(a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, an application for a position of chief executive officer of a public institution of higher education, materials submitted with an application, letters of recommendation or references concerning an applicant, and any other records or information relating to or arising out of the process of searching for and selecting an individual for a position of chief executive officer of a public institution of higher education shall be treated as confidential and shall not be open for public inspection, if the records could be used to identify a candidate for the position; provided, however, that after a search committee has selected candidates as finalists for a position of chief executive officer of a public institution of higher education, which shall occur no later than fifteen (15) calendar days before the final vote of the governing board to appoint or elect a person to fill the position, a record relating exclusively to the candidates selected as finalists shall not be confidential and shall be open for public inspection, except for a record otherwise confidential under state or federal law. This section shall not apply to information relating to a candidate who did not expressly request that the candidate's information be kept confidential.

(b) As used in this section:

(1) “Chief executive officer of a public institution of higher education” includes:

(A) The president of the University of Tennessee system;

(B) The chancellor of the state university and community college system;

(C) A chancellor of a University of Tennessee campus or institute; and

(D) A president or director of an institution of the state university and community college system; and

(2) “Finalists” means no less than three (3) candidates selected by a search committee as the group from which one (1) or more candidates shall be recommended to the governing board of the public institution of higher education.

(c)

(1) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), a search committee may select up to three (3) candidates to be recommended to the governing board of the public institution of higher education for the following positions:

(A) A president of a locally governed state university;

(B) The president of the University of Tennessee system;

(C) A president of a community college; or

(D) A president or director of a Tennessee college of applied technology.

(2) Prior to initiating a search to fill a position listed in subdivision (c)(1), a meeting that is open to the public and subject to the requirements of title 8, chapter 44, part 1, shall be held by the governing board to establish the search process, a timeline, and a statement of qualifications for the position.

(3) No later than fifteen (15) calendar days before the final vote of the governing board to appoint or elect a person to fill a position listed in subdivision (c)(1), records relating exclusively to the candidates identified pursuant to subdivision (c)(1) shall not be treated as confidential and shall be open for public inspection, except for a record otherwise confidential under state or federal law.

(4) No later than seven (7) calendar days before a meeting at which the governing board will vote to appoint or approve the appointment of a candidate to fill a position listed in subdivision (c)(1), the governing board shall hold at least one (1) public forum with the candidate.

(5) A meeting at which the governing board will vote to appoint or approve the appointment of an individual to fill a position identified in subdivision (c)(1) shall be open to the public and subject to the requirements of title 8, chapter 44, part 1.

(6) No later than November 1, 2020, the advisory committee on open government shall submit a report to the governor, the speaker of the senate, and the speaker of the house of representatives evaluating the impact and effectiveness of this subsection (c) and identifying considerations and recommendations relative to its continuation, revision, or expiration.

(7) This subsection (c) shall be repealed on July 1, 2021.