As members of the public prepare to attend the governor’s State of the State address on Monday, they’ll have to call their state representatives to find out how the new House Gallery ticketing system works.
House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, said Thursday he has no intention of writing down or publicly publishing the policy that governs public access the west House gallery.
“No, the policy is what it is,” Sexton told reporters on Thursday when asked if the policy would ever be written down. “That side is open to the public, that side is ticketed and members have the tickets.”
State Troopers and sergeant at arms began enforcing the new rule on the first day of the legislative session, before any announcement was made of its existence.
But while it’s certainly being enforced by uniformed law officers, the rule governing the public access the west gallery never went through any formal process of adoption or approval by members, nor has it ever been voted on.
Despite multiple requests from The Tennessean to the Speaker’s office and the House Clerk’s office, no written copy of the ticketing rule has been provided. The House Rules of Order require every meeting of the House of Representatives to be open to the public. The east gallery of the House remains open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.