Advance Public Availability of Meeting Agendas

Municipalities are required to post agendas 48 hours prior to regular local governmental body meetings: 

At least forty-eight (48) hours prior to a regular meeting, a state governing body or a local governmental body shall make available to the public, at no charge, the agenda for the upcoming regular meeting in a place accessible to the public. The agenda must reasonably describe the matters to be deliberated or acted upon during the public meeting. T.C.A. § 8-44-110(a). 

"Local governmental body" is defined to include many city boards:

(1) The legislative body of an incorporated city or town, a metropolitan government, or a county;
(2) A regional or municipal planning commission;
(3) A board of zoning appeals;
(4) A public utility board;
(5) An industrial development corporation board of directors;
(6) A housing authority;
(7) A regional or municipal airport authority;
(8) A county election commission;
(9) The budget committee of a legislative body of an incorporated city or town, a metropolitan government, or a county;
(10) The governing body of a local education agency (LEA); and
(11) Any other local governing body as defined in § 8-44-102(b)(1)(A) that also has the authority to make binding decisions or the ability to appropriate funds, excluding a private nonprofit community organization that is eligible to receive funds from the community services block grant program under 42 U.S.C. §§ 9901--9926.

T.C.A. § 8-44-110(e)

Local governmental bodies may take up matters not listed on the published agenda only if "the body follows its bylaws or properly adopted rules and procedures and complies with all other applicable state laws." T.C.A. § 8-44-110(b). Cities may not circumvent the law's requirements by adding matters to agendas during meetings "for the purpose of avoiding public disclosure of business to be considered by the....local governmental body." T.C.A. § 8-44-110(c).

The law requires that if a city has a website, the city "shall make an agenda available to the public through the website. The website is considered a place that is accessible to the public for purposes of compliance with subsection (a)." T.C.A. § 8-44-110(d).