public notice Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Tennessee Coalition for Open Government

26 Apr, 2016

15 decisions on public records by the Tennessee Legislature in 2016

By Deborah Fisher|2018-11-09T08:23:32-06:00April 26, 2016|Categories: court records, crime records, exemptions, fees, Legislature, Office of Open Records Counsel, requests|Tags: birth certificates, civil asset forfeiture, court records, death certificates, drones, exemptions, fees for public records, government contracts, legislature, police body cameras, police records, police shootings, public notice, tax records, TBI, vendor confidentiality|1 Comment

This year, Tennessee lawmakers punted on public records bills that could have created new access rights to see police body camera video and files of finished investigations into officer-involved shootings. But they did pass several new laws — some that exempted more government information from public view, and others that hold promise for improving government transparency. Following is a roundup of action by the Tennessee Legislature related to public records and access. 1- Police body cameras: After a late-in-session effort to pass a body camera bill and disagreement among stakeholders, the House State Government Committee instructed the Advisory Committee on Open Government to study the issue and provide them with [...]

17 Feb, 2016

Metro Nashville has no plans to shorten notice of zoning hearings

By Deborah Fisher|2016-02-17T10:24:31-06:00February 17, 2016|Categories: adequate public notice, Open Meetings|Tags: Davidson County, Metro Nashville Law Director Jon Cooper, Nashville, public hearings, public notice|0 Comments

Metro's law director Jon Cooper said this morning that Davidson County has no plans to shorten the amount of public notice it gives to citizens of public hearings on proposed zoning changes. Metro's own zoning regulations call for 21 days advance notice of zoning hearings, which Cooper says the city has been following for more than 20 years. These local regulations exceed the 15 days required by state law on all other counties in the state. This week, a House committee voted to change a statute established years ago that carved Davidson County out from all other counties, requiring it to give a 30-day notice. The rest of the 94 [...]

16 Feb, 2016

Shorter public notice of zoning hearings draws questions

By Deborah Fisher|2016-02-17T16:31:51-06:00February 16, 2016|Categories: Legislature|Tags: Davidson County, Nashville, public hearings, public notice, state Rep. Andy Holt, State Rep. Darren Jernigan, state Rep. Marc Gravitt, zoning hearings|1 Comment

Update 2-17-16. I talked with Jon Cooper, Metro's law director this morning, and he said that Metro Nashville had no plans for changing the way it gives notice for public hearings on zoning changes. Davidson County, for more than 20 years, has followed its own zoning requirements to give at least 21 days advance notice of public hearings, Cooper said. It wasn't until last year during some research that it was realized that state law carved out Davidson County for a 30-day notice in a newspaper of general circulation, he said. The effort to change the statute was to allow for Davidson County's own regulations, which require more notice than required by [...]

11 Feb, 2016

Bill shortens public notice for zoning changes in Nashville

By Deborah Fisher|2016-02-11T08:22:48-06:00February 11, 2016|Categories: adequate public notice|Tags: Davidson County, Nashville, public hearings, public notice, State Rep. Darren Jernigan, State Sen. Ferrell Haile|0 Comments

A bill that would shorten the amount of time of public notice for public hearings on zoning changes in Metropolitan Nashville passed unanimously in a key Senate committee and a House subcommittee this week. The bill, S.B. 1809 / H.B. 1848, would change the law that requires Davidson County to provide 30 days public notice prior to a public hearing on an amendment to a county zoning ordinance. It reduces that time to 15 days. Davidson County is the only county in the state required by law to give a 30-day notice, a point made by Ferrell Haile, R-Gallatin, the bill’s Senate sponsor. “I would classify this as a cleanup [...]

31 Jul, 2014

Cumberland County improves meeting notices

By Deborah Fisher|2014-07-31T07:47:04-05:00July 31, 2014|Categories: adequate public notice|Tags: agenda packets, Crossville Chronicle, Cumberland County, public notice|0 Comments

One of the most common complaints I get from citizens in towns across Tennessee is that their public officials do not give them adequate notice of upcoming public meetings. It always surprises me to see this problem: County commissioners, utility boards or school boards who post a time and place for their meetings on a bulletin board in a government building, maybe on their website, maybe in their local newspaper, but probably without an agenda, and most often without the agenda packet that contains all the background. How can we expect citizens to be interested in our government if we treat them like they have no interest? It's at the [...]