News - Page 45 of 125 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

11 Sep, 2018

Should reporters censor information from government proceedings? Of course not

By Deborah Fisher|2018-09-12T12:21:42-05:00September 11, 2018|Categories: Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: court records, fair report privilege, Glenn Funk, libel law, Phil Williams, Tennessee Supreme Court|0 Comments

Davidson County District Attorney Glenn Funk (right) is suing NewsChannel 5 reporter Phil Williams (left), saying Williams' reporting damaged his reputation. The case is headed to the Tennessee Supreme Court in a test over the state's fair report privilege. The Tennessee Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on Oct. 4 in an important case involving state libel laws and a free press. The appeal before the state’s highest court is a test of the state's fair report privilege. On a practical level, this privilege, which is recognized in every state’s laws, protects journalists from libel claims when they are reporting on official proceedings — such as court cases [...]

17 Aug, 2018

We need a new way of adopting exemptions to the Public Records Act

By Deborah Fisher|2018-08-18T09:16:09-05:00August 17, 2018|Categories: exemptions, Legislature, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: caption bills, exemptions, Open Records Ad Hoc Committee|1 Comment

Earlier this week, I was grateful for the opportunity to make a presentation to a new legislative Joint Open Records Ad Hoc Committee that is examining the growing number of exemptions to the Tennessee Public Records Act. The committee is grappling with a potential review of exemptions, which the Office of Open Records Counsel says have grown to 563 after 25 news ones were added in the most recent session. Tennessee Coalition for Open Government made seven recommendations to the committee, but one of the more important ones is that our state needs a new way of adopting exemptions. Some exemptions don’t get enough scrutiny It's just too easy to [...]

16 Aug, 2018

State agencies in full swing establishing public records rules

By Deborah Fisher|2020-11-19T12:34:36-06:00August 16, 2018|Categories: fees, requests|Tags: Bureau of Workers' Compensation, citizen id, Department of General Services, Department of Revenue, Department of Safety and Homeland Security, fees for public records, photos of public records, public records rules, rulemaking hearings, TennCare, Tennessee Housing Development Agency|0 Comments

If you are journalist or citizen who makes public records requests to state agencies, now is the time to pay attention to the public records rules being developed regarding that access. I've listed the agency email addresses and deadlines to submit below. Two state agencies have already held hearings and (and finished soliciting written comments) for their proposed rules: the Department of Transportation and the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. Coming up are: Aug. 30, Bureau of Workers' Compensation in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development Sept. 18, Tenncare Sept. 24, Department of Revenue Sept. 24, Department of Safety and Homeland Security Sept. 28, Tennessee Housing [...]

16 Aug, 2018

Why requiring a driver’s license to look at public records is often a waste of time and money

By Deborah Fisher|2018-08-17T16:26:29-05:00August 16, 2018|Categories: requests|Tags: citizen id, public records requests|0 Comments

Requiring a driver's license as an unbending condition to access public records is like hunting dragonflies with a shotgun. It’s overkill. And a little silly. Requiring a citizen to produce identification is almost always unnecessary yet it most certainly increases the chance that access to public records will be delayed. It also is a rule that is easy for a government official to abuse to blunt prompt access to public information. The law clearly does not require that a government entity require that a citizen provide identification proving who they are to access public records. The law allows that a government entity may require proof of Tennessee residency, presumably because [...]

14 Aug, 2018

TCOG makes recommendations for vetting state’s public records exemptions

By Deborah Fisher|2020-11-19T12:35:08-06:00August 14, 2018|Categories: exemptions, Legislature, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government|Tags: exemptions, Jason Mumpower, Open Records Ad Hoc Committee, State Sen. Todd Gardenhire, TCOG news|3 Comments

The new Joint Open Records Ad Hoc Committee, formed to consider the growing number of public records exemptions, held its first meeting today. The committee invited TCOG to make a presentation. Also presenting was Jason Mumpower, chief of staff for the Comptroller's Office, which oversaw the compilation of a list of all statutory exemptions (which resides here.) TCOG presents recommendations about a review of exemptions to the Tennessee Public Records Act at the committee's first meeting on Aug. 14, 2018. You can watch the entire committee meeting by clicking on the video link found here. My presentation starts around the 52 minute mark. The committee set its next [...]