Tennessee Senate Bills

Finance and Administration, Dept. of - As introduced, creates a law enforcement officer recruitment fund and grant program administered by the department for the purpose of assisting eligible law enforcement agencies in officer recruitment. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 8; Title 9 and Title 38.

Memorials, Recognition - Beverly Bell -

Local Education Agencies - As introduced, requires LEAs to publish the character education curriculum on the LEA's website. - Amends TCA Title 49.

Education, Curriculum - As introduced, clarifies that local education agencies and public charter schools shall instruct students about the formation of the governments of the United States and Tennessee using federal and state foundational documents at the appropriate grade level and consistent with social studies standards adopted by the state board. - Amends TCA Title 49.

Education, Dept. of - As introduced, requires the department to make the standardized form for reporting student allergies publicly available on its website. - Amends TCA Title 49.

Sunset Laws - As introduced, extends the state energy policy council to June 30, 2027. - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 29 and Title 68, Chapter 204.

Sunset Laws - As introduced, extends the local government planning advisory committee to June 30, 2027. - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 29 and Title 4, Chapter 3, Part 7.

Health Care - As introduced, changes from March 1 to February 1, the date by which a managed care organization that participates in the TennCare program must submit its annual report to the bureau of TennCare. - Amends TCA Title 71, Chapter 5, Part 1.

Memorials, Recognition - George Washington Day in Tennessee, February 22, 2025 -

Naming and Designating - Designates March 2025 as "Certified Government Financial Manager Month." -

Naming and Designating - Designates December 14 as "Hazel Moore Day." -

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, makes assault against school employees a Class E felony offense under certain circumstances. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 49, Chapter 6.

Taxes - As introduced, increases, from 10 to 12, the number of days from an action taken by the department of revenue that a person may be afforded an opportunity for a formal hearing before the commissioner for an issue in connection with an application, entitlement, or proposed revocation of or to a certificate, license, permit, privilege, or right, or for any other adverse action proposed or taken to implement any revenue regulatory or registration law. - Amends TCA Title 67.

Taxes - As introduced, allows a taxpayer to annually elect to take a bonus depreciation deduction of 40 percent of the cost of assets purchased on or after January 1, 2026, during the tax year in which the assets were purchased when calculating net earnings or net losses for excise tax purposes; allows the taxpayer to take the federal depreciation percentage if it exceeds 40 percent. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 4, Part 20.

Public Funds and Financing - As introduced, creates in the reserve for revenue fluctuations account a restricted account for the purchase and sale of precious metal bullion or specie; authorizes the state treasurer, with approval of the comptroller of the treasury, to purchase and sell precious metal bullion or specie with funds from that account. - Amends TCA Title 9.

Treasurer, State - As introduced, allows the state treasurer to enter into an agreement with an entity to carry out certain activities in order to serve as a facility to securely produce, store, process, and ship bullion products for the state's depository. - Amends TCA Title 9, Chapter 4.

TennCare - As introduced, requires the bureau to reimburse a public or private air ambulance service that bills for transports and has a base of operations in this state that provides a covered emergency or nonemergency service to a TennCare recipient at a rate not less than 67.5 percent of the federal medicare program's allowable charge for participating providers. - Amends TCA Title 68 and Title 71.

Education, Higher - As introduced, requires the Tennessee student assistance corporation to submit an annual report, by July 31 each year, to legislative committees having jurisdiction over postsecondary education detailing, for each of the five immediately preceding academic years for which the corporation awarded scholarships, the amount appropriated by the general assembly for the scholarship program, the total number of scholarship applications received by the corporation, the total number of scholarship recipients, and the average scholarship award amount. - Amends TCA Title 49.

Children - As introduced, requires the department of children's services to study the need for a new juvenile detention facility to be constructed in the western grand division of this state that would serve the detention and treatment needs of juveniles in that grand division; requires the department to report its findings and recommendations to the judiciary committee of the senate and the committee having jurisdiction over criminal justice in the house of representatives on or before January 1, 2026. - Amends TCA Title 9; Title 12; Title 16; Title 37; Title 39 and Title 40.

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Expresses support for the Nation of Israel. -

Taxes, Business - As introduced, authorizes the commissioner of revenue to change the due date of the taxpayer's business tax return to a date that is not less than 60 calendar days, rather than two calendar months, following the end of the taxpayer's business tax period for purposes of the commissioner changing a taxpayer's business tax period to correspond to the taxpayer's fiscal year. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 4, Part 7.

Memorials, Sports - Upperman Bees, TSSAA Division I, Class 3A state champions -

Memorials, Retirement - Lanny Selby, Sparta Fire Department -

Local Government, General - As introduced, authorizes local governments to create local boards for the purpose of permitting retailers of hemp-derived cannabinoid products. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 43, Chapter 27.

Children's Services, Dept. of - As introduced, clarifies that on or before January 31 of each year, the department shall report information regarding child support to the general assembly and the governor. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 8; Title 33; Title 34; Title 36; Title 37; Title 41; Title 49; Title 68 and Title 71.

Municipal Government - As introduced, authorizes a tourism development authority to petition for deannexation of property owned by the authority. - Amends TCA Title 6, Chapter 51 and Title 7, Chapter 69.

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Affirms that the American Dream belongs to all of us. -

Firearms and Ammunition - As introduced, prohibits the possession, manufacture, transport, repair, or sale of a switch or auto sear device designed, made, or adapted for the purpose of converting a weapon to shoot automatically more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger unless certain exceptions apply. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 13.

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, requires notice of the Class B misdemeanor of transferring dangerous materials to a metals recycling facility without first obtaining a signed written acknowledgment that the item has been transferred to be posted in a conspicuous location at each public entrance to the facility. - Amends TCA Title 36, Chapter 3, Part 6; Title 39; Title 40 and Title 55.

Remedies and Special Proceedings - As introduced, creates a civil action against any person or government entity that infringes upon a person's right to bear arms under the Tennessee or United States Constitutions; requires the person or entity to be liable for actual or statutory damages, punitive damages, attorney's fees, and court costs. - Amends TCA Title 4, Chapter 54.

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.

Tort Liability and Reform - As introduced, increases the amount that a person may recover in an action brought against a local governmental entity under the Tennessee Governmental Tort Liability Act for claims brought on or after July 1, 2025, to $750,000 for the bodily injury or death of a person, $1.5 million for the bodily injury or death of all persons in an accident, occurrence, or act, and $250,000 for the injury or destruction of property of others. - Amends TCA Title 29.

Firearms and Ammunition - As introduced, requires, if the respondent on an order of protection dispossesses firearms by transferring possession to a third party who is not prohibited from possessing firearms, the respondent to specify the third party and the physical address where all firearms are located on the affidavit of firearms dispossession form; requires the third party to sign the affidavit of firearms dispossession form to acknowledge receipt of the firearms. - Amends TCA Title 36, Chapter 3, Part 6.

Domestic Violence - As introduced, requires a person who is convicted of domestic assault or subject to an order of protection to dispossess any firearm in the person's possession by transferring the firearm to a law enforcement agency and to provide the court with an affidavit of dispossession of firearms and a receipt from the law enforcement agency. - Amends TCA Title 36; Title 39 and Title 40.

Firearms and Ammunition - As introduced, permits the largest municipality in Shelby, Davidson, Knox, or Hamilton county to regulate the manner of storage of firearms, firearm ammunition, and firearm accessories by ordinance, resolution, policy, rule, or other enactment. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 13.

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.

Taxes, Sales - As introduced, requires the commissioner of revenue to establish a sales tax remittance schedule that allows dealers making sales to reasonably offset the burden of transaction fees associated with the collection of sales tax. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 6.

Memorials, Death - Steve Grindstaff -

Economic and Community Development - As introduced, enacts the "Courthouse Square Revitalization Act." - Amends TCA Title 6 and Title 67, Chapter 6.

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Recognizes Black Maternal Health Week, April 11-17, 2025. -

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Supports regulation or ban on the sale of Kratom in Tennessee. -

Controlled Substances - As introduced, decriminalizes the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana or less than five marijuana plants; authorizes municipalities and counties to impose civil penalties on the possession of marijuana in certain circumstances. - Amends TCA Title 16, Chapter 18, Part 3; Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 4 and Title 40.

Election Laws - As introduced, clarifies that the county election commissions have the duty to purge the permanent registration records of certain voters unless otherwise prohibited by federal law. - Amends TCA Section 2-2-132.

Pensions and Retirement Benefits - As introduced, requires the board of trustees of the Tennessee consolidated retirement system to convert a person's participation in the retirement system, for service as a member of the general assembly and as a participant in the hybrid plan, from the hybrid plan to the legacy plan upon the person completing 10 years of service as a member of the general assembly if the person became a member of the general assembly on or after July 1, 2014; requires retiree health benefit coverage be made available to retired members of the general assembly with 10 or more years of service. - Amends TCA Title 3; Title 8, Chapter 27, Part 2; Title 8, Chapter 34; Title 8, Chapter 35 and Title 8, Chapter 36.

Taxes, Exemption and Credits - As introduced, exempts a nonprofit religious institution from property taxes, under certain circumstances; applicable in Davidson County. - Amends TCA Section 67-5-212.

Taxes, Privilege - As introduced, increases from 2.4 to 5 percent, the amount of realty transfer tax and mortgage tax collections retained as commission by county registers for collecting and reporting those taxes; requires 50 percent of such collections to be deposited in the county general fund; allocates the remaining balance to the wetland acquisition fund, local parks land acquisition fund, state lands acquisition fund, agricultural resources conservation fund, and state general fund. - Amends TCA Section 67-4-409.

Law Enforcement - As introduced, specifies that a commissioned reserve deputy sheriff or commissioned reserve or auxiliary police officer receiving compensation for services as a guard, patrol, or watchperson under a contract with a private business that is properly licensed by the state is exempt from the private protective services licensing and regulation requirements. - Amends TCA Title 38; Title 39 and Title 62, Chapter 35.

Taxes, Sales - As introduced, authorizes certain counties to levy a local option sales tax at the rate of 3.75 percent, instead of a maximum of 2.75 percent, if the revenue from the increase in such tax is used by the county exclusively for the construction of a new county jail or to retire debt, including principal and interest and related expenses, on such construction. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 6, Part 7.

Criminal Offenses - As introduced, enacts "MaKayla's Law," which amends the offense of reckless endangerment to specifically include a person's reckless failure to render inoperable or safely secure or lock a firearm, resulting in a child under 13 gaining possession of the firearm and injuring or killing the child or another. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 13.

General Assembly - As introduced, requires the board of trustees of the Tennessee consolidated retirement system to convert a person's participation in the retirement system, for service as a member of the general assembly and as a participant in the hybrid plan, from the hybrid plan to the legacy plan upon the person completing 10 years of service as a member of the general assembly if the person became a member of the general assembly on or after July 1, 2014. - Amends TCA Title 3; Title 8, Chapter 34; Title 8, Chapter 35 and Title 8, Chapter 36.

Firearms and Ammunition - As introduced, expands the circumstances under which a law enforcement agency may petition a court for permission to destroy a firearm that has been confiscated by a law enforcement officer and declared to be contraband by a court, to any firearm, rather than only a firearm that is inoperable or unsafe. - Amends TCA Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 13.

Immigration - As introduced, urges the department of safety to study the enforcement of federal immigration laws, detentions and removals, investigations in this state, and immigration-related progress and challenges; requires the department to submit a report to the governor and general assembly on or before January 1, 2026. - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 7; Title 8; Title 38; Title 39; Title 40 and Title 55.

Campaigns and Campaign Finance - As introduced, prohibits foreign entities and domestic entities that receive funding from foreign entities from making contributions to a candidate or a political campaign committee; prohibits the speakers of the senate and the house of representatives and the secretary of state from accepting funds from foreign entities and domestic entities that receive funding from foreign entities for conducting elections. - Amends TCA Title 2 and Title 3.

Campaigns and Campaign Finance - As introduced, prohibits out-of-state political campaign committees from making contributions to influence a state or local primary election for the Republican Party. - Amends TCA Title 2 and Title 3.

Open Meetings - As introduced, increases, from 30 to 45, the number of days the office of open records counsel has to acknowledge and approve a plan submitted by a governing body detailing how the body plans to comply with electronic communication requirements that address meeting by means of an internet forum. - Amends TCA Title 8, Chapter 44.

General Assembly, Statement of Intent or Position - Establishes a definition of antisemitism and encourages departments and agencies of state government to use such definition in determining discriminatory intent for any law or policy in this state that prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, or national origin. -

Handgun Permits - As introduced, extends the time, from 30 to 45 days, within which a person whose handgun carry permit has been suspended or revoked may petition the chancery court for judicial review of the department of safety's final determination. - Amends TCA Title 39.

Taxes, Ad Valorem - As introduced, removes the condition that a taxpayer or owner must obtain consent of the assessor of property before appealing the valuation of industrial and commercial real and tangible personal property directly to the state board of equalization; makes other related revisions. - Amends TCA Title 67, Chapter 5.

Boats, Boating - As introduced, requires a person to purchase a permit in order to operate a vessel on the intrastate waters of this state that is exempt from being numbered for identification in this state due only to the vessel having a valid number awarded to it pursuant to a federally approved numbering system of another state. - Amends TCA Title 69, Chapter 9.

Public Contracts - As introduced, requires a local government to send back any requested changes on a contractor's or developer's application for development site plans or inspections in a single deliverable document or set of documents, or to remit related fees back to the developer for subsequent change requests; prohibits a local government from requiring a developer or contractor to fund, develop, or contribute to the development of nonessential infrastructure, unless otherwise agreed upon by the parties. - Amends TCA Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 9; Title 12; Title 13 and Title 66.