Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

Tennessee House Bill HB1097 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2	SENATE BILL 845
3	3	By Lowe
4	4
5	5	HOUSE BILL 1097
6	6	By Sexton
7	7
8	8
9	9	HB1097
10	10	003031
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13	13	AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4;
14	14	Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 8 and Title 9, relative to
15	15	actions of local governments.
16	16
17	17	BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
18	18	SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4, Chapter 1, Part 4, is amended by
19	19	adding the following as a new section:
20	20	(a) At the request of a member of the general assembly, the attorney general
21	21	and reporter shall investigate an ordinance, regulation, order, or other official action
22	22	adopted or taken by the chief executive officer or governing body of a local government
23	23	or any written policy, written rule, or written regulation adopted by any agency,
24	24	department, or other entity of the local government that the member alleges violates, or
25	25	that would violate if enacted or enforced, state law or the Constitution of Tennessee.
26	26	(b)
27	27	(1) The attorney general and reporter shall make a written report of
28	28	findings and conclusions as a result of the investigation within thirty (30) days
29	29	after receipt of the request and shall provide a copy of the report to the governor,
30	30	the speaker of the senate, the speaker of the house of representatives, the
31	31	member or members of the general assembly making the original request, and
32	32	the secretary of state.
33	33	(2) If the attorney general and reporter concludes that the ordinance,
34	34	regulation, order, written policy, written rule, or other action under investigation:
35	35	(A) Violates, or would violate if enacted or enforced, a provision of
36	36	state law or the Constitution of Tennessee, the attorney general and
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41	41	reporter shall provide notice to the local government, by certified mail, of
42	42	the violation and shall indicate that the local government has thirty (30)
43	43	days to resolve the violation or file an action challenging the conclusion
44	44	and any withholding of funds;
45	45	(B) May violate, or would violate if enacted or enforced, a
46	46	provision of state law or the Constitution of Tennessee, the attorney
47	47	general and reporter shall file a special action in the supreme court to
48	48	resolve the issue, and the supreme court shall give the action precedence
49	49	over all other cases; or
50	50	(C) Does not violate any provision of state law or the Constitution
51	51	of Tennessee, the attorney general and reporter shall take no further
52	52	action pursuant to this section.
53	53	(c) If the attorney general and reporter determines that the local government has
54	54	failed to resolve the violation or file an action challenging the conclusion and any
55	55	withholding of funds within thirty (30) days of the notification pursuant to subdivision
56	56	(b)(2)(A), or within thirty (30) days of the supreme court determining that the ordinance,
57	57	regulation, order, written policy, written rule, or other action violates, or would violate if
58	58	enacted or enforced, a provision of state law or the Constitution of Tennessee pursuant
59	59	to subdivision (b)(2)(B), then the attorney general and reporter shall:
60	60	(1) Notify the appropriate state officials who shall withhold all or a portion
61	61	of the funds of the state and all funds administered by the state and its agencies,
62	62	boards, and instrumentalities allotted or appropriated to the local government,
63	63	including, but not limited to, state-shared taxes; and
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68	68	(2) Continue to monitor the response of the local government, and when
69	69	the offending ordinance, regulation, order, or action is repealed or the violation is
70	70	otherwise resolved, the attorney general and reporter shall notify:
71	71	(A) The governor, the speaker of the senate, the speaker of the
72	72	house of representatives, and the member or members of the general
73	73	assembly making the original request that the violation has been
74	74	resolved; and
75	75	(B) The appropriate state officials to restore the distribution of
76	76	state-shared revenues to the local government.
77	77	(d) Before a member of the legislature may request an investigation by the
78	78	attorney general and reporter of a written policy, written rule, or written regulation
79	79	adopted by an agency, department, or other entity of a local government pursuant to
80	80	subsection (a), the member of the general assembly shall first provide a written
81	81	notification of the alleged violation of state law or the Constitution of Tennessee to the
82	82	chief executive officer and governing body of the local government. If the local
83	83	government does not repeal or otherwise resolve the violation within sixty (60) days after
84	84	receiving the notification, the member of the general assembly may request an
85	85	investigation by the attorney general and reporter pursuant to this section.
86	86	(e) Notwithstanding subdivision (c)(1), this section does not authorize the
87	87	withholding of funds allocated to a local government that would violate contracts to which
88	88	the state is a party, the requirements of federal law imposed on the state, judgments of a
89	89	court binding on the state, or obligations of the state under the Tennessee Constitution.
90	90	(f) As used in this section, "local government" means a county, including a
91	91	county with a metropolitan or charter form of government, and an incorporated city or
92	92	town.
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97	97	SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.
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