Attention subscribers - we have launched a new website! Click here to create your website account for free access.

Tennessee General Assembly Bills Introduced Jan. 28

Posted

The Tennessee General Assembly lawmakers introduced a slew of new proposals today. These range from education, firearms, healthcare, local municipalities, courts, voting, public records, CEO’s, employment, religion, headlights & tires, food assistance, school boards and more.

They are organized by category below.

EDUCATION:

HB474- requires the Tennessee higher education commission, in consultation with the department of labor and workforce development, to study all state-funded financial aid and scholarship programs in this state to determine whether programs may be expanded to provide greater financial aid opportunities for individuals interested in pursuing a workforce credential; requires the commission to report its findings and any legislative recommendations to the committee of the house of representatives having jurisdiction over higher education and to the education committee of the senate no later than January 15, 2026.

SB416- removes authorization for the state board of education to waive the requirement that curriculum and instructional materials used by virtual schools meet or exceed the state board's standards; authorizes state residents to appeal to the textbook commission for a determination of whether such curriculum and materials meet the state board's standard. 

SB408- prohibits governmental entities or local boards of education from extending immunity granted to independent school bus contractors rather than independent school bus owners and operators for providing school-related transportation services; requires liability insurance coverage in a contract or agreement between a local board of education and an independent school bus contractor for such services to be in an amount sufficient to satisfy applicable law; permits evidence of such coverage to include a certificate of insurance from an insurance provider that lists the local board of education as an additional insured. 

SB376- prohibits the exclusion of persons from participating in, being denied the benefits of, or being subject to discrimination by a four-year public or private institution of higher education in this state on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, and national origin; prohibits such institutions from using race, color, ethnicity, or national origin in determining whether a prospective student qualifies for admission into the institution, or receives scholarships or financial aid; creates a private cause of action against an institution and its officers, employees, and agents for such unlawful practices.

HB409- requires the department to make the standardized form for reporting student allergies to the school in which the student is enrolled publicly available on its website.

SB415- reduces the amount of state-mandated assessments for students in grades three through 12; reduces the required amount of evaluations for teachers or principals who are "at expectations" or above; requires the state board of education to promulgate rules to create the hours equivalent of the 180-day requirement for classroom instruction; makes various other education-related changes.

HB407- requires the Tennessee higher education commission to develop a program to award full-time students enrolled in public institutions of higher education in this state a $250 grant for voluntarily obtaining testing for sexually transmitted diseases.

SB342- requires school board members to be elected at the same election beginning in 2028.

SB341- requires the department to allocate to each local education agency sufficient funds for the LEA to employ one full-time licensed professional school counselor at each high school in the LEA that enrolls at least 600 students in grades 10 through 12; requires each LEA to employ one full-time licensed professional school counselor at each high school for which the LEA receives such funding from the department. 

HB401- adds pre-kindergarten students with special education needs and their peer models to the categories of students who generate education funding through TISA. 

SB386- enacts the "Early Behavioral Intervention and Reporting Act"; clarifies that public charter schools are required to have a threat assessment team in the same manner as required of local education agencies.

HB448- requires, instead of encourages, LEAs and public charter schools to incorporate training in evidence-based skills training on positive behavioral interventions and supports, conflict prevention, functional behavior assessments, de-escalation, and conflict management into its behavior intervention training program; requires at least two hours of such training each school year; allows the hours of training received to be applied toward in-service training requirements. 

SB426- revises the weighted allocations generated by a student for purposes of the TISA based on the number of student members of the LEA in which the student resides; establishes a $50 direct allocation for each student member of each LEA to assist each LEA with maintenance and infrastructure.

HB453- specifies that fire drills for private and public schools requiring full evacuation in educational occupancies where such occupancies constitute the major occupancy of a building must be held at least one time every 30 school days.

SB344- requires at least one full-time employee at each school under the jurisdiction of an LEA or public charter school to annually receive training in seizure safety and first aid.

EMPLOYMENT:

SB423- increases, from two to three, the number of conspicuous places in which an employer is required to post and maintain notices setting forth the regular pay day established by the employer. 

HEALTHCARE:

HB464- As introduced, removes the limitation that a person who is experiencing a drug overdose only has immunity from being arrested, charged, or prosecuted on the first drug overdose. 

SB401: requires, on and after July 1, 2026, a minor who is enrolled in TennCare medicaid or the CoverKids program to remain eligible for such program until the minor reaches 18; prohibits the division of TennCare from subjecting the minor to a redetermination of eligibility or disenrollment, except under certain circumstances; requires the director of TennCare to submit any necessary federal waiver request by December 31, 2025.

SB420- prohibits an insurer, pharmacy benefits manager, or third-party administrator from changing or conditioning the terms of health plan coverage based on availability of financial or other product assistance for a prescription drug; establishes certain procedures for calculating an enrollee's contribution to an applicable cost sharing requirement. 

SB345- specifies that the offense of criminal abortion does not include an abortion that was necessary due to a medical emergency affecting the physical or mental health of the pregnant person or performed on a patient whose pregnancy was the result of rape or incest.

IMMIGRATION:

HB6001- creates within the department of safety the centralized immigration enforcement division, to be administered by the chief immigration enforcement officer; establishes a grant program for purposes of promoting the enforcement of federal immigration laws; creates criminal penalties for officials who adopt sanctuary policies and subsequently requires their removal from office upon conviction; requires department of safety to issue lawful permanent residents a temporary driver license, instead of a standard license, to aid in determining voter eligibility for someone who presents a Tennessee driver license as identification. 

COURTS:

HB473: requires a person arrested for a felony offense to have a biological specimen taken by the arresting authority for the purpose of DNA analysis to determine identification characteristics specific to the person. 

HB461- adds that a person must complete a course of instruction and pass an examination to qualify to be commissioned as an online notary public; clarifies that an application to be commissioned as an online notary public requires a certification that the applicant has reviewed, understands, and will comply with the applicable rules and requirements promulgated by the secretary of state; adds that a course of instruction for online notarization must include, at a minimum, notarial laws, technology procedures of online notarizations, and ethical requirements for online notaries.

SB391- establishes procedures for the use of certified facility dogs during witness testimony and other court proceedings; establishes standards for certified facility dogs.

SB335- enacts the "Voyeurism Victims Act," which expands the offense of unlawful photography to include an unauthorized photograph that the defendant knew would include the unclothed intimate area of the victim or the victim engaged in sexual activity; authorizes the issuance of an order of protection for a person who has been subjected to, threatened with, or placed in fear of unlawful photography. 

HB403- expands the offense of unlawful photography to include a photograph that the defendant knew would include the victim engaged in sexual activity; increases the penalty for the offense of unlawful photography from a Class A misdemeanor or a Class E felony to a Class D felony in certain circumstances; authorizes the issuance of an order of protection for a person who has been subjected to, threatened with, or placed in fear of unlawful photography.

HB433- expands the offense of unlawful exposure to include the distribution, with the intent to cause emotional distress, of an image of the intimate parts of another identifiable person or an image of an identifiable person engaged in sexually explicit conduct and the image was created or modified by means of a computer software program, artificial intelligence application, or other digital editing tools. 

SB417- decreases from 150 grams to 50 grams or more the amount of any substance containing fentanyl, carfentanil, remifentanil, alfentanil, thiafentanil, or any fentanyl derivative or analogue that is punished as a Class A felony for the knowing manufacture, delivery, or sale of the substance, or possession with intent to manufacture, deliver, or sell the substance.

HB451- reduces the time period following completion of the sentence imposed before which a person may file a petition for expunction from five years for a misdemeanor or Class E felony and 10 years for a Class C or D felony to one year since completion of the sentence imposed for the offense the person is seeking to have expunged.

HB449- restores the right of suffrage for persons convicted of an infamous crime after expiration of the sentence imposed for the infamous crime; removes requirement that the person pay restitution and court costs and be current in all child support obligations before having the person's right of suffrage restored; permits a person to have the right of suffrage restored without having the person's full rights of citizenship restored.

SB404- expands the offense of unlawful exposure to include the distribution, with the intent to cause emotional distress, of an image of the intimate parts of another identifiable person or an image of an identifiable person engaged in sexually explicit conduct and the image was created or modified by means of a computer software program, artificial intelligence application, or other digital editing tools.

SB361- requires a person who employs an unemancipated minor and who knows or has reasonable cause to suspect that the minor has been subjected to child sexual abuse or attempted child sexual abuse in the course of the minor’s employment or on the premises of the employer to report such knowledge or suspicion to the minor’s parent within 24 hours of discovering the abuse or attempted abuse; imposes a penalty of $1,000 for a first violation or $2,000 for a second or subsequent violation, to be paid to the commissioner of labor and workforce development. 

FIREARMS:

HB430- enacts the "Protect Kids Not Guns Act."

SB379- requires TACIR to perform a study on the impact of this state's firearm laws on each county's firearm sales, criminal offenses, and use of firearms for self-defense, as well as identifying the similarities and dissimilarities between the impacts on each county. 

HJR53- Proposes an amendment to Article I, Section 26 of the Constitution of Tennessee to remove the provision that authorizes the legislature to regulate the wearing of arms with a view to prevent crime and to clarify that citizens have a right to keep and bear arms.

VOTING:

SB412- requires county election commissions to set uniform hours for each polling place used for early voting such that each polling place opens and closes at the same time on a single day.

HB450: As introduced, reduces from 15 years to 10 years the amount of time that must have elapsed since the completion of the sentence imposed for illegal registration or voting before filing a petition for expunction. 

PUBLIC RECORDS:

SB425- expands public records exception to include residential information of local government employees.

BUSINESSES:

HB431- enacts the "CEO Pay Disparity Tax Act," which imposes a pay disparity surcharge in the amount of an additional 0.1 percent to the standard 6.5 percent excise tax rate on each company whose top executive is paid at least 100 times more than the median income of the company's employees.

SB360- prohibits the construction of correctional facilities, hospitals, and nursing homes in areas designated as 100-year flood plains; applies to all applications for construction permits submitted on or after July 1, 2025.

RELIGION:

HB470- enacts the "Tennessee Professionals' Freedom of Religion Act."

HB414- allows an existing place of worship to be used for educational purposes without reclassification of the building's occupancy type if certain conditions are met. 

OTHER:

HB446- restricts the jurisdiction of the World Health Organization, the United Nations, and the World Economic Forum in this state.

HB469- prohibits a landlord from prohibiting a tenant from lawfully possessing, carrying, transporting, or storing a firearm, firearm components, or ammunition on leased premises or in a vehicle located on leased premises; creates a cause of action for a tenant who is adversely affected by a landlord's violation of such prohibition.

SB395- creates a Class B misdemeanor for failure to properly adjust headlights by a person or entity that installs tires on a passenger motor vehicle or truck that are larger in total diameter than the original equipment manufacturer's tires installed; creates a Class B misdemeanor for installing such tires so as to cause the bumper or frame to exceed the maximum heights established in present law. 

HB441- enacts the "Restoring State Sovereignty Through Nullification Act," which establishes processes by which the general assembly may nullify an unconstitutional federal statute, regulation, agency order, or executive order.

SB385- requires the department, on a monthly basis, to analyze electronic benefit card data to identify food assistance recipients who have made purchases out of state for 90 consecutive days or more, send written notice to the identified recipients to request proof of in-state residency, and remove any recipients who fail to provide proof of Tennessee residency or fail to respond within 30 days; prohibits the department from granting a homelessness exception to work requirements unless the department has verified that the recipient is a homeless individual based on certain proof.

These proposed bills, if passed, become laws for all residents in the State of Tennessee. Please be sure to follow us for the latest updates on these bills, and others, as we track the 2025 Tennessee General Assembly this session.