As of the first Metro Council meeting in October, Metro Government has a more streamlined legislative management process. This means increased transparency and ease of use for residents, thanks to an expansion of Metro’s existing partnership with Granicus, a leading expert in providing digital government solutions for civic engagement. October 6 was the successful live launch of the Granicus suite of software products, delivering advanced levels of automation Metro Government’s legislative management.
“In recent months following Governor Bill Lee’s executive order No. 16 regarding Tennessee’s open meeting requirements, Metro Government has quickly responded to the city’s need for increased online service delivery – but this launch is the product of more than a year of work to augment digital capabilities within Metro’s legislative management, enabling us to be more responsive, transparent and accessible to Metro residents,” says Vice Mayor Jim Shulman. The suite of applications will be administered for the Metropolitan Clerk’s Office by Metro Information Technology Services.
Of greatest impact to Nashville residents is InSite. The legislative website is the new location for residents to access and research legislative information, with enhanced search functionality. Now, all documentation related to Metro Council proceedings including agendas, minutes, agenda packets, videos and attachments will update automatically to InSite, alleviating administrative burden, eliminating unnecessary time cost, and expanding transparency – and giving residents nearly immediate access to information that is uploaded to the site. Additionally, the website displays all supplemental materials as attachments, including items from other boards or commissions, such as the Planning Commission. InSite includes additional features to enable residents to quickly find important information. One such example is video time-stamping, which eliminates the need for a user to scroll through a meeting recording to find the relevant discussion.
Other enhancements include automation of the agenda and minutes process through Legistar, legislative voting management during council meetings through Votecast, and seamless integration with the Live Manager live Metro Council meeting feed, already available through Metro Nashville Network at stream.nashville.gov.
“Metro Government of Nashville & Davidson County is no stranger to using innovative technology to strengthen its relationship with citizens. After deploying govDelivery to communicate critical information to citizens, and using Host Compliance to enhance the process of registering and regulating short term rentals, Nashville has been at the cutting edge of digital transformation,” said Mark Hynes, CEO of Granicus. “By expanding our partnership to include govMeetings, we are thrilled to help Metro leaders maximize citizen engagement and facilitate a legislative process that’s clear, inclusive and actionable.”
To access Nashville’s InSite legislative website, visit nashville.legistar.com.