News

27 Mar, 2023

Judge: Press likely has a First Amendment right of access to meetings of court rules commission

By |2023-06-21T10:41:00-05:00March 27, 2023|Categories: Open Courts, Open Meetings|Tags: , , , , , |1 Comment

A federal judge in Nashville ruled that the press and the public likely have a First Amendment right of access to meetings of a court rules commission that recommends rules of procedure and practice for all Tennessee courts. U.S. District Judge Eli Richardson ordered that the meetings no longer be closed, and said opening the meetings will create public confidence and transparency, and likely result in better rules.

15 Mar, 2023

Bill would allow governmental bodies to post meeting notices on website

By |2023-03-15T12:51:54-05:00March 15, 2023|Categories: adequate public notice, Legislature|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

A bill that allows governing bodies to post notice of their meetings on their websites passed a House committee, but not before pushback on a provision that requires the governing body to also mail or email the meeting notices to citizens who request it.

13 Mar, 2023

Electronic meetings bill fails in House committee

By |2023-03-17T07:46:05-05:00March 13, 2023|Categories: Legislature, Open Meetings|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

Lawmakers killed a bill in a House committee that would have allowed members of county and city legislative bodies to attend meetings by phone or video. The bill was a revival of one that failed in 2021. Lawmakers expressed concerns that members attending a meeting while experiencing a family or medical "emergency" might not be in the mental state to conduct business.

3 Mar, 2023

Proposed public comment law passes key House Committee

By |2023-03-03T11:56:33-06:00March 3, 2023|Categories: Legislature|Tags: , , |0 Comments

The bill would require governing bodies to set aside a time for public comment at all governing body meetings except those in which there are no actionable items on the agenda and those in which the governing body is conducting a disciplinary hearing. The bill also allows a governing body to set time limits and require the person to give advance notice of their wish to speak.

20 Feb, 2023

Bill allows government to take over $1 million foreclosure ad business, removing notices from local newspapers

By |2023-02-20T16:11:43-06:00February 20, 2023|Categories: Legislature|Tags: , |0 Comments

The Secretary of State's Office would gain nearly $1 million in new annual revenue under a bill that allows it to take over the business of advertising foreclosure sales from local community newspapers where they have appeared for years.

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