HB0290 • 2026

Education

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49 and Chapter 944 of the Public Acts of 2024, relative to school safety alert grants.

Budget Education

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor: Gant
Last action: 2025-02-03
Official status: Withdrawn.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill was withdrawn, so its future implementation is uncertain.

School Safety Alert Grant Program Act

This bill changes a pilot program for school safety alert grants into a full statewide program and removes certain limits on grant distribution.

What This Bill Does

Changes the school safety alert grant pilot program to a permanent statewide program starting July 1, 2025.
Removes the requirement that two schools from each grand division of Tennessee must receive grants.
Establishes a new fund called the 'school safety alert grant fund' and transfers remaining funds from an old fund into it.
Requires annual reports detailing all funds received and payments made through the grant program.

Who It Names or Affects

Local education agencies (LEAs), public charter schools, private schools, and church-related schools in Tennessee.

Terms To Know

Local Education Agency (LEA): This includes county, city, or special school districts, unified school districts, or school districts of a metropolitan government.
Grand Division: Tennessee is divided into three grand divisions: East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee, and West Tennessee.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill was withdrawn on February 3, 2025, so its current status is uncertain.
It does not specify how many schools can receive grants each year beyond the fiscal years of 2025-2026 and 2026-2027.

Bill History

Date Tennessee General Assembly
2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly
Withdrawn.
2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly
Assigned to s/c Education Administration Subcommittee
2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly
P2C, ref. to Education Committee - Government Operations for Review
2025-01-27 Tennessee General Assembly
Intro., P1C.
2025-01-21 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Present law
requires the department of education ("department") to establish and administer a school safety alert grant pilot program
, the
purpose of
which
is to award school safety grants to
local education agencies (
LEAs
)
, public charter schools, private schools, a
nd church-related schools for the purchase of mobile panic alert systems.
This bill changes the program from a pilot program to a full program and requires t
he department
to
continue to administer the program for the same purpose, and subject to the same
approval requirement
, until July 1, 2027.

FUND

Present law
creates a separate fund within the general fund to be known as the school safety alert grant pilot fund.
This bill creates
a separate fund within the general fund to be known as the school safe
ty alert grant fund.
F
unds remaining in the school safety alert grant pilot fund must be transferred to the school safety alert grant fund, at which time the school safety alert grant pilot fund ceases to exist.

AWARDS

Subject to appropriations and the
availability of funds,
present law requires
the department t
o
allocate and disperse grants each fiscal year to LEAs, public charter schools, private schools, and church-related schools
. Each
grant awarded
is
limited to $
8
,000 per school in a fiscal year.
Subject to appropriation, two schools from each grand division of the state must receive the grant funding

on a first-come, first-served basis
.

This bill removes the provision that requires two schools
from each grand division of the state t
o
receive
the grant funding.
Subject
to appropriations and the availability of funds,
this bill requires
the department
to
allocate and disperse grants for fiscal years 2025-2026 and 2026-2027, to LEAs, public charter schools, private schools, and church-related s
chools.

ANNUAL REPORT

By July 1, 202
6
, and by
July 1, 2027
, this
bill
requires the department to prepare and submit to the general assembly a report detailing all funds received and payments made through the school safety alert grant fund.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

<BillNo> <Sponsor>

HOUSE BILL 290
By Gant

HB0290
001789
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49
and Chapter 944 of the Public Acts of 2024,
relative to school safety alert grants.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-1-225, is amended by deleting the
section and substituting the following:
(a) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1) "Fund" means the school safety alert grant fund for First Alert
Systems, as created by this section; and
(2) "Local education agency" or "LEA" means a county, city, or special
school district, unified school district, or school district of a metropolitan
government.
(b)
(1) The department of education shall establish and administer a school
safety alert grant pilot program. The purpose of the pilot program is to award
school safety grants to LEAs, public charter schools, private schools, and church-
related schools for the purchase of mobile panic alert systems described in § 49-
6-804(a). The alert systems funded through the pilot program must be approved
by the department of education, in consultation with the department of safety.
(2) Effective July 1, 2025, the school safety alert grant pilot program
created pursuant to subdivision (b)(1) is renamed the school safety alert grant
program. The department of education shall continue to administer the grant

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program for the same purpose, and subject to the same approval requirement, as
described in subdivision (b)(1).
(c)
(1) There is created a separate fund within the general fund to be known
as the school safety alert grant pilot fund.
(2) There is created a separate fund within the general fund to be known
as the school safety alert grant fund. Effective July 1, 2025, funds remaining in
the school safety alert grant pilot fund must be transferred to the school safety
alert grant fund, at which time the school safety alert grant pilot fund ceases to
exist.
(d)
(1) Subject to appropriations and the availability of funds, the department
shall allocate and disperse grants for fiscal years 2025-2026 and 2026-2027, to
LEAs, public charter schools, private schools, and church-related schools.
(2) The grants must be awarded as follows:
(A) The first grant must be awarded on a first-come, first-served
basis to the first LEA or school that applies;
(B) The second grant must be awarded on a first-come, first-
served basis to an LEA or school that is located in a different grand
division of this state than the recipient of the grant awarded under
subdivision (d)(2)(B);
(C) The third grant must be awarded on a first-come, first-served
basis to an LEA or school that is located in a different grand division of
this state than the recipients of the grants awarded under subdivisions
(d)(2)(A) and (d)(2)(B); and

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(D) The fourth and any subsequent grants must be awarded on a
first-come, first-served basis to an LEA or school that is located in a grand
division of this state, following the order of awards as established under
subdivisions (d)(2)(A)-(C).
(3) A grant awarded under this section is limited to eight thousand dollars
($8,000) per school in a fiscal year.
(e) The commissioner of education may promulgate rules to effectuate the
purposes of this section in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act,
compiled in title 4, chapter 5.
(f) By July 1, 2026, and by July 1, 2027, the department shall prepare and
submit to the general assembly a report detailing all funds received and payments made
through the school safety alert grant fund.
(g) This section is deleted July 1, 2027.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.