If the video footage from the Tyre Nichols beating in Memphis tells us anything, it’s that we need to keep protecting the tools that allow public accountability for corruption.
Members of county and city legislative bodies in Tennessee would be able to attend meetings electronically, such as by videoconference or phone, when dealing with a family or medical emergency under a bill filed by a pair of lawmakers from Knox County. Sen. Richard Briggs and Rep. Dave Wright sponsored similar legislation in 2021, which failed in a House committee.
A proposed bill would improve citizen access to meeting agendas and board packets before public meeting by requiring they be publicly accessible, such as on a government website, for 48 hours before the meeting. The bill would also require that agendas "clearly describe the matters to be discussed" in an effort to avoid vague references to potential action.
In a major step toward more timely transparency, House Speaker Cameron Sexton announced a new public dashboard that gives citizens red-lined versions of bills and proposed amendments at the same time House members get them.
Davidson County Chancellor Pat Moskal ruled that the state could not withhold consultant reports by McKinsey and Co. under a deliberative process privilege in the face of a public records request. She said the reports were a one-way communication with state officials and did not fall under a deliberative process privilege because they were not "deliberative" and did not consist of communications between high-level government officials. The ruling is a win for journalist Stephen Elliott, who began requesting the reports in 2020.
