§ 8-44-112 — Reserved period for public comment - Reasonable restrictions allowed - Notice to public commenters - Applicability

(a) A governing body shall, for each public meeting, reserve a period for public comment to provide the public with the opportunity to comment on matters that are germane to the items on the agenda for the meeting. (b) The governing body may put reasonable restrictions on the period for public comment, such as the length of the period, the number of speakers, and the length of time that each speaker will be allowed to provide comment. The governing body may require a person to give notice in advance of the desire to offer comments at a meeting. The governing body shall take all practicable steps to ensure that opposing viewpoints are represented fairly, if any. (c) A notice for a public meeting shall indicate the manner in which a person may indicate the person's desire to provide public comment at the meeting. (d) This section does not apply to: (1) A meeting of a governing body, or a portion thereof, where the governing body is conducting a disciplinary hearing for a member of the governing body or a person whose profession or activities fall within the jurisdiction of the governing body; or (2) A meeting for which there are no actionable items on the agenda.

Legislative History

Added by 2023 Tenn. Acts, ch. 300, s 1, eff. 7/1/2023.