Sorry this post is not late in coming yet I believe it is important to share so all can hear what our Senators have been working on and what they have accomplished for us.
Final Wrap Up 2023 Legislative update from the Senate Republican Caucus
(NASHVILLE) — The 113th General Assembly wrapped up its business for the 2023 legislative
(NASHVILLE) — The 113th General Assembly wrapped up its business for the 2023 legislative session on Friday, April 21 and adjourned for the year. The session was marked by a record investment in school safety, major tax relief for small businesses and families, and new plans to modernize transportation and infrastructure across the state.
In the 2023 legislative session, lawmakers also reaffirmed their commitment to supporting teachers and education through targeted efforts to increase benefits to teachers by providing significant pay increases and paid parental leave for teachers following the birth or adoption of a child. Other measures also passed that will remove unnecessary barriers to licensure for teachers and instructors to help alleviate teacher shortages.
Other highlights of the session include a focus on families and children by improving the adoption and foster care process as well as strengthening protections for pregnant women and the unborn. Republican lawmakers also pushed back against harmful gender ideologies targeting children by preventing irreversible medical procedures from being performed on children, strengthening protections for girls’ sports, and protecting children from exposure to sexually explicit adult entertainment.
The following is a report on these and other new laws approved by the General Assembly in 2023.
Budget
Lawmakers fulfilled the General Assembly’s Constitutional duty with passage of a balanced $56.2 billion budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year. The zero-debt budget is a spending plan that addresses the needs of all Tennesseans while advancing Republicans’ efforts to strengthen families, bolster safety, improve education, create new opportunities for economic development and modernize transportation.
The budget also makes a $250 million deposit in the state’s Rainy-Day Fund, which serves as the state’s savings account to help withstand economic downturns, bringing the fund to a historic balance of more than $2 billion.
Tennessee Republicans remain committed to keeping taxes low. Tennessee is the second-lowest taxed state in the nation and collects zero income tax. Tennessee holds the highest bond rating issued by all three of the nation’s credit rating agencies, which reflects extreme confidence in the Volunteer State’s preparedness in meeting financial commitments in tough economic times.
School Safety
The slate of budget and legislative priorities includes significant investments in school safety with $232 million to provide a school resource officer for every public school and a Homeland Security agent for every county. These funds will also provide safety grants for private schools.
Investments in school safety include:
• $140 million to establish a School Resource Officer (SRO) grant fund to place an on-duty law enforcement officer at every public school
• $30 million to expand a statewide homeland security network with 122 agents serving students at both public and private schools
• $40 million for public school security upgrades
• $14 million for private school security upgrades
• $8 million for additional school-based behavioral health liaisons across the state
Tax Cuts
Notably, the budget provides $407 million in tax cuts, the largest in Tennessee’s history. These cuts aim to lower the tax burden on businesses, boost Tennessee’s economic competitiveness, promote entrepreneurship and small businesses. It provides targeted relief to families with a three-month-long tax break on groceries from Aug. 1-Oct. 31.
Tax cuts passed this year include:
• $288 million for a 3-month sales tax holiday on food from Aug. 1 – Oct. 31, 2023
• $64 million to simplify administration and conform with federal bonus depreciation provisions, allowing businesses to more quickly recover costs and further incentivize investment in Tennessee production
• $37.8 million for Small Business Excise Tax Relief
• $20.3M for Small Business Franchise Tax Relief
• $7.9M for Small Business Relief from the Business Gross Receipts Tax
• $7.3M to establish a state paid family leave tax credit against franchise and excise tax for a two-year pilot
Transportation and Infrastructure
Lawmakers this session made key investments in transportation and infrastructure by providing $3.3 billion to support economic growth and development by alleviating urban traffic congestion and improving rural roads.
Investments in Transportation include:
• $3B to the Transportation Modernization Fund to alleviate urban congestion and fund rural road projects across the state
o $750M distributed evenly to each of TN’s four TDOT regions
• $300M to expand the State Aid Program for local road projects
Department of Children’s Services
In recent years, the Department of Children’s Services has faced considerable challenges, including significant funding needs. In 2023, the General Assembly fully funded DCS’s budget increase request by allocating $193 million to the department to address staffing challenges, update the case management system, and improve foster care, residential services, prevention services, and adoption services.
New investments in DCS include:
• $15.9 million for salary increases for case managers
• $8 million for a rate increase for private providers
• $13.8 million to increase placements at private providers
• $33 million to increase bed capacity in DCS
• $39.8 million to increase the rate of payment for providers in DCS provider network that offer residential and clinical services to children in state custody
• $4.9 million for foster care, adoption assistance, and subsidized permanent guardianship programs
• $1.9 to increase adoption assistance
• $1.1 million to DCS to improve adoption and foster care process
• $5 million for provider network development for children in DCS custody or foster care but require specialized institutional/residential care
• $61 million to replace the Tennessee Family and Child Tracking System (TFACTS), the DCS case management and payment system
• $11 million to contract with short-term private case managers to alleviate burden on DCS case managers
Strong & Healthy Families / Healthcare
• $190 million for the Tennessee Strong Families initiative:
o $13.5 million to increase parental eligibility income threshold to 100% of the federal poverty level
o $5.1 million to TennCare program to increase the pregnancy eligibility threshold to 250% of the federal poverty level
o $4.6 million to permanently extend TennCare coverage for mothers to 12 months postpartum
o $1 million for a doula pilot program
o $2 million to increase grants to regional perinatal health centers
o $15 million for DIDDS services and other funding for children with disabilities in hospitals
o $22 million for children in longer-term placements who are unable to be placed in traditional foster care
o $15 million to the Department of Labor to connect youths and young adults with paid work experience and career exploration opportunities
o $10.25 million for the TN Fosters Hope program
• $110 million of TennCare reserves for hospital grants to cover services provided under the hospital assessment for rural and distressed hospitals
• $16.3 million to increase pay for Direct Service Providers to $15 per hour
• $9 million to Department of Mental Health to increase provider rates
• $16 million to Department of Health to continue pilot program to address unmet dental service needs and increase dentists in state
• $18.7 million for 6-weeks paid leave for state employees after birth or adoption of child
• $15.5 million for 6-weeks paid leave for teachers and LEA employees after birth or adoption of child
Skilled Workforce / TCATs
The General Assembly worked with Governor Lee this year to make major strides in increasing access to career and technical education training across the state by investing almost $1 billion to fully fund the Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology Master Plan to build, expand and upgrade TCATs in Tennessee. As more businesses and industries move to Tennessee, it is important to have the skilled workforce necessary to meet the demands of a strong economy.
Investments in TCATs includes:
• $370 million to update outdated facilities in seven TCAT campuses state-wide
• $386.2 to invest in new buildings, expansion and improvement to sixteen current TCAT campuses
• $147.5 million to build six new TCATs to better serve more students across Tennessee
Education
On the heels of major education funding reform in 2022 and the largest increase in K-12 education funding in the history of Tennessee, lawmakers continued their commitment to support education.
In 2023, investments in education include:
• $350 million in additional funding to LEAs through TISA
o Includes $125 million for teacher pay raises
• $60.8 million to extend summer learning camps and expand eligibility age from 4th grade to K-9th grade
• $10 million for Summer Bus Transportation
Higher Education
• $47.9 million for higher education outcome funding formula
• $16 million for the Tennessee Board of Regents
• $18 million for the Locally Governed Institutions
• $2.5 million for ETSU college of pharmacy
• $5.2 million to expand the HOPE scholarship
Public Safety and Law Enforcement
• $4.5 million for 25 new forensic service positions within the TBI to help address the backlog in rape testing kits
• $28.7 million for 142 new Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper positions
• $24.7 million for 122 new agents in the Department of Safety’s Homeland Security Office
• $357 million for the Tennessee Advanced Communications Network
• $17.5 million to increase pay for assistant district attorneys, public defenders and criminal investigators
• $50 million set aside for new prison, which will be needed in the next decade
Economic and Community Development
• $103 million for the Jobs4TN program in ECD to create new opportunities for Tennessee’s workforce and support the growth and retention of the state’s traditional job base
• $340 million for the Jobs4TN program for new development projects
• $45 million for grants and services to assist rural communities and distressed counties with site development, community asset improvement, marketing, strategic planning, downtown revitalization and technical assistance
• $50 million for a nuclear energy supply chain investment fund
Preserving Outdoor Heritage
• $328 million for state parks, natural areas, and forests
• $41 million for trails
• $82.7 million for environmental cleanup
School Safety
Enhanced School Safety Measures – As part of comprehensive measures to strengthen security at schools across Tennessee, the General Assembly approved enhanced school safety legislation to improve safety standards and protocols at public and private schools. The legislation was first introduced in January, though several measures were added following the deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville on March 27.
The new law requires every public and private school to keep doors locked at all times while students are present and develop annual safety plans that must include a newly required incident command drill for school leaders and law enforcement to prepare for various emergencies. It authorizes local law enforcement to take corrective action against schools that fail to lock their doors.
The law also creates new hardware security requirements for newly-built and remodeled schools. Any new schools built will have to:
• Install classroom door locks that lock from the inside.
• Have security vestibules for visitor entry.
• Install a clear bullet-resistant or entry-resistant film on the glass panel of any exterior entry or basement-level window to prevent individuals from entering who are not allowed.
• Have camera systems to continuously monitor each entrance hallway and communal area.
The law was continuously worked on throughout the legislative session and was the result of input from every committee. The important safety measures outlined in the law will go a long way to ensuring Tennessee schools are secure.
In addition to this legislation, lawmakers approved over $230 million in the budget to place a school resource officer (SRO) at every Tennessee public school, boost physical security at public and private schools, and provide additional mental health resources for Tennesseans. (More details in the BUDGET section).
Senate Bill 274 / sponsored by Johnson, Lundberg, Bowling, Gardenhire, Jackson, Lowe, Massey, Reeves, Roberts, Rose, Taylor, Walley, White, Yager / Public Chapter 367 / Effective July 1, 2023
Transportation
Transportation Modernization Act
The General Assembly passed major legislation to modernize Tennessee’s infrastructure and address traffic congestion, prolonged project delivery timelines, and the deteriorating revenue stream for road funding. The Transportation Modernization Act of 2023 was one of Governor Lee’s key legislative proposals this year and seeks to address a $26 billion backlog of congestion-related needs. It is estimated that congestion costs Tennessee road users $800 million in lost productivity each year. This legislation recognizes that Tennesseans’ and state visitors’ time is valuable by implementing a plan to cut down on the amount of time drivers spend on the road.
This major legislation issues no new taxes, no road debt and ensures that funds are proportionally allocated to urban and rural areas of the state.
Choice Lanes
The legislation would allow the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) to form partnerships with private entities to create choice lanes to address congestion. Choice Lanes allow drivers to make a choice to use the existing free lanes or pay a user fee to enter the new additional lanes for a guaranteed minimum speed. No fee would be charged to use the general-purpose lanes and the number of general-purpose lanes would not be reduced.
Choice Lanes provide additional capacity in heavily congested corridors, benefiting those who use the Choice Lanes as well as those who decide to remain in the general-purpose lanes. Data from other states has shown Choice Lanes reduce traffic in the free, general purpose lanes by 30%.
Transportation Modernization Fund
This bill establishes the Transportation Modernization Fund and invests $3.3 billion to fund critical infrastructure projects in rural and urban areas of Tennessee. Each of TDOT’s four regions would receive $750,000,000, while the State Aid Program, which provides funds to counties for local transportation projects, would receive $300 million. At the current rate of investment of $29 million per year, it would take 15 years to allocate $300 million to the State Aid Program.
Alternative Delivery Model
The legislation expands TDOT’s ability to use alternative delivery contracting, which has been proven to save time and money when used for the right projects. The move would put TDOT in a strong position to optimize the delivery of increasingly complex infrastructure solutions. TDOT’s alternative delivery program has saved $22 million in costs and resulted in 70% faster delivery compared to the traditional delivery model.
Electric Vehicle Parity
Additionally, the legislation addresses the erosion of the state’s gas tax collection by the growing use of electric vehicles (EVs). It establishes parity between what the drivers of combustible engine vehicles and their EV and hybrid counterparts pay in gas taxes by increasing the registration fee for EVs to $200 for the first three years following passage and $274 by 2026. For hybrid vehicles, a $100 fee would be set immediately following passage.
Senate Bill 273 / sponsored by Johnson, Massey, Yager, Jackson, Powers, Bailey, Crowe, Gardenhire, Haile, Lowe, Rose, Stevens, Watson, Briggs, Reeves, Walley / Public Chapter 159 / takes effect upon becoming law
Tax-Cuts
Tennessee Works Tax Reform Act of 2023 – Republican lawmakers this year approved the single largest tax cut in state history, to provide more than $400 million in savings for Tennessee families and businesses while supporting future economic growth. The 2023 tax cuts will boost Tennessee’s economic competitiveness, promote entrepreneurship and small business formation, and provide targeted relief to families.
The legislation includes $273 million for a one-time, three-month grocery tax holiday from August 1 through October 31. On average it will result in over $100 of savings per Tennessee family. is intended to provide direct relief to Tennesseans to help offset the costs of rising inflation and allow citizens to keep more of their hard-earned money.
The measure provides more than $150 million in annual small business tax relief, including raising the exemption threshold for the business tax, exempting the first $50,000 of net income from excise tax and protecting the first $500,000 in property investment from the franchise tax.
It allocates $64 million to simplify tax administration and conform with the federal bonus depreciation provisions of 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, allowing businesses to more quickly recover costs and further incentivize investment in Tennessee production.
It also provides a foundation for supporting Tennessee’s continued economic growth, aligning Tennessee with more than 30 states by adopting “single sales factor” apportionment for franchise and excise tax. For years, out of state businesses have been benefiting from TN’s current property and payroll factors by receiving up to a 40% discount on their F&E liability. This bill changes the way the franchise and excise taxes are calculated to favor businesses with a higher percentage of their properties and jobs located in Tennessee than in other states. This new SSF tax change incentivizes businesses to hire Tennesseans and headquarter in Tennessee.
Senate Bill 275 / sponsored by Johnson , McNally, Haile, Yager, Pody, Stevens, Gardenhire, Hensley, Massey, Taylor / Public Chapter 377 / effective date varies by tax cut, but becomes law July 1, 2023
Education
Updating Tennessee’s 2021 Literacy Success Act – In 2021, the General Assembly passed Tennessee’s Literacy Success Act to improve literacy rates and get students on track in early grades so they can become proficient readers by third grade. This year lawmakers updated this law to allow additional data to be considered to determine if a student is ready to advance to fourth grade. The new law also provides more resources to help students as they learn to read.
The law allows school districts to advance students to fourth grade by using an additional reading screener test provided by the Department of Education, to more accurately assess reading levels for students who might be poor test takers. In order to advance to fourth grade, students who score in the “approaching” category on their third grade Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) test and score in the 50th percentile on the third-grade reading screener test must complete summer school or tutoring in fourth grade. Students who score in the “below basic” category must complete both summer school and tutoring in 4th grade in order to advance.
The bill allows school districts to assist parents when filing an appeal if their student is identified for retention. The bill requires the Department of Education to provide a comprehensive report to the General Assembly on the number of students identified for retention, the interventions given to those students and the number of students promoted based on those interventions.
The bill ensures students held back before third grade get reading intervention to catch them up and allows the Department of Education to contract up to three additional online tutoring providers to meet the needs of students. The bill also provides additional tutoring to school districts in first and second grades.
Senate Bill 300 / sponsored by Lundberg, Haile, Lowe, Reeves / Public Chapter 338 / takes effect upon becoming law
Permanently establishing learning camps – The General Assembly indefinitely extended summer and after-school learning camps that were implemented on a temporary basis during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the summers following the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 school years, all school districts in the state were required to offer in-person learning loss remediation and student acceleration programs, including summer learning camps, after-school learning mini camps and learning loss bridge camps. These programs have been a success: in the summer of 2021 over 121,000 students participated with an attendance rate of 96%. In the summer of 2022, over 90,000 students participated in the summer camps. Furthermore, students statewide improved in English language arts and math after attending the summer camps. This new law will continue the successful track record of these camps by making them permanent.
Senate Bill 249 / sponsored by Johnson, Haile, Akbari, Hensley and Stevens / Public Chapter 144 / takes effect upon becoming law
Expanding ESAs to Hamilton County – This law expands Tennessee’s education savings account (ESA) pilot program to Hamilton County. The pilot was established in 2019 to serve low-income students zoned to public schools in Metro Nashville, Shelby County and the state’s Achievement School District. The law adds only Hamilton County to the list of counties participating in the pilot. The program is aimed at improving education opportunities for students by providing parental choice in districts that have the state’s highest concentration of poverty and priority schools, which are most in need of support and improvement. The Tennessee ESA program allows qualifying students to receive a scholarship of about $8,000 for various educational expenses, including tuition and textbooks.
Senate Bill 12 / sponsored by Gardenhire, Lundberg, Watson / Public Chapter 328 / takes effect upon becoming law
Expanding ESA eligibility – This law expands student eligibility for the state’s education savings account (ESA) to include students who would have been otherwise eligible for the program if the courts had not enjoined it after passage in 2019. It expands student eligibility in the ESA program to include students who were not enrolled, and who did not attend, a Tennessee public school for the one full school year immediately preceding the school year for which the student receives an ESA, but who were enrolled in, and who attended, a Tennessee public school in the 2019-20, 2020-21 or 2021-22 school year. It also includes students who are not eligible, for the first time, to enroll in a Tennessee public school, but who were eligible, for the first time, to enroll in a Tennessee public school in the 2019-20, 2020-21 or 2021-22 school year.
Senate Bill 638 / sponsored by Lundberg, Johnson, Bowling, Stevens / Public Chapter 171 / takes effect upon becoming law
Keeping inappropriate material out of public schools – In an effort to prevent inappropriate materials from entering a K-12 public school, the General Assembly passed a law to create a Class E felony offense for book publishers, distributors, or sellers that knowingly sell or distribute obscene material to a public school. Last year, the General Assembly passed several bills aimed at removing and blocking obscene or inappropriate materials on school computers and in school classrooms and libraries. This law builds on those efforts.
Senate Bill 1059 / sponsored by Hensley, Pody, Rose, White / Public Chapter 278 / July 1, 2023
Updating the Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022 – Last year, the General Assembly passed the Age-Appropriate Materials Act of 2022, which increased transparency and oversight of instructional materials and literature used in public schools. If a school finds a material is not age-appropriate based on student, parent or employee feedback, then the school can remove the book by appealing to the local school board or charter school governing body. This new law adds an additional step to the process of evaluating materials in school libraries. The bill requires complaints to first go to the local school district for resolution prior to going to the local board of education for review.
Senate Bill 966 / sponsored by Powers / Signed by Gov. / takes effect upon becoming law
Strengthening protections against divisive concepts – This law allows any student or employee of a public university to file a report of an alleged violation of the state’s divisive concepts law. It also requires the institution to investigate the report and take appropriate steps to correct any violation that is found to have occurred. Divisive concepts are those that exacerbate and inflame divisions on the basis of sex, race, ethnicity, religion, color, national origin and other criteria in ways that are contrary to the unity of the United States of America and the well-being of Tennessee and its citizens. Violations of the law and any corrective actions taken must be reported annually to the Comptroller’s Office of Research and Education Accountability. Additionally, the bill requires peaceful and lawful usage of the university’s facilities and requires them to be open to all recognized student groups. Student-invited guest speakers may also not be denied based solely on race, religion or nonviolent political ideology. A university may still deny obscene demonstrations or gatherings.
Senate Bill 817 / sponsored by Hensley, Bowling, Briggs, Rose / Public Chapter 268 / July 1, 2023
Teachers
Increasing teacher pay – To continue the General Assembly’s efforts to support teachers, lawmakers approved legislation this year to provide pay increases to Tennessee teachers. Under the new law, the base salary for teachers will increase each year until it reaches $50,000 in the 2026-2027 school year. The law also ends the practice of local school district deductions for national, state and local labor organizations. Taxpayer resources in K-12 education should not be used to support giving free benefits to any organization, political or otherwise. The law does nothing to restrict a teacher’s choice to join and fund any activity by the union; it simply ends the practice of using taxpayer resources to fund the collection of dues for the union’s benefit.
Senate Bill 281 / sponsored by Johnson, Powers, Lowe, Stevens / Public Chapter 437 / July 1, 2023
Prohibiting implicit bias training requirements in schools – Senate Republicans approved legislation to prohibit school districts, public charter schools and public institutions of higher education from requiring employees to take implicit bias training. The new law also prohibits adverse employment actions from being taken against employees who refuse to participate in the training. The bill defines “implicit bias training” as training or educational programs designed to expose an individual to biases that the training’s developer presumes the individual to unconsciously, subconsciously, or unintentionally possess. This type of training predisposes the individual to be unfairly prejudiced in favor of or against a person or group and seeks to adjust the individual’s pattern of thinking in order to eliminate the individual’s unconscious bias or prejudice.
Senate Bill 102 / sponsored by Gardenhire, Bowling, Crowe, Hensley, Niceley, Pody, Reeves, Rose, Stevens, Taylor / Signed by Gov. / takes effect upon becoming law
Protecting free speech in schools – To protect free speech in schools, the General Assembly passed a new law that would prevent compulsory use of certain pronouns. It prevents teachers from being held civilly liable if they choose to use pronouns consistent with the student’s biological sex or the sex listed on the student’s permanent records, and it extends the same protection to school districts. Also, schools or school districts cannot bring disciplinary or adverse employment action against a teacher if they choose to use pronouns consistent with the student’s biological sex.
Senate Bill 466 / sponsored by Rose, Haile, Crowe, Hensley, Jackson, Pody, Stevens, Taylor, Walley, Bowling / Signed by Gov. / takes effect upon becoming law
Protecting the Unborn
Strengthening Tennessee’s laws protecting mothers and the unborn – Tennessee Republicans reaffirmed their commitment to protecting pregnant women and the unborn by passing a law that clarifies that doctors should protect the life of a mother when a nonviable pregnancy endangers her life. The new law ensures that elective abortions remain illegal in Tennessee while clarifying for doctors that terminating a nonviable and life-threatening pregnancy, such as ectopic or molar pregnancy, is not an abortion. It allows providers to use reasonable medical judgment to determine if a life-saving abortion is necessary.
Previous Tennessee abortion law provided an affirmative defense exception for performing life-saving abortions. Under the affirmative defense, a doctor charged or prosecuted for performing an abortion could avoid conviction by proving that, in their good faith medical judgment, the abortion was necessary to prevent the death or irreversible impairment of the pregnant woman.
The affirmative defense automatically charged a doctor who performed a lifesaving abortion with a crime. The new, narrowly-tailored law removes the affirmative defense and replaces it with a strictly-defined exception for life-threatening situations. These changes will make the law less vulnerable to possible court challenges while keeping the original intent of the law intact.
Tennessee Republican lawmakers have made it clear that they are committed to prohibiting abortion on demand in the state. This law protects the lives of the unborn as well as the lives of pregnant women experiencing an unfortunate, life-threatening medical emergency.
Senate Bill 745 / sponsored by Briggs, Haile, Johnson, Yager, Hensley, Reeves, Stevens / Public Chapter 313 / takes effect upon becoming law
Gender Issues / Protecting Children
Protecting children from harmful medical procedures to change gender identity – Senate Republicans passed legislation to prohibit minors from undergoing irreversible and harmful medical procedures to change their gender identity. The new law protects children under 18 years of age from medical interference that alters that child’s hormonal balance and procedures that remove body parts to enable the minor to identify as a gender different from their biological sex. These treatments and procedures can be dangerous and often permanently sterilize recipients, preventing them from ever having children.
Countries like the United Kingdom, Finland, and Sweden have reversed course on long-held practices of providing gender affirming care to minors because it has not proven to be an effective treatment for gender dysphoria. The new law makes clear that mental health treatment should be prioritized for children suffering from gender dysphoria, not genital mutilation or irreversible hormone treatment.
The law ensures that doctors can still prescribe hormone treatment to minors for medically necessary purposes and makes exceptions for children born with chromosomal anomalies or congenital defects.
Senate Bill 1 / sponsored by Johnson, Yager, Haile, Bowling, White, Crowe, Bailey, Hensley, Jackson, Reeves, Stevens, Rose, Taylor / Public Chapter 1 / July 1, 2023
Protecting children from exposure to sexually explicit adult entertainment – To further protect children, the General Assembly passed a new law to shield children from inappropriate sexually explicit performances. The law restricts adult cabaret performances that appeal to a prurient interest from being performed on public or private property if kids could be around to see it. Under the law, private establishments such as bars or restaurants that host sexually explicit shows must require patrons to show ID upon entry to ensure they are age 18 or older. A violation of this bill would result in a Class A misdemeanor, and a second or subsequent offense would result in a Class E felony.
Senate Bill 3 / sponsored by Johnson, Crowe, Bowling, Haile, Hensley, Yager, Bailey, Jackson, Stevens, Niceley, Reeves, Taylor, Pody, Rose, Watson, Roberts / Public Chapter 2 / April 1, 2023
Ensuring fairness in girls’ sports – The General Assembly approved legislation to reaffirm their commitment to protect girls’ sports from biological males who want to compete as females. The new law requires private school students who compete in school sports or events as part of the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) to do so in accordance with their sex at birth. Similar legislation applying to public middle and high school interscholastic sports activities was approved by the General Assembly in 2021.
Senate Bill 1237 / sponsored by Hensley, Bowling, Gardenhire / Public Chapter 285 / takes effect upon becoming law
Courts / Corrections
Inmate Disciplinary Oversight Board – As part of the General Assembly’s efforts to increase accountability for behavior-based sentence reductions for inmates, lawmakers passed a new law to create the Inmate Disciplinary Oversight Board to oversee the award of inmate sentence reduction credits for all correctional facilities in the state. The board will be tasked with reviewing the award, denial, and removal of inmate sentence credits for good institutional behavior or satisfactory program performance.
This new law ensures that all credits given to any inmate in the state are awarded correctly and appropriately. The board will create consistent statewide standards.
The full-time, autonomous board would be composed of nine members. The governor, speaker of the Senate and speaker of the House would each appoint three members to the board.
The necessity for expanded oversight regarding sentence reduction credits became clear to lawmakers following the high-profile murder of Eliza Fletcher in Memphis last year by a criminal who was released early from a 24-year prison sentence, despite 54 write-ups and no participation in any programs. If Eliza Fletcher’s murderer had not been released early, he would have been behind bars the day he murdered the Memphis school teacher.
The law will ensure inmates who have exhibited good behavior and earned sentence reduction credits will receive them and, at the same time, ensure inmates who have received disciplinary infractions and refused to participate in programming will serve their full sentences.
Senate Bill 1236 / sponsored by McNally, Jackson, Taylor, Walley / Public Chapter 402 / January 1, 2024
Requiring risk and needs assessment for sentencing credits – A new law aims to ensure that sentencing credits are only provided to criminal offenders who have earned the credits with good behavior. The General Assembly passed legislation this year that requires an offender in the custody of the Department of Correction to complete an evidence-based risk and needs assessment and participate in programs recommended by the assessment in order to be eligible for sentencing credits. The assessment will be conducted by counselors to determine an offender’s risk of reoffending and identify appropriate rehabilitative efforts and case management plans. The law incentivizes participation in risk reduction programming and ensures that offenders earn their sentence reduction credits.
Senate Bill 806 / sponsored by Jackson / Signed by Gov. / July 1, 2023
Increasing reporting requirements for correctional facilities – This law ensures that all correctional facilities in the state are required to timely report inmates who commit violent or sexual offenses while incarcerated. It requires prison wardens or chief administrators to timely report those offenses to the local District Attorney within five business days so the crime can be prosecuted.
The law codifies the current Department of Corrections’ process for internally investigating issues within their correctional facilities and sharing that information with the local District Attorney. It also creates a Class A misdemeanor for a warden or chief administrator who fails to meet the reporting requirement. This law permits a judge to sentence an offender convicted of a crime committed in prison to serve the sentence consecutively so their new sentence would not begin until their current sentence is completed. This law is a result of testimony in the Ad Hoc Committee from the District Attorneys General Conference expressing their concerns with inconsistent reporting among correctional facilities of criminal offenses to law enforcement.
Senate Bill 1056 / sponsored by Jackson, Rose, Taylor / Public Chapter 347 / July 1, 2024
Community Corrections – The General Assembly passed a law that preserves the option for community-based alternatives to incarceration provided by Community Corrections programs, which exist throughout the state. Community Corrections is a court-ordered suspension of a prison sentence with intensive community-based supervision and treatment. The law establishes a mechanism for using state funds to contract with local governments and qualified private entities to develop community-based alternatives to incarceration for certain offenders that include a treatment-centered pathway and community-based supervision. Doing so would reserve bed space at state prisons and local jails for other offenders. Under the law, no state agency may penalize a Community Corrections organization for providing community-based supervision to an offender if ordered by a judge.
Senate Bill 1274 / sponsored by Jackson, Walley, Yager, Briggs, Massey / Signed by Gov. / June 30, 2023
Prisoner work release monitoring – This law requires prisoners in Tennessee to wear an electronic monitoring device if they are released from custody on work release or otherwise allowed to leave the grounds of a county workhouse or jail for employment or to perform work in the community. The entity employing the prisoner or utilizing them for work must pay the costs associated with the device. The law does not apply to a prisoner who is supervised by and remains in the direct eyesight of an armed law enforcement or corrections officer.
Senate Bill 562 / sponsored by Jackson, Taylor, Rose / Public Chapter 301 / takes effect upon becoming law
Enhancing the appeals process for capital offenses – A new law aims to improve the appeals process for death penalty cases, addressing existing problems for families of victims as well as attorneys general and district attorneys. The measure gives the attorney general instead of the district attorney control over the state’s defense in a collateral review, which is a judicial reexamination of evidence. Doing so will enhance the efficiency of the appeals process, ensure the case is handled by those familiar with it and improve transparency and communication for victim’s families. This law truly helps ensure justice is served in Tennessee.
Senate Bill 1500 / sponsored by Taylor, Rose, Stevens / Public Chapter 182 / takes effect upon becoming law
Facilitating successful re-entry – This law helps inmates released from prison become productive members of society faster. The law requires the Department of Corrections to provide identifying documentation such as birth certificates and Social Security cards to inmates who are being discharged for a felony offense and who intend to live in the state. The law also requires the department to coordinate with the Department of Safety to provide a photo identification or driver license if the inmate does not have one.
Senate Bill 814 / sponsored by Gardenhire, Lowe, Jackson / Signed by Gov. / Jan. 1, 2024
Clarifying sentencing credits for detainees- This law changes the way sentencing credits are given to criminals awaiting trial or sentencing hearings as well as to those who have not posted bail. The law removes the automatic issuance of good credit for pre-trial detainees, individuals who didn’t bond out waiting for their hearing or sentencing, and instead requires the jail administrator to reward good credit. This law will ensure that credits are awarded to incarcerated individuals who are obeying the rules.
Senate Bill 496 / sponsored by Stevens, Taylor / Public Chapter 427 / July 1, 2023
Second Amendment
Protecting firearm and ammunition manufacturers – This new law provides civil liability protection to firearm and ammunition manufacturers to prevent them from being held responsible for illegal acts carried out by criminals using their products. In 2005, the Federal Protection of Lawful Commerce and Arms Act was passed with the intent to protect firearms and ammunition manufacturers from frivolous claims. However, these types of lawsuits have been allowed in state courts, and this new law ensures those lawsuits never happen in Tennessee. However, the bill does maintain citizens’ ability to file legitimate claims against bad actors. According to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, Tennessee is #1 in the nation for employment in the firearms industry with nearly 8,000 jobs and a $1.1 billion impact to the state’s economy. This law will help protect the 20 firearm and ammunition manufacturers in the state and the Tennesseans they employ.
Senate Bill 822 / sponsored by Hensley, Gardenhire, Pody, Rose, Stevens / Public Chapter 409 / July 1, 2023
Protections for carrying handguns while hunting – In an effort to ensure Tennessee’s gun laws are consistent with the recent United States Supreme Court Case, New York State Rifle v. Bruen (2022), the General Assembly passed a law to ensure that any person can carry a handgun while hunting as long as the handgun is not used to hunt game. The person must not be prohibited from possessing a handgun.
Senate Bill 494 / sponsored by Stevens, Lowe / Public Chapter 218 / July 1, 2023
Ensuring off-duty law enforcement can carry handguns on higher ed campuses – A new law allows retired law enforcement officers employed on a part-time basis by a higher education institution to carry a handgun on the property. The person must have retired in good standing and have served for at least twenty years to be legally allowed to carry on higher education property. This law is an effort to help deter and protect against violent crime on campuses by increasing the number of trained law-abiding citizens who can carry handguns on the property.
Senate Bill 515 / sponsored by Lundberg, Lowe / Public Chapter 149 / July 1, 2023
Incentivizing handgun safety courses – In an effort to promote safe use of handguns, the General Assembly passed a law that creates a grant to incentivize citizens to take handgun safety classes. The law authorizes the Department of Safety to utilize processing fees associated with applications for enhanced carry permits to pay reimbursements to approved handgun safety schools. The reimbursements would go directly to the school and are only authorized for people’s first time completing the safety course. The law is not tied to any registration for carry permits or gun purchases. Approved safety schools would have to apply to the Department of Safety for a reimbursement of providing the course to a citizen
Senate Bill 360 / sponsored by Massey, Campbell, Yager, Yarbro, Haile / Signed by Gov. / January 1, 2024
Homeland Security
Cracking down on TikTok use at Tennessee College Campuses – This law prohibits the Chinese-owned social media platforms TikTok and WeChat from being accessed on Tennessee public higher education institutions’ internet networks. The State of Tennessee and the Federal government have taken similar steps to mitigate the security risks of TikTok by prohibiting government internet networks and devices from supporting the social media app. These platforms pose serious national security risks to the United States.
Senate Bill 834 / sponsored by Lundberg, Bailey, Bowling, Haile, Hensley, Rose, Taylor / Public Chapter 152 / takes effect upon becoming law
Preventing sanctioned countries from buying real estate in Tennessee — This law prevents foreign governments, businesses and non-US citizens from the 38 countries on the U.S Department of Treasury’s sanctions list in addition to China from purchasing or acquiring real estate in Tennessee. There are currently 38 countries on the sanctions list, but China was added to the list of countries in the law that passed this year.
Senate Bill 122 / sponsored by Niceley, Bowling, Crowe, Hensley, Lowe, Reeves, Stevens, Taylor, Walley / Public Chapter 369 / July 1, 2023
Prohibiting Chinese Surveillance – The General Assembly passed a law that prohibits law enforcement agencies from purchasing drones from corporations or entities which are banned under the National Defense Act of 2019. Those include drones made in China, Russia or other adversarial countries. Agencies are not required to replace existing equipment and can still use any drones they currently have. Any new devices must be purchased in compliance with the new regulations.
Senate Bill 776 / sponsored by Stevens, Haile, Jackson, Rose, Taylor, White / Public Chapter 223 / July 1, 2023
Growing the workforce – A new law is aimed at getting more workers back into the workforce faster. It increases the number of required weekly work searches for claimants of unemployment benefits from three to four per week. The measure also closes the “ghosting loophole” in which claimants of unemployment benefits set an interview for a job, but skip it, wasting employers’ time and resources.
Senate Bill 1285 / sponsored by Stevens, Taylor / Public Chapter 403 / Effective July 1, 2024
Improving the meat inspection process in Tennessee – To improve the meat inspection process in Tennessee and help local slaughterhouses, a new law shifts control of the process from the federal government back to the state. Under federal control, the meat inspection process has been extremely slow. Safety standards will remain as high if not higher than those of the federal government. Tennessee previously handled its own meat inspection until the early 1970s when the USDA took it over. Tennessee is joining 29 other states that have reclaimed control of the meat inspection process. The legislation is expected to bring down the cost and increase availability of smaller portions of locally-sourced meat.
Senate Bill 123 / sponsored by Niceley, Bowling, Walley / signed by Gov. / takes effect upon becoming law
Improving Ease of Access for Food Trucks – This law creates a statewide recognized fire permit so that a food truck can operate in multiple counties throughout the year without having to obtain separate permits from each county. The state fire marshal is charged with creating the permit. Under this law, food truck owners will have more ease of access and can therefore serve more areas.
Senate Bill 907 / sponsored by Niceley, Lowe, Stevens, Walley / Public Chapter 390 / takes effect upon becoming law
Protecting Workers’ Rights
Protecting workers’ freedom – The General Assembly continued its efforts to ensure Tennessee protects the rights of workers. A new law passed this year to prevent coercion in union-organizing elections and secures workers’ rights to secret ballot union elections. When a workplace decides to vote on unionizing, it is often done in an open election with workers’ choices made public to union organizers. Due to the lack of privacy of the vote, many workers are subjected to a public pressure campaign by union officials seeking to unionize the workplace. That process is called card check. This law requires employers that accept state incentives to honor employees’ rights to a secret-ballot union election and put an end to card check practices.
In 2022, Tennessee voters elected to adopt a constitutional amendment to put Tennessee’s Right-To-Work protections into the state constitution to ensure that workers’ employment cannot be contingent on their decision to join a union.
Senate Bill 650 / sponsored by Johnson, Jackson, Stevens, Rose, White / Public Chapter 415 / July 1, 2023
Protecting teachers’ paychecks from automatic union collections (Repeat from ‘Teachers’ section) – To continue the General Assembly’s efforts to support teachers, lawmakers approved legislation this year that ensures union membership dues will not be collected by local school districts. The law also provides teachers with pay increases each year until salaries reach $50,000 in the 2026-2027 school year. The law gives teachers control of their paycheck and stops taxpayer resources in K-12 education from being used to support giving free benefits to any organization, political or otherwise. The law does nothing to restrict a teacher’s choice to join and fund any activity, rather it simply ends the practice of using taxpayer resources to fund the collection of dues for the union’s benefit.
Senate Bill 281 / sponsored by Johnson, Powers, Lowe, Stevens / Public Chapter 437 / July 1, 2023
Tennessee Information Protection Act – This new law requires large technology companies like Google, Instagram and TikTok to fully disclose to consumers what information is being collected about them through their online activities. The act will require online platforms to disclose up-front exactly what personal information will be collected and how they intend to use it. Tennesseans will also be able to opt-out of the selling of their personal information to third parties without discrimination. Additionally, the legislation includes protections for biometric data that measures physical characteristics like voice records, fingerprints, retinal scans or facial recognition. Companies that misuse a consumer’s information will also be held accountable. The bill gives the state attorney general the authority to impose civil penalties if these big tech companies fail to safeguard private data or violate consumer protections.
Senate Bill 73 / sponsored by Watson, Stevens, Campbell, Lowe, Reeves / Public Chapter 408 / July 1, 2025
Genetic information and life insurance providers – The General Assembly approved legislation that prohibits life insurance providers from canceling coverage for an individual or a family member based solely on their genetic information. Providers would also be prohibited from requesting or requiring a genetic test or other specific DNA information as a precondition of insurability. Access to genetic data could only be provided with an individual’s signed, written consent.
Senate Bill 1294 / sponsored by Bailey / Public Chapter 246 / July 1, 2023
Protecting genetic information — To protect consumers’ genetic information, lawmakers approved legislation that prevents genetic testing companies from selling consumers’ genetic information without consent. It requires such companies to provide to consumers information about the company’s data collection, use, access and security practices, among others. It also prevents companies from disclosing consumers’ genetic data to entities offering health insurance, life insurance, long-term care insurance or an employer of the consumer without consent. Finally, the law authorizes the division of Consumer Affairs in the Attorney General’s office to enforce the legislation and requires that office to create a system for receiving complaints.
Senate Bill 1295 / sponsored by Bailey, Stevens / Public Chapter 324 / July 1, 2023
Protecting Consumers from Increased Streaming Service Prices – The General Assembly approved legislation this year to continue an existing state policy that ensures no cities or counties can collect franchise fees. This new law arose after many municipalities attempted to force streaming providers such as Netflix and Hulu and their customers to pay cable franchise fees for the content customers receive from the internet.
Senate Bill 456 / sponsored by Watson and Stevens / Public Chapter 60 / takes effect upon becoming law
Protecting parental rights regarding vaccines – This law, called the Mature Minor Doctrine Clarification Act, prohibits a healthcare provider from giving vaccinations to minors without parental consent. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Health issued a memo to healthcare providers that cited the Mature Minor Doctrine for authority to provide COVID-19 vaccines to minors without parental consent. After Republican lawmakers raised concerns with the newly authorized shots being given to children without parents’ knowledge or consent, the department reversed course. This law clarifies that the Mature Minor Doctrine does not allow vaccinations to be given to minors without consent from their parents.
Senate Bill 1111 / sponsored by Bowling, Hensley, Jackson, Pody, Taylor / Signed by Gov. / takes effect upon becoming law
Accelerating licensure for out-of-state Psychologists – A new law passed this year to make it easier for psychologists with an out-of-state license to become licensed in Tennessee. Under the new law, the Board of Psychology can designate a person as a health service provider if they have a valid license or certificate in another state, and they have been practicing for at least 10 years of the last 15 years preceding the application. The applicant’s previous license or certification must have required training that is generally equivalent to Tennessee’s licensing standards, and the applicant must not have been subject to any disciplinary action.
Senate Bill 953 / sponsored by Walley / Public Chapter 173 / January 1, 2024
Accelerating licensure for out-of-state medical providers – To continue efforts to accelerate licensure for qualified medical professions, the General Assembly passed a law to remove red tape that can make it harder for rural communities to recruit physicians and medical providers. This law lowers the time from 90 to 45 days that a medical board must decide on an application for licensure in Tennessee from a medical provider licensed in another state. The decrease in wait time will encourage medical providers to practice in rural areas in Tennessee. The law applies to the Board of Medical Examiners, Board of Osteopathic Examination, Board of Nursing and Board of Physician Assistants.
Senate Bill 296 / sponsored by Gardenhire / Signed by Gov. / takes effect upon becoming law
Removing barriers for timely telehealth behavioral health evaluations – Lawmakers approved a new law to provide exceptions for in-person requirements prior to receiving telehealth behavioral health evaluations. Previously, a patient must have had an existing relationship with their practitioner and been seen within the last 16 months to receive a behavioral health evaluation via telehealth. The new law provides an exception to the 16-month encounter requirement when a patient is receiving an initial behavioral health evaluation or assessment. It also allows a collaborating physician in a telemedicine practice to conduct all visits remotely. This exception is similar to ones in place for community mental health centers and federally-qualified health centers and will allow collaborating physicians to maintain communications with the licensees with whom they practice and meet the requirements of state law. The change will help patients access the mental health care they need faster.
Senate Bill 721 / sponsored by Massey, Yager, Yarbro / Public Chapter 201 / takes effect upon becoming law
Graduate Physician Licensure Program – In Tennessee, there are more students graduating medical school than there are residency positions available, resulting in a surplus of graduate physicians. A graduate physician is a person who has graduated medical school but has been unable to find a residency position. This new law creates a pathway for a graduate physician licensure program, which will allow these physicians to practice medicine in supervised conditions before completing their residency. This change will also help improve access to healthcare in rural areas where there are very few practicing physicians.
Senate Bill 937 / sponsored by Briggs, Jackson, Stevens / Signed by Gov. / January 1, 2025
Government Operations
Ensuring smart, financially responsible investment – This year, Republicans in the General Assembly passed legislation to ensure that the state is only investing taxpayer funds into financially responsible companies. The new law specifically prohibits the Tennessee Treasurer from making investments based on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) ratings, which value companies based on their advancement of environmental and social causes unrelated to core business functions. The legislation will ensure Tennessee tax dollars are being invested to maximize investment returns rather than to push a public policy agenda.
In 2022, the U.S. Department of Labor implemented the ESG rule, which allows retirement plan managers to make investment decisions based on ESG factors instead of focusing on financial ones. In response, Congress passed legislation that would nullify the department’s new rule, but President Biden vetoed that legislation. Tennessee is one of at least nine other states that have since prohibited or discouraged ESG investments, including Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky and Montana.
Senate Bill 955 / sponsored by Johnson, Walley, White, Yager, Bailey, Bowling, Crowe, Gardenhire, Niceley, Reeves, Rose, Stevens, Taylor / Signed by Gov. / July 1, 2023
Changes to Sports Wagering – This new law allows the Sports Wagering Advisory Council to keep a 2% privilege tax on the gross handle of the licensee instead of the 20% of the adjusted gross income. It also clarifies language pertaining to background checks on vendors, codifies the registration process for vendors and removes the mandate requiring use of official league data since Tennessee is the only state with the mandate.
Senate Bill 475 / sponsored by Stevens, Johnson / Signed by Gov. / July 1, 2023
Biological sex clarified in law – A new law clarifies existing code so that all branches of government use the same definition of “sex”. In Tennessee code “sex” is defined as a person’s immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy and genetics existing at the time of birth and evidence of their biological sex. According to the law, evidence of a person’s biological sex includes government-issued identification that accurately reflects a person’s sex listed on their original birth certificate.
Senate Bill 1440 / sponsored by Roberts, Bowling, Stevens / Signed by Gov. / July 1, 2023
Temporary teaching license for veterans – A new law allows honorably discharged veterans to obtain a temporary teaching license to fill a vacant position in a school. The permit will only be valid for a short time and must be used to fill a vacant position.
Senate Bill 724 / sponsored by Hensley, Campbell, Jackson, Rose, Taylor / Public Chapter 311 / July 1, 2023