Tennessee Open Records Act

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Contents

State sunshine
State laws
How to ask for records
Transparency headlines
Statutory changes
Notable FOIA requests
State sunshine lawsuits
State court cases
E-mail access
Private agency, public dollars
The WikiFOIA portal

The Tennessee Open Records Act is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels in Tennessee.

The Open Meetings Law legislates the methods by which public meetings are conducted.

Tennessee's transparency report card

A 2008 study, BGA - Alper Integrity Index, conducted by the Better Government Association and sponsored by Alper Services, ranked Tennessee #47 in the nation with an overall percentage of 36.70%. [1]

A 2007 study, Graded state responsiveness to FOI requests, conducted by BGA and the NFOIC, gave Tennessee 16 points out of a possible 100, a letter grade of "F", and a ranking of 45 out of the 50 states.[2]

A 2002 study, Freedom of Information in the USA, conducted by IRE and BGA, ranked Tennessee's law as the 44th worst in the country, giving it a letter grade of "F".[3]

Public Records

The documents created by public agencies in Tennessee are open to perusal by the public.

Open Meetings

Any meeting of a public body is open to the public.

Public Records Commission

The Tennessee Public Records Commission was created in oversee the efficient handling of public records.

Office of Open Records Counsel

The Tennessee Office of Open Records Counsel was created in 2008 to assist citizens in gaining access to open records.

Who May Request Tennessee Records?

Any citizen of Tennessee may request public records there. Public documents shall "be open for personal inspection by any citizen of Tennessee". [4]

Changes in 2008

The law was amended in 2008 to requires state records custodians to respond to records requests within seven days. The new law also outlines the duties of the new state open records ombudsman, who must set a reasonable fee schedule for extensive records requests, among other things.[5]

See also

External Links

References

  1. ↑ Integrity Index available for download here
  2. ↑ Graded state responsiveness to FOI requests, 2007
  3. ↑ Freedom of Information in the USA, 2002
  4. ↑ Tennessee Code, search for 10-7-503
  5. ↑ Tennessee, Rhode Island improve open records laws
The Tennessee project on Sunshine Review
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