private meetings Archives - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

10 Jul, 2025

Judge rules Chattanooga City Council violated open meetings law with so-called informational meetings
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Judge rules Chattanooga City Council violated open meetings law with so-called informational meetings

Open Meetings, open meetings lawsuits

Judge rules Chattanooga City Council violated open meetings law with so-called informational meetings

By Deborah Fisher|2025-07-10T11:55:46-05:00July 10, 2025|Categories: Open Meetings, open meetings lawsuits|Tags: Chattanooga City Council, informational meetings, Paul McAdoo, private meetings, public notice, redistricting, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Times Free Press|0 Comments

A judge found that the Chattanooga City Council violated the Open Meetings Act in developing its new voting district maps in 2021 and 2022. The city's arguments that closed meetings were simply "informational" and contained no deliberations or decision-making was refuted by evidence that included council members own comments about the process. In addition, the judge found that serial meetings held by city staff with each council member to get approval of a proposed map before presenting it in public at a full council meeting violated the open meetings act.

Private meetings on Chattanooga redistricting violated open meetings law, lawsuit alleges

By Deborah Fisher|2023-01-02T17:00:37-06:00December 19, 2022|Categories: open meetings lawsuits|Tags: Chattanooga, Chattanooga City Council, litigation, private meetings, public notice, redistricting, Times Free Press|2 Comments

A redistricting committee made up of Chattanooga city councilmembers violated the open meetings act when it convened privately to make decisions and deliberate on the city's new voting district maps, a lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit by the Chattanooga Times Free Press also alleges that councilmembers violated the open meetings act when the city's executive staff, at the request of the redistricting committee, met individually with council members to decide on the contours of each of their new districts.

Williamson County commissioners hold private meetings to interview school board replacement

By Deborah Fisher|2015-08-18T07:49:58-05:00July 26, 2015|Categories: Open Meetings, school boards|Tags: Franklin Home Page, Gregg Lawrence, Johnston v. Metro. Gov't of Nashville, Kathy Danner, Knoxville News Sentinel v. Knox County Commission, private meetings, Robert Cook, Tennessee Open Meetings Act, The Tennessean, Williamson County, Williamson County Commission Commission, Williamson County School Board|1 Comment

Two Williamson County commissioners are holding private meetings with candidates to decide who should fill an open position on the Williamson County School Board, but the county commission attorney says their meetings do not violate the Open Meetings Act, according to two stories by media outlets. The Tennessean: Williamson Schools candidate raises transparency concerns Franklin Home Page: Opinions vary on transparency of school board candidate vetting Williamson County Commissioner Kathy Danner Williamson County Commissioner Gregg Lawrence The two commissioners, Kathy Danner and Gregg Lawrence, are responsible for jointly deciding who should fill the remainder of the term of a board member who is leaving. The practice in the past has [...]