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New laws taking effect July 1: ban on transgender athletes, gun laws, and more

Logan Washburn
Nashville Tennessean

New legislation that will take effect July 1 in Tennessee includes a ban on transgender athletes participating in women's sports, gun laws, a law that makes camping on public property a felony, and more.

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Education

Transgender athletes will be banned from competing in women's sports at public colleges and universities, as well as private institutions that compete against them, when HB 2316 takes effect Friday. Legislation in 2021 required transgender middle and high school athletes to compete in the sport of their sex at birth. State Rep. Peter Ragan, R-Oak Ridge, and state Sen. Joey Hensley, R-Hohenwald, sponsored this year's bill.

“When girls have to compete against biological males, who have a strength and power advantage, it’s just not fair,” Hensley said in a news release. “This legislation simply ensures school districts are following existing law intended to maintain fairness."

The Human Rights Campaign said the bill "doubles down" on "discriminatory and harmful" policies.

"It excludes all transgender girls from participating in school athletics, increasing their isolation," the group said in a news release. "This legislation is impractical, unfair and unnecessary."

Internet vendors must block obscenity or pornography on school computers under HB 2454, and local schools must provide parents a reporting mechanism for when the law is broken. The bill defines "obscenity" as including "educational" material. State Rep. Terri Lynn Weaver, R-Lancaster, and state Sen. Mike Bell, R-Riceville, sponsored the law.

School employees must undergo training on how to identify and prevent human trafficking at least once every three years. HB 2341 expands the requirement from just teachers to all school employees. State Rep. Michele Carringer, R-Knoxville, and state Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, sponsored the measure.

Gun laws

Authorities will consider short-barrel rifles and shotguns legal under HB 2509. State Rep. Rust Grills, R-Newbern, and state Sen. Frank Niceley, R-Strawberry Plains, sponsored the bill.

The Department of Safety will conduct criminal background checks on concealed-carry handgun permit holders every four years after awarding a permit. Handgun carry permits previously lacked any requirement of a recurring background check. State Rep. Curtis Halford, R-Dyer, and state Sen. Becky Duncan Massey, R-Knoxville, sponsored HB 1018.

Homelessness

Officials will consider camping on public property a felony, and camping along a highway, on-ramp or off-ramp a misdemeanor under HB 0978. Sponsors Sen. Paul Bailey, R-Sparta, and Rep. Ryan Williams, R-Cookeville, defended the bill as a tool local law enforcement could use to address homelessness.

"Local law enforcement in my community and other communities across the state ask for the ability to do this so that they can help those in their communities," Williams said. "If they choose not to enforce the statute, they don't have to."

Critics of the measure say it will only worsen homeless peoples' situations.

"Tennessee is poised to double down on using the criminal legal system to punish the poor," the Vera Institute of Justice said in a news release. "The additional threat of a felony charge for public camping is likely to push unhoused Tennesseans into deeper desperation."

Charity groups that serve homeless people will not be held responsible for any loss, damage or death that occurs in the course of serving the community. Groups will only be liable under HB 1765 if they display "gross negligence" or "willing and wanton misconduct." State Rep. Antonio Parkinson, D-Memphis, and state Sen. Bo Watson, R-Hixson, sponsored the bill.

Abuse and trafficking prevention

Courts must extend an order of protection to victims of abuse, stalking, assault or human trafficking when HB 2147 takes effect Friday. The law allows the victims of such crimes under age 18 to testify remotely and bans prosecutors from charging underage victims with prostitution. State Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, and state Sen. Jack Johnson, R-Franklin, sponsored the measure.

Those convicted of human trafficking must obtain identification with a marker that depicts their status as a trafficking offender. State Rep. Clay Doggett, R-Pulaski, and state Sen. Joey Hensley, R-Hohenwald, sponsored HB 2573.

Under HB 1459, those arrested on accusations of domestic abuse must stay away from the victim's residence for at least 24 hours. State Rep. Yusuf Hakeem, D-Chattanooga, and state Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, sponsored the law.

A landlord must tell the Department of Children's Services the location of an allegedly abused child if the child is on rental property after HB 2023 takes effect. State Rep. Mary Littleton, R-Dickson, and state Sen. Ed Jackson, R-Jackson, sponsored the bill.

Officials will allow the guardian of an abused child to petition to terminate the abuser's parental rights under HB 2070. The bill also seals the adoption records of an abused child for 100 years. State Rep. Tom Leatherwood, R-Arlington, and state Sen. Ferrell Haile, R-Gallatin, sponsored the measure.

Narcotics

Authorities will consider pill presses drug paraphernalia when HB 1763 goes into effect. Nashville officials warned the public of an increase in fentanyl overdoses in May, and Metro Nashville Police seized more than 18,000 fentanyl pills in a June drug bust. State Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, and state Sen. Shane Reeves, R-Murfreesboro, sponsored the law.

When prescribing an opioid, doctors must also prescribe naloxone or another drug to treat overdoses. HB 2228 comes as Tennessee overdose deaths have almost doubled from 2016 to 2020. State Rep. Bob Ramsey, R-Maryville, and state Sen. Shane Reeves, R-Murfreesboro, sponsored the bill.

Hospital staff will be required to report drug overdoses to police under HB 1905. State Rep. Clay Doggett, R-Pulaski, and state Sen. Joey Hensley, R-Hohenwald, sponsored the measure.

Officials will consider tianeptine, an antidepressant, to be a Schedule II controlled substance. HB 2043 labels possession or exchange of the drug a misdemeanor. The FDA has not approved the product and warns consumers of its potentially damaging effects. State Rep. Mark Cochran, R-Englewood, and state Sen. Mike Bell, R-Riceville, sponsored the law.

Justice system

Truth in Sentencing, or HB 2656, will require those convicted of violent crimes, including aggravated assault, murder, carjacking, aggravated burglary and kidnapping, to serve their entire sentence without a chance of reduced time. State House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, and Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, sponsored the bill.

"Truth in Sentencing is vital legislation that protects victims and provides true accountability," McNally said in a news release. "The costs associated with the law are well worth the peace of mind."

State Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, said the bill will not actually reduce crime.

"There's just not evidence that it works," Yarbro said. "When we send people to prison, most of them are going to come back out and re-enter our society. We want to decrease the likelihood they return to a life of crime."

"Joker's Law," or HB 1646, will impose felony punishment for killing or harming a service animal without the owner's consent. The bill's namesake is K-9 Joker, who was shot in 2021 while pursuing burglary suspects in Cleveland. Joker has since recovered. State Rep. Mark Hall, R-Cleveland, and state Sen. Mike Bell, R-Riceville, sponsored the law.

Correctional institutions with schooling must keep a list of teachers and their qualifications after HB 846 takes effect. This comes after The Tennessean published a report showing staff at Tennessee's only state-run youth detention facility abused youth and failed to provide them with legally-required education. State Rep. Paul Sherrell and state Sen. Paul Bailey, both Republicans from Sparta, sponsored the measure. 

If one commits aggravated assault with a firearm from a vehicle, officials will punish the crime one class higher than if it were not from a vehicle. State Rep. John Gillespie, R-Memphis, and state Sen. Paul Rose, R-Tipton, sponsored HB 2009 to "crack down on drive-by shootings," according to a news release.

Other legislation

Homemade food will be exempt from regulation under the "Tennessee Food Freedom Act," or HB 813. Producing or selling homemade food will be free of state regulations, unless officials are investigating food-borne sickness. State Rep. Justin Lafferty, R-Knoxville, and state Sen. Frank Niceley, R-Strawberry Plains, sponsored the measure.

"There is little evidence that home-based food businesses pose a threat to the public in states where they are lightly regulated," the bill reads. "Allowing the production, sale, and consumption of a greater variety of homemade foods respects individuals' personal liberty."

The "CROWN" Act, or HB 204, bans employers from discriminating against natural hair, especially that which expresses "characteristics associated with a certain race." State Rep. Karen Camper and state Sen. Raumesh Akbari, both Democrats from Memphis, sponsored the bill.