SB 959 - HB 1363
FISCAL NOTE
Fiscal Review Committee
Tennessee General Assembly
March 4, 2025
Fiscal Analyst: Arielle Woodmore | Email: arielle.woodmore@capitol.tn.gov | Phone: 615-741-2564
SB 959 - HB 1363
SUMMARY OF BILL: Authorizes any person who is a victim of domestic abuse by a
member of the same family or household, serving a sentence of incarceration of eight years or more
for an offense committed prior to January 1, 2026, to submit a request to apply for resentencing to
the court. Authorizes the person to request a court-appointed attorney for the preparation of and
proceedings on the application for resentencing.
Requires the court to promptly notify the District Attorney General in the judicial district where the
offense occurred upon the receipt of an application for resentencing. Requires the court to conduct
a hearing to determine whether the applicant should be resentenced if the court finds that the
applicant has provided two pieces of corroborating evidence. Specifies requirements for evidence
that can be submitted as a part of the resentencing application.
Establishes that a person is entitled to an appeal of determination. Authorizes the applicant to
request a court appointed attorney for the preparation of and proceedings on any appeals regarding
the resentencing application.
Establishes that if a new sentence is imposed, the applicant must be credited for any jail time or
period of incarceration served toward the original sentence.
FISCAL IMPACT:
OTHER FISCAL IMPACT
To the extent a hearing is held and a defendant is resentenced, there will be a reduction in state
incarceration expenditures. The timing and amount of any sentence reduction is unknown and
unable to be determined with reasonable certainty. Any increase in expenditures to General Fund
or the Indigent Defense Fund is dependent upon multiple unknown factors and cannot be
reasonably quantified.
Assumptions:
• The proposed legislation authorizes any person who is a victim of domestic abuse by a
member of the same family or household, serving a sentence of incarceration of eight years
or more for an offense committed prior to January 1, 2026, to submit a request to apply for
resentencing to the court.
SB 959 - HB 1363 2
• Based on information provided by the Department of Corrections, there are 17,237
offenders incarcerated with a sentence of eight or more years. It is unknown how many
were victims of domestic abuse.
• The proposed legislation will result in an increase in court cases as any inmate that meets
the established criteria to apply for resentencing may request a court appointed attorney.
• Based on information provided by the District Attorneys General Conference, there will be
a significant increase in caseloads from the resentencing applications that cannot be
absorbed within existing resources.
• The number of such applications filed, the outcome of any hearing, and the subsequent
sentences that may be changed is unknown; however, to the extent a hearing is held and a
defendant’s sentence is reduced, there will be a reduction in state incarceration
expenditures. The timing and amount of any sentence reduction is unknown and unable to
be determined with reasonable certainty.
• Based on information provided by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) the
proposed legislation will result in an increase in expenditures to the Indigent Defense Fund
for attorneys appointed to represent indigent defendants on the new resentencing
applications.
• Any increase in expenditures to the Indigent Defense Fund is dependent upon multiple
unknown factors and cannot be quantified with reasonable certainty.
CERTIFICATION:
The information contained herein is true and correct to the best of my knowledge.
Bojan Savic, Executive Director