Legislative Outcomes 2022

Legislative Outcomes - 2022*

WINS

1. PASSED SB1670(Gardenhire)/HB2341(Carringer) - Human Trafficking Education - This bill requires that all school personnel, instead of only teachers, be trained at least once every three years on the detection, intervention, prevention, and treatment of human trafficking in which the victim is a child. (Proactive Legislation led by WFGC)

2. STOPPED SB562(Bowling)/HB233(Leatherwood) - Ending Forced & Coerced Marriage in TN  - This bill, as amended, created a means of “common law marriage” that did not provide protections against forced or coerced marriage, marriage as a form of trafficking, or preservation of marital rights.

3. PASSED SB2793(Massey)/HB2113(Eldridge) - Human Trafficking Education & Awareness - This bill requires the department of correction, the department of mental health and substance abuse services, and the department of human services to provide mandatory annual training to in the identification, intervention, prevention, and treatment of human trafficking.

4. PASSED SB2303(Massey)/HB2234(Littleton) - Expunction for Survivors of Trafficking - This bill removes a conviction for prostitution as a requirement for a person to be eligible for expunction of multiple, nonviolent convictions for offenses that resulted from the person's status as a victim of human trafficking.

5. PASSED SB136(Akbari)/HB204(Camper) - CROWN Act - This bill, the "CROWN Act: Create a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair," defines race and protective hairstyle for purposes of the Tennessee Human Rights Act.

6. PASSED SB2769(Akbari)/HB2875(Camper) - Anti-Shackling - This bill prohibits a corrections official from using restraints on a prisoner or detainee known to be pregnant, including during labor, transport to a medical facility, delivery, and postpartum, unless the corrections official makes an individualized determination that the prisoner or detainee presents an extraordinary circumstance. (led by our partners at Healthy & Free TN)

7. PASSED SB2150(Massey)/HB2109(Love) - Doula Insurance Study - This bill was amended to require a study on doula certification programs.  (led by our partners at Healthy & Free TN) 

8. PASSED SB2377(Haile)/ HB2367(Curcio) - Victim Notification System - This bill requires the Tennessee sheriffs' association to provide a criminal proceedings notification system for the purpose of increasing the transparency and efficiency of the criminal justice process by providing timely information about each stage of the criminal process to interested parties; requires the criminal proceedings notification system to be available 24 hours a day over the telephone, through the internet, or by email. (led by our partners at the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence)

9. PASSED SB2771(Massey)/HB2544(Alexander) - Breast Cancer Preventative Care - This bill requires a health benefit plan that provides coverage to a patient who is 35 years of age or older to include coverage for an annual screening by all forms of low-dose mammography for the presence of breast cancer; requires a health benefit plan that provides coverage for a screening mammogram to provide coverage for diagnostic imaging and supplemental breast screening. 

SETBACKS

1.  SB1762(Campbell)/HB1929(Hodges) - Eliminating Local Paid Leave Preemption - This bill deletes prohibition on local governments mandating that employers who do business with the local government or within its jurisdictional boundaries maintain certain sick and family leave policies. (FAILED in Senate Committee)

2. OPPOSED SB2476(Bowling)/HB2575(Doggett) - Protecting Anonymous Reporting of Abuse - This bill specifies that if an anonymous report of harm is made to the department, a juvenile court must not order the parents or person responsible for the care of the child, or the person in charge of any place where the child may be, to allow the department entrance for purposes of interview, examination, and investigation unless the department has presented evidence corroborating the anonymous report of harm. (PASSED)

3. SB624(Bell)/HB673(Freeman) - Advocate Confidentiality - This bill prohibits disclosure of certain information by an advocate in regard to a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or human trafficking in a judicial, legislative, or administrative proceeding unless the victim gives express written consent. (FAILED in House Committee)

TO BE CONTINUED - For one or more reasons, these bills didn’t run this year, but we anticipate their continued efforts next session. 

1. SB1678(Gardenhire)/HB1736(Alexander) - Adding Economic Abuse to the Definition of Domestic Abuse - This bill adds economic abuse to the definition of domestic abuse. (Proactive Legislation)

2. SB1816(Campbell)/HB1951(Freeman) - Firearms Surrender Process - This bill requires a domestic assault offender who transferred possession of a firearm to a third party in order to dispossess the firearm to submit to the court an affidavit of firearms receipt in which the third party attests that the third party may lawfully possess a firearm, has received the firearm from the defendant, and accepts responsibility for possession of the firearm.

* Two bills from our original priority list were amended in committee to no longer address Women’s Fund priority issues and are not on this document.

Questions or comments can be directed to Jeannine Carpenter, Director of Research and Policy, jeannine@chattanoogawomensfund.org