News - Page 61 of 125 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

17 Mar, 2017

McNally, Harwell seek review of Tennessee open records exemptions

By Deborah Fisher|2017-03-17T12:39:23-05:00March 17, 2017|Categories: exemptions, Legislature, Office of Open Records Counsel|Tags: Adam Yeomans, Beth Harwell, exemptions, State Sen. Randy McNally, sunset provision|2 Comments

The speakers of the House and Senate have asked the Office of Open Records Counsel for a "thorough and comprehensive review" of the various exemptions to the Tennessee Public Records Act, reports Joel Ebert in a story in The Tennessean. Letter from McNally and Harwell asking for a thorough review of the exemptions to the Public Records Act. "We ask that a detailed list of current exemptions in the Tennessee Code Annotated be compiled as soon as possible," says the letter from State Sen. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, and State Rep. Beth Harwell, R-Nashville, to Open Records Counsel Ann Butterworth. "In the interest of transparent and open government, [...]

17 Mar, 2017

Lawmaker faces opposition in trying to open up state lottery records

By Deborah Fisher|2017-03-17T14:58:51-05:00March 17, 2017|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: lottery records|0 Comments

State Sen. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, is facing stiff opposition in his effort to open up state lottery records. State Sen. Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol, doesn't buy the lottery's arguments that retailers will leave the system if sales were made public. According to a story in the Bristol Herald Courier, the Tennessee Lottery says it would lose $19.5 million in revenue if it had to reveal lottery sales by retailer, information that is public in other state lotteries, including in two states bordering Tennessee. The reasoning? The risk of robberies to stores will increase if sales were revealed, and other retailers would know how much they are making through such sales. [...]

13 Mar, 2017

New public records study: Problems with access and how to improve

By Deborah Fisher|2020-11-19T12:27:43-06:00March 13, 2017|Categories: Public Records|Tags: attorney's fees, David Cullier, Knight Foundation, public records study|1 Comment

A new public records study commissioned by the Knight Foundation and released today during Sunshine Week outlines key problems seen by freedom of information experts in access to public records across the country. The study goes into depth about barriers and synthesizes potential solutions to make open government laws work as intended and preserve the citizenry's ability to get information. The study was based on a survey and interviews with 336 freedom of information experts -- from journalists to records custodians -- and conducted by David Cuillier with the University of Arizona School of Journalism. About half of the experts surveyed online reported that access to state and local records had gotten [...]

8 Mar, 2017

Body camera bill passes Senate committee

By Deborah Fisher|2017-03-17T11:53:27-05:00March 8, 2017|Categories: crime records, Legislature|Tags: police body cameras, State Sen. Jack Johnson|0 Comments

UPDATE, 3-17-17: The Senate passed Johnson's body cam bill, S.B. 442, on Thursday 27-0. ----- Original story: A bill that would exempt from the state's public records laws police body camera footage collected inside schools, hospitals and, when no crime is being investigated, private residences passed the Senate State & Local Government committee Tuesday. State Sen. Jack Johnson, R-Franklin Two amendments were added to the legislation carried by state Sen. Jack Johnson, R-Franklin. One specifies that "video taken of minors in a school that serves any grades from kindergarten through grade twelve shall be treated as confidential." The other, suggested by Lt. Gov Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, puts a [...]

5 Mar, 2017

Lawmakers question redaction of vendor names

By Deborah Fisher|2017-03-05T16:44:23-06:00March 5, 2017|Categories: exemptions, Legislature|Tags: public records exemption, State Rep. Bill Sanderson, State Sen. Ken Yager, vendor confidentiality, vendor names|0 Comments

Proposed legislation clarifying a 2016 law that made identities of certain government vendors confidential passed out of a Senate committee and House subcommittee this week after questions from lawmakers. An amendment was added in the House that would allow access to the identities by state lawmakers. The lawmakers carrying the bill for the Haslam administration said the statute needed to be clarified because the intent was only to keep confidential names of vendors who provide IT security. The earlier language caused some to be concerned the exemption was too broad, state Sen. John Stevens, R-Huntingdon, told a Senate committee on Tuesday. State Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston State Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston, and [...]