CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – A number of concerned citizens spoke out against the Montgomery County Commission’s 2026 legislative agenda, asking the commission to drop or amend the request to “remove the burden” of local governments having to publish paid public notices in newspapers.
Under state law, governments are required to publish advance notice of their meetings, and other information, as paid public notices in a “newspaper of general circulation.” There’s a move across Tennessee to remove that requirement.
‘That’s precisely the role a newspaper plays’
One concerned citizen was Dave Gould of Gallatin, owner of Main Street Clarksville and a chain of similar weekly newspapers around Middle Tennessee. He said the commission should drop or amend the item on the legislative agenda for a number of reasons.
“First, state law already requires that all public notices published in a newspaper must also be published on that newspaper’s website, as well as a statewide website managed by our (Tennessee) Press Association,” Gould said. “So, every time a notice is published in the newspaper, it’s already being published on two different websites.”
Gould said that secondly, there are thousands of people in the county who rely on the newspaper for their news. “Some choose not to get their news online, or maybe they don’t have stable interest service, and the newspaper is a trusted way to get that information,” he said.
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Gould said his third reason that the newspaper keeps permanent record of public notices, and fourth, it’s important to have a local watchdog keeping an eye on local government and what’s happening. “That’s precisely the role a newspaper plays,” he said.
He said some citizens may not trust the local government to be the only ones responsible for sharing critical information. Gould said that Montgomery County spends less than one-half of 1% of its total expenditures on public notices. “That’s a very small price to pay to maintain transparency and to keep the public informed.”
Former Leaf-Chronicle editor Dee Boaz of Clarksville also spoke against the legislative agenda item. Boaz said she relies on the written word as well as online news.
In Montgomery County, Main Street Clarksville and The Leaf-Chronicle are considered newspapers of general circulation, and both can be used for public notices. Clarksville Now does not meet that criteria because it doesn’t publish in print.
2026 Legislative Agenda pulled from consent agenda
Commissioner Joshua Beal motioned for the 2026 legislative agenda to be removed from the consent agenda for further discussion.
Commissioner Rashidah Leverett asked the chair of the Legislative Liaison Committee, Rickey Ray, for clarification on whether these are options for the public, or the request is to just use electronic notices through government websites and social media.
“It’s already in the state that it has to be put in by the newspaper, we’re trying to get on social media to make it better and easier on the county government,” Ray said. “We have 44,000 followers on our social media page, and we have over 42,000 visitors every month on our page.
“If somebody comes up needing a special permit, and we have to wait two weeks and their event needs to happen before two weeks, there’s no way we can get it in the newspaper,” he said.
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Gould later said in the meeting that Main Street Clarksville publishes every Thursday, so if they have the information by Monday afternoon, they can get it in Thursday’s paper. “It’s not two weeks; worst case scenario it’ll be about a week,” Gould said.
‘I don’t buy the idea that is somehow a burden for us’
Beal said that his issue with the legislative agenda item is regarding transparency. “I think that this was (proposed) in good intentions, but at the same time, I don’t know that we are spending that much on public notices that it’s really a big deal to continue doing it.” Beal asked for the item on the resolution to be removed.
Commissioner David Shelton said that as someone who has written for newspapers in the past, the importance of transparency in government is something that is absolutely paramount here.
“And I don’t buy the idea that it is somehow a burden for us to put this information out there, that’s what we’re supposed to do as government,” Shelton said. “If we’re going to be sitting here talking about transparency, and if we aren’t putting that information out to the public, that’s what newspapers have done since before the American Revolution of 1776.”
Shelton said public notices include information about foreclosures, different type of citizen legal actions, and other items outside of a regular government meeting schedule.
‘Not telling the state to change it on a whim’
Commissioner Joe Smith said with no offense to the newspaper companies in the community, times have changed.
“I used to look forward to reading the paper in the mornings,” Smith said. “If you look at half of the mailboxes in the communities, they don’t even have a paper holder on them anymore. The paper has gone to the waste side to what is fast, and what is right at your fingertips. And that is whatever you can access on your phone. This legislative agenda is not telling the state to change it on a whim, it’s asking them to look into it, study it, and see what the best options are for the entire state of Tennessee.”
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Smith also said in reference to Gould’s comments, that it could take the newspaper at least a week and two days for the public notice to be in the paper if you don’t make the deadline.
“If we give them something, there’s nothing to say that the next morning they can’t publish that on their social media. But, for it to take a week and two days, that is a delay. Back in the day the newspapers were there every single night. … It’s not that way anymore,” Smith said.
Commissioner David Harper said he doesn’t like the idea of a local government picking a winner. “I think both the newspaper and social media have an ability to inform our constituents. I think the more communication we can provide, the better off we’ll be.”
Request for removal denied
The County Commission voted down removing the agenda item, 7-10. Voting to remove the agenda item were Commissioners Leverett, Nathan Burkholder, LaTonia Brown, Beal, Harper, Simmons and Shelton.
Voting to keep the agenda item were Commissioners Smith, Ray, Michael Lankford, Joe Creek, Carmelle Chandler, Walker Woodruff, Lisa Prichard, Chris Rasnic, Ryan Gallant and Billy Frye.
Commissioners John Gannon, Jason Knight, Jorge Padro and Jeremiah Walker were not present.
As for the 2026 legislative agenda as a whole, it passed unanimously after the amendment failed.
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