Comments

Gov. Bill Lee has decided to extend his order suspending parts of the Open Meetings Act to allow governing bodies to continue to meet electronically through Aug. 29. In order No. 51, Lee said extending the order is warranted because COVID-19 "remains a threat and it's imperative to ensure gatherings are conducted in a safe way ... without creating large gatherings in a confined space and endangering persons, particularly those at increased risk of suffering severe illness from COVID-19 while determinations of how best to return to safe, in-person governmental meetings remain ongoing." So what's a citizen to do? We've learned a lot over the past three months as governing [...]

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 [...]

23 Jun, 2020

2020 Legislative Report: A session shadowed by COVID-19

By Deborah Fisher|2020-07-30T12:24:17-05:00June 23, 2020|Categories: Legislature, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|0 Comments

The 111th General Assembly had a session like no other in 2020, punctured by a pandemic that caused leadership to abruptly close their meetings to the public on March 16. Hundreds of people who usually flock to the Cordell Hull building and the Capitol to try to influence their lawmakers and make their voice heard were reduced to telephone, email and video. Lawmakers continued for four days this way, then recessed March 19. When they reconvened on June 1, the House had opened its doors to the public again, albeit with reduced seating, required temperature checks and strong suggestions for mask-wearing. The Senate did not; instead, promising action on only [...]

15 Jun, 2020

Senate passes records preservation bill; House set for floor vote tonight

By Deborah Fisher|2020-06-27T11:58:20-05:00June 15, 2020|Categories: Legislature, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|0 Comments

State Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, initiated and carried the bill that prohibits the destruction of public records that are subject to a pending public records request. The bill also requires a minimum retention period of 12 months for written or electronic correspondence regarding a public record request. A bill that would prohibit the destruction of public records that are subject to a pending public records request was approved by the Senate on Thursday and is set for consideration on the House floor tonight. The proposal, carried by state Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, and state Rep. Mike Carter, R-Ooltewah, plugs a gap in Tennessee law that drew attention last year in [...]

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 [...]