News

28 Feb, 2017

Email bill rolls one week in House committee

By |2017-03-05T14:47:46-06:00February 28, 2017|Categories: Legislature, requests|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

A bill that would require government entities to accept public records requests they receive by email, if they already use email as an official mode of communication, was rolled a second week in the House State Government Committee. See Knoxville News Sentinel editorial: Bill would make public records access easier The email bill, HB58, had already passed out of subcommittee. An amendment was filed by the sponsor, state Rep. Courtney Rogers, R-Goodlettsville, to be considered during the full committee meeting. The amendment added a section aimed at what government entities have sometimes complained are frivolous requests. Here is what was added: (a) If a person makes two (2) or more consecutive [...]

28 Feb, 2017

Want to know your legislator’s voting record? Bill tries to make it easier

By |2017-03-01T04:08:53-06:00February 28, 2017|Categories: Legislature|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

Are you interested in knowing your legislator's voting record? State Sen. Lee Harris, D-Memphis, and state Rep. Jason Powell, D-Nashville, have proposed legislation that would make that much easier for the ordinary citizens in Tennessee. State Sen. Lee Harris, D-Memphis On Tuesday, Harris' bill, S.B. 322, passed a key Senate committee. It would require that the state "publish the voting record of each general assembly member on the official website of the Tennessee general assembly following the adjournment of each annual session of the general assembly." "As it stands now, in order to compile a legislator’s voting record, you would have to go to each individual bill to see how [...]

27 Feb, 2017

Editorial: Bill would make public records access easier

By |2017-02-27T18:18:13-06:00February 27, 2017|Categories: Legislature, requests|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

From the Knoxville News Sentinel Editorial Board, on a bill to make public records access easier: A legislative effort to make it easier for Tennesseans to file public records requests deserves the full-throated support of all who value open government. A bill that would clarify what constitutes a written public records request recently received the approval of a key House panel and is on track to become law during this session. The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Courtney Rogers, R-Goodlettsville, would require records custodians that accept requests for documents in writing “to accept a handwritten request submitted in person or by mail, an email request, or a request on an [...]

27 Feb, 2017

Weekly notice of House pre-meetings will help the public

By |2017-02-27T16:26:38-06:00February 27, 2017|Categories: Legislature|Tags: , , |0 Comments

The schedule for Tennessee House pre-meetings will now be announced weekly on the General Assembly's website, as well as posted on hallway bulletin boards at Legislative Plaza -- a significant move that will allow the public and journalists to know when and where the meetings occur if they want to attend. Posted notice of pre-meetings, Bill Review, at Legislative Plaza Pre-meetings, also called Committee Bill Review, are held in lawmaker conference rooms, which do not have equipment for live-streaming.  Though more informal than regular committee and subcommittee meetings, which are live-streamed and recorded, lawmakers, lobbyists and other government officials can discuss significant information about proposed legislation in the pre-meetings. [...]

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