News - Page 42 of 125 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

17 Dec, 2018

Open Records Committee recommends changes to exemption process

By Deborah Fisher|2018-12-18T08:00:30-06:00December 17, 2018|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: exemptions, Hamilton County Board of Education, open government law, State Rep. Jason Zachary, State Sen. Mike Bell, State Sen. Todd Gardenhire, sunset provision, Tennessee Risk Management Trust|1 Comment

An open records committee that has met over the past five months to consider the growing number of exemptions to Tennessee’s Public Records Act says it will recommend a new, more robust process to vet both existing and future exemptions. State Rep. Jason Zachary, R-Knoxville, co-chair of an ad hoc Open Records Committee appointed by House and Senate leaders, said the task of going through 563 exemptions was too large to get done in the few months they were allotted. However, the committee is recommending two major changes: a process for sunsets on existing exemptions and more robust vetting of proposed new exemptions. “We’ve learned that Tennessee needs [...]

10 Dec, 2018

Open Records Committee to make recommendations Thursday

By Deborah Fisher|2018-12-10T12:47:48-06:00December 10, 2018|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: exemptions, Open Records Ad Hoc Committee|0 Comments

The Open Records Ad Hoc Committee will meet on Thursday for discussion and recommendations regarding the growing number of exemptions to the public records laws that allow government entities to keep some records secret. The committee has met three times, beginning in August, after being formed by Senate Speaker Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, and then-House Speaker Beth Harwell, R-Nashville, who wanted an examination of exemptions that may need to be removed or placed in a sunset review process. The committee's chairmen are Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, and Rep. Jason Zachary, R-Knoxville. The other committee members are: Rep. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis Rep. Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby Rep. Bob Ramsey, R-Maryville Sen. Mike Bell, R-Riceville Sen. Kerry Roberts, R-Springfield Sen. Jeff [...]

10 Dec, 2018

Tennessee lags other states in tax credit transparency

By Deborah Fisher|2020-11-19T12:54:12-06:00December 10, 2018|Categories: economic development, Legislature|Tags: economic development, legislature, Revenue Department, tax credits|1 Comment

(Update 2-8-2020: The most recent annual report on claimed tax credits from the year ending in mid-June shows the annual carryover liability has grown to $1.3 billion. You'll find this information in the footnotes.) When it comes to transparency of state business tax credits given to companies as part of economic development programs, Tennessee lags other states in how much it reveals to the public. The amount carried over in economic development tax credits to be used by businesses against future taxes is nearly $1 billion in Tennessee. But who is receiving the credits is confidential, the state says, unlike in other states. The Department of Revenue last [...]

16 Nov, 2018

Using cell phones to take pictures of public records? Here’s what the Open Records Counsel says

By Deborah Fisher|2020-11-19T12:52:45-06:00November 16, 2018|Categories: Office of Open Records Counsel, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: advisory opinions, Joint Government Operations Committee, Lee Pope, Office of Open Records Counsel, photos of public records, reasonable rules, Tennessean v. Electric Power Board|0 Comments

Earlier this year, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government requested an informal advisory opinion from the Office of Open Records Counsel about taking pictures of public records with cell phones. We asked: 1 - Does the law allow a records custodian to prohibit citizens from using a camera to take pictures of public records “in all cases” where the law gives the citizen a “right to inspect” such records under the plain language of §T.C.A. 10-7-506(a) of the Tennessee Public Records Act. 2 - The Model Policy created by the Office of Open Records Counsel seems to give records custodians open-ended discretion to allow or not allow the use of personal [...]

16 Nov, 2018

Memphis considers using code names for companies getting economic development incentives

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-16T11:47:08-06:00November 16, 2018|Categories: Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: Al Bright, Commercial Appeal, economic development, EDGE, Memphis, Richard Smith, State Rep. Sam Whitson|0 Comments

The Economic and Development Growth Engine Board for Memphis (EDGE) is seeking at Attorney General's opinion on whether it can use code names to keep secret from the public the identity of companies before it votes to award the companies government cash grants and other economic development incentives. Al Bright chairman of the Memphis Economic Development and Growth Engine, said if using code names for companies when voting on cash grants and incentives instead of publicly disclosing identities would encourage more businesses to come to Memphis, "by all means, we need to do it." The attorney for the board told the Commercial Appeal (Companies seeking tax breaks from [...]