Tennessee House Bills

Water - As introduced, enacts the "Tennessee Fluoride-Free Water Act" to prohibit public water systems from adding fluoride to drinking water, prohibit sales of bottled water containing added fluoride, and requires certain actions for naturally occurring fluoride that exceeds certain levels in drinking water and bottled water. - Amends TCA Title 47, Chapter 18; Title 53 and Title 68, Chapter 221.

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, creates an offense to knowingly inhale, ingest, use, or possess any compound, liquid, gas, or chemical that contains nitrous oxide. - Amends TCA Title 39; Title 57, Chapter 7; Title 63 and Title 67, Chapter 4, Part 10.

Professions and Occupations - As introduced, exempts a person whose occupation or practice is confined solely to makeup application services from the requirement to be licensed as a cosmetologist or aesthetician if the person meets the requirements to obtain a certificate to provide makeup application services. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 62, Chapter 3; Title 62, Chapter 38 and Title 62, Chapter 4.

Probation and Parole - As introduced, permits a trial judge to revoke a defendant's probation for a felony or misdemeanor based on one instance of technical violation; extends the permitted terms of incarceration a court may impose for a technical violation to 90 days for a first revocation, 180 days for a second revocation, and the remainder of the sentence for a third or subsequent revocation. - Amends TCA Title 40.

Gaming - As introduced, allocates 2 percent of revenue from sports gaming in this state to programs that serve rural and urban at-risk youth. - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 49 and Title 67.

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, requires TACIR to study and prepare a report on marijuana arrests made in this state from 2015 to 2025, including data on race, age, gender, and the location of arrest. - Amends TCA Title 4.

Taxes, Sales - As introduced, exempts books from sales tax on the annual sales tax holiday. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 6.

Welfare - As introduced, requires the commissioner of human services to provide to the commissioner of correction an application for food assistance to be used by inmates in state correctional institutions prior to release; requires the application to contain an option for the inmate to indicate a denial to apply for food assistance and reasons for doing so; requires the commissioner of correction to supply the application to each inmate prior to release; requires reports to the general assembly on certain data collected from the applications and on the number of inmates leaving incarceration who are approved for food assistance. - Amends TCA Title 41 and Title 71.

Education - As introduced, requires each public charter school to publish the policy adopted by its governing board on the use of artificial intelligence by students, teachers, and staff for instructional and assignment purposes on its website; requires each local board of education to direct each school under its management and control to publish the policy adopted by the local board on the use of artificial intelligence by students, teachers, and staff for instructional and assignment purposes on the school's website. - Amends TCA Title 49.

Local Education Agencies - As introduced, allows a student to be denied the privilege of participating in physical activity during the school day if the student engages in certain prohibited conduct or behavior; allows a teacher or administrator, as a form of discipline, to remove a student from, or deny a student participation in, any physical activity or physical activity period, or to assign a student alternative lessons, assignments, or activities, including physical activities, to improve the student's conduct or behavior. - Amends TCA Section 49-6-1021.

Insurance, Motor Vehicles - As introduced, enacts the "Community Faith Transportation and Service Protection Act," which establishes secondary vehicle liability insurance provided by the state to a faith-based organization for vehicles used by the faith-based organization for community service use. - Amends TCA Title 9, Chapter 8; Title 55 and Title 56.

Taxes, Franchise - As introduced, requires the comptroller of the treasury to conduct a financial audit of all franchise tax refunds claimed and received for the prior fiscal year, with the audit results to be made available on the comptroller's website; requires all franchise tax refunds paid be open to public inspection as a public record under the public records law. - Amends TCA Title 10, Chapter 7; Title 67, Chapter 1, Part 17; Title 67, Chapter 1, Part 18; Title 67, Chapter 1, Part 8 and Title 67, Chapter 4, Part 21.

Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) - As introduced, expands the category of students who are considered economically disadvantaged for purposes of generating a weighted allocation through the TISA funding formula to include students who are enrolled in the state's medicaid program. - Amends TCA Title 49.

Public Employees - As introduced, allows up to five days' leave for any eligible employee who is a foster parent or kinship caregiver regarding appearances in court or counseling sessions related to the placement of the foster child. - Amends TCA Title 8, Chapter 50.

Probate Law - As introduced, permits a petitioner or affiant to proceed pro se in the administration of a small estate if the personal property consists exclusively of one or more life insurance policies that do not exceed $15,000 in value and are intended to be used for the decedent's burial, funeral, or final expenses; specifies that a person who files for a small estate affidavit or limited letters of authority is deemed to be acting in an individual capacity; requires the court clerk to provide a standardized form for filers. - Amends TCA Title 30; Section 56-7-206 and Title 62, Chapter 5.

Taxes, Real Property - As introduced, urges the comptroller of the treasury to study the feasibility and potential impacts of establishing the value of all residential property as the most recent price paid for the property in lieu of assessors of property appraising the value through the use of assessment manuals; requires a report, if the study is conducted, to be submitted to the finance, ways and means committee of the senate and the committee of the house of representatives having jurisdiction over finance matters. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 5.

Prisons and Reformatory Institutions - As introduced, authorizes the Tennessee rehabilitative initiative in correction (TRICOR) program to operate commissary programs within state prisons. - Amends TCA Title 41, Chapter 22.

Trade Regulation - As introduced, enacts the "Stop Rent Rigging Act." - Amends TCA Title 47 and Title 66.

Consumer Protection - As introduced, enacts the "Junk Fee Prevention Act." - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 3, Part 19 and Title 47, Chapter 18.

Highways, Roads and Bridges - As introduced, expands the authority for the department to set tolls to existing transportation facilities that are part of the state highway system or interstate and national defense highway system, located at the border of this state with another state, and where, on or after July 1, 2026, one or more new vehicle travel lanes are added to the facility or an HOV lane on the facility is converted to a high occupancy user fee lane. - Amends TCA Title 12; Title 54 and Title 55.

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, creates an offense for a vape shop retailer, or a distributor, wholesaler, or importer, who sells or offers for sale a vapor product for retail sale in this state to sell nitrous oxides. - Amends TCA Title 39; Title 57, Chapter 7 and Title 67.

Agriculture - As introduced, enacts the "Tennessee Agriculture Recovery and Investment in Family Farm (TARIFF) Relief Act," which creates a fund within the state treasury for the purpose of making grants to family farmers who have struggled with high input costs and market losses resulting from tariffs on agricultural goods, equipment, and machinery. - Amends TCA Title 9 and Title 43.

Environmental Preservation - As introduced, enacts the "Climate Resilient Tennessee Act." - Amends TCA Title 4 and Title 68.

Corporations, Not for Profit - As introduced, requires a nonprofit organization that receives state or federal grants to compile, maintain, and publish in a publicly available location the salaries of the nonprofit organization's employees. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 10, Chapter 7; Title 35; Title 48 and Title 50.

Cemeteries - As introduced, requires a cemetery company to include in its record of each burial in the cemetery the precise geographical location using latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates; requires the cemetery company to transmit a copy of the record to the funeral establishment responsible for the arrangements of the person buried at the interment site within 15 days after the date of burial. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 46 and Title 62, Chapter 5.

Eminent Domain - As introduced, adds to the definition of "public use" for eminent domain a sidewalk, public greenway, bicycle lane, pedestrian way, or proper slope development associated with a road, highway, bridge, or other structure, facility, or project used for public transportation. - Amends TCA Section 29-17-102.

Civil Procedure - As introduced, enacts the "Tennessee Foreign Law Non-Recognition Act." - Amends TCA Title 20 and Title 29.

Solid Waste Disposal - As introduced, prohibits municipalities, counties, and other political subdivisions of this state from disposing, or contracting for the disposal of, solid waste in a landfill located outside their territorial boundaries unless the host county or host municipality in which the landfill is located has entered into a host community agreement approving such disposal; applies to all contracts entered into for the disposal of solid waste on or after July 1, 2026. - Amends TCA Title 5; Title 6; Title 7 and Title 68, Chapter 211.

Hamblen County - Subject to local approval, moves the election of the county attorney by the county commission from July to September; changes who reviews the compensation of and reimbursement of expenses to the county attorney, from the finance committee to the county legislative body. - Amends Chapter 677 of the Private Acts of 1949; as amended.

Evidence - As introduced, adds a rebuttable presumption that the criteria for a child victim to testify by two-way closed circuit television in a criminal matter involving certain offenses are met if the child is under 13 years of age. - Amends TCA Title 24, Chapter 7 and Title 39.

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Affirms the importance of religious liberty protections for incarcerated individuals under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) and recognizes the contributions of Prison Fellowship. -

Constitutional Amendments - Proposes to amend Article I of the Constitution of Tennessee to establish the right to privacy. -

Memorials, Death - Renee Nicole Good -

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Expresses support for the reconstruction of the Columbia Dam Project on the Duck River and recognizes it as a critical priority to establish an adequate water supply system for sustained growth, economic development, and recreational use. -

Water - As introduced, decreases from 1.5 milligrams per liter to 0.4 milligrams per liter the threshold for the presence of fluoride in a public water system that requires an increase in the frequency of fluoride-level testing from quarterly to monthly; requires public water systems to cease adding fluoride to drinking water supplies by May 1, 2025, and provide written notice of cessation of fluoridation to customers. - Amends TCA Title 68, Chapter 221, Part 7.

Environment and Conservation, Department of - As introduced, prohibits the department from regulating farming activities involving top soil, rock removal, or the building of a pond when the activities are conducted in an area that is less than three acres in size, and the property on which the activities occur has greenbelt classification. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 11; Title 13; Title 43; Title 44; Title 64; Title 66; Title 67; Title 68 and Title 69.

Human Rights - As introduced, prohibits an organization or entity receiving financial assistance from this state for programs or activities from denying benefits to, excluding from participation in, or discriminating against a person otherwise eligible for the program or activity on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin. - Amends TCA Title 4.

Bail, Bail Bonds - As introduced, requires a sheriff to accept the surrender of a criminal defendant on pretrial release by a bail bondsman or surety for good cause, pending a hearing by a court with jurisdiction to admit to bail to determine whether there is good cause for the surrender. - Amends TCA Title 40, Chapter 11.

State Government - As introduced, beginning on the second Sunday in March of 2027, requires this state and its political subdivisions to observe standard time throughout the year. - Amends TCA Section 4-1-401.

Zoning - As introduced, prohibits the adoption or enforcement of zoning regulations that have the effect of diminishing the value of a property; authorizes property owners to seek compensation for such diminished value. - Amends TCA Title 5; Title 6; Title 7 and Title 13, Chapter 7.

Utilities, Utility Districts - As introduced, increases, from 15 to 20, the number of calendar days that may pass from the actual date specified in the first notice after a person responsible for excavation or demolition has given the notice of the intent to excavate or demolish before the person is required to serve additional notice if the excavation or demolition has not yet been completed; makes other changes to the Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act. - Amends TCA Title 65, Chapter 31, Part 1.

Education - As introduced, enacts the "Universal Pre-K Funding Act." - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 51; Title 49 and Title 67.

Employees, Employers - As introduced, enacts the "Workers' Right to Live Act," which places mandatory reporting requirements on employers concerning workplace fatalities and imposes penalties on employers for workplace fatalities that were a result of employer negligence; makes changes related to workers' compensation benefits. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 8; Title 29 and Title 50.

TennCare - As introduced, enacts the "TennCare Buy-In Act." - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 3, Part 10 and Title 71, Chapter 5.

Controlled Substances - As introduced, permits a person to possess cannabis that was obtained directly from, or pursuant to a diagnosis of a qualifying medical condition by, a licensed physician; specifies the sentences permitted for possessing certain amounts of cannabis that was not obtained directly from, or pursuant to a diagnosis of a qualifying medical condition by, a licensed physician. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 4.

Education - As introduced, authorizes, instead of requires, local education agencies and public charter schools to retain a student in the third grade if the student has not shown a basic understanding of the curriculum and an ability to perform the skills required in the subject of reading or English language arts. - Amends TCA Title 49, Chapter 1 and Title 49, Chapter 6.

Natural Disasters - As introduced, requires TACIR to perform a comprehensive evaluation on the preparedness and response of local and state officials, departments, and agencies to the Hurricane Helene natural disaster. - Amends TCA Title 3; Title 4, Chapter 10 and Title 58.

Insurance, Health, Accident - As introduced, prohibits a health insurance issuer or managed health insurance issuer from reimbursing for testing services a medical laboratory that is eligible to participate as an in-network participating provider at a rate less than the CMS clinical laboratory fee schedule for medical labs in this state; permits a managed health insurance issuer to require such lab to meet the performance metrics required of in-network labs. - Amends TCA Title 56, Chapter 7, Part 23.

Recreational Areas - As introduced, creates an administrative attachment for the Doe Mountain Recreation Authority with the department of environment and conservation, while preserving the Authority's autonomy and powers in all other aspects. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 11, Chapter 25 and Title 70.

Education - As introduced, requires a private school that participates in the Individualized Education Act or the Tennessee Education Savings Account Pilot Program to comply with certain requirements in order to receive public funds through the program; prohibits a student from receiving an education freedom scholarship if the student is enrolled in a private school that doesn't comply with certain requirements. - Amends TCA Title 49, Chapter 10, Part 14; Title 49, Chapter 6, Part 26 and Title 49, Chapter 6, Part 35.

DUI Offenses - As introduced, allows a person convicted of driving under the influence of an intoxicant who is eligible for a restricted license to request, and the court to order, the use of a transdermal monitoring device in lieu of the person being required to operate only a motor vehicle equipped with an ignition interlock device; requires the person to pay all costs associated with the transdermal monitoring device; specifies the person is not eligible for assistance from the electronic monitoring indigency fund. - Amends TCA Title 39; Title 40 and Title 55, Chapter 10.

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, removes from the offense of violation of a protective order or restraining order the requirement that the person violating the order must have had an opportunity to appear and be heard in connection with the order of protection or restraining order and that the court must have made specific findings of fact in the order that the person committed a certain offense. - Amends TCA Title 36 and Title 39.

Taxes, Real Property - As introduced, prohibits a city or county collecting official from requiring a taxpayer to pay the full tax due for an assessment for which an appeal is pending before the county or state boards of equalization. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 5.

Environment and Conservation, Department of - As introduced, requires proposed subdivision plans to be approved by a local planning commission or other agency authorized to approve such plans prior to their submission to the department for approval rather than such plans being approved by the department first. - Amends TCA Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 13 and Title 68, Chapter 221.

Appropriations - As introduced, makes appropriations for the purpose of defraying the expenses of certain legislative enactments passed during the 2026 session of the 114th General Assembly; earmarks sufficient state funds for the purpose of funding any bill naming a highway or bridge in honor of a service member killed in action. -

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, enacts the "Shielding Tennesseans from Oligarchic Power and Eliminating Lawless Obstruction of Necessities Act (STOP ELON Act)," which creates a new offense of interfering with an individual's or entity's receipt of a loan, grant, or financial assistance that the individual or entity is lawfully entitled to receive from the federal, state, or local government, with intent to deprive the individual of the loan, grant, or financial assistance, which is punished as theft; authorizes a victim of an offense to bring a civil action to recover the funds that the victim did not receive because of the offense. - Amends TCA Title 29 and Title 39.

Solid Waste Disposal - As introduced, creates exception to the state regulation of biosolids by authorizing the legislative body of Grundy County to regulate such activities. - Amends TCA Title 5; Title 68, Chapter 211; Title 68, Chapter 221 and Title 69.

Firearms and Ammunition - As introduced, creates the offense of carrying or possessing a firearm, including a firearm that was privately assembled and does not contain a serial number or other mark that conforms with federal law, if, at the time of carrying or possessing, the person is not a citizen of the United States or a lawful permanent resident. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 13 and Title 55, Chapter 50.

Water Pollution - As introduced, prohibits the department of environment and conservation from applying criteria that will result in the classification of real property as a wetland if the property is prior converted cropland that is exempt from classification as a wetland under federal law. - Amends TCA Title 11, Chapter 14, Part 4 and Title 69.

Naming and Designating - Designates September 22 as "Veterans Suicide Prevention Day." -