In 1955 the Tennessee State Library and Archives began audio recording the floor sessions of the Tennessee General Assembly.  Over a period of years the program gradually expanded and by the late 1980’s all standing committees of the legislature were recorded. 

In 2006, legislative mandate ordered the expansion of the recording program to fully record the proceedings of the General Assembly, including all committees and
subcommittees.  This recording has now become a year-round process as many legislative committees currently meet 12 months of the year. 

In addition, recordings of various special committees have been added to the audio archive, creating a unique resource of primary materials.

The recordings are made by the staff of a section of the Technical Services Office of the Tennessee State Library and Archives.  Recorders set up the equipment, record the meetings, and create a ‘log’sheet  for each recording. The logs have a brief description of the material on each recording, which includes bill numbers, names of person speaking and an indication of the subject discussed. 

Any request to have a meeting recorded must be directed to, and scheduled by, the Legislative Recording Coordinator, who can be reached at 614-741-2561 or e-mail at: lrp.tsla@state.tn.us .