HB 854 - SB 856
FISCAL NOTE
Fiscal Review Committee
Tennessee General Assembly
February 14, 2025
Fiscal Analyst: Natalie Dusek | Email: natalie.dusek@capitol.tn.gov | Phone: 615-741-2564
HB 854 - SB 856
SUMMARY OF BILL: Authorizes a magistrate to consider reliable hearsay evidence,
including computer printouts of state and federal criminal records maintained by the Tennessee
Bureau of Investigation (TBI) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, when determining whether a
defendant should be released pending trial and the amount of bail necessary to reasonably assure the
appearance of the defendant and the public’s safety, if the defendant is provided a fair opportunity
to rebut any reliable hearsay evidence considered by the magistrate.
FISCAL IMPACT:
NOT SIGNIFICANT
Assumptions:
• Pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 40-11-115(b), in determining whether or not a defendant
will be released and, if so, the conditions of that release, a magistrate may consider the
following:
o The defendant’s length of residence in the community;
o The defendant’s employment status;
o The defendant’s prior criminal record, including prior releases on recognizance or
bail;
o Whether, at the time of being charged, the defendant was on release pending trial,
sentencing, or appeal in connection with another offense;
o The nature of the offense, the apparent probability of conviction, and the likely
sentence;
o Any substance use or mental health issues that would be better addressed in a
community-based treatment program; and
o Amy other factors indicating the defendant’s ties to the community or related to the
defendant’s risk of willful failure to appear.
• The proposed legislation authorizes a magistrate to also consider reliable hearsay evidence if
the defendant is provided a fair opportunity to rebut such evidence.
• It is reasonably assumed that authorizing a magistrate to consider reliable hearsay evidence
will not be the determining factor, given the full context of the other existing statutory
considerations, in whether or not a defendant is granted pretrial release, or the amount of
bail set, in a significant number of cases.
• Therefore, the proposed legislation is not expected to significantly increase local
expenditures related to pretrial incarceration.
• Any administrative burden on the TBI can be accommodated with existing resources.
• Any fiscal impact to state or local government is estimated to be not significant.
HB 854 - SB 856 2
CERTIFICATION:
The information contained herein is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.
Bojan Savic, Executive Director