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HB1960 • 2026

Education

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49, relative to accountability.

Education
Active

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

Sponsor
Cepicky, Pody
Last action
2026-04-06
Official status
Comp. SB subst.
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary and text do not provide details on how the state board will choose between different recommendations or what happens if a school disagrees with the intervention option.

Changing Who Chooses Help for Struggling Schools

This bill changes who picks the help plan for schools that need extra support in Tennessee.

What This Bill Does

  • Changes the law so that the state board of education, not the department of education, chooses how to help struggling schools after receiving a recommendation from the department.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Schools that need extra support and are part of tier three interventions in Tennessee.
  • The state board of education, which will now choose intervention options.
  • The department of education, which will recommend but not decide on intervention options.

Terms To Know

Priority school
A school that needs extra help to improve its performance.
Tier three interventions
The most intensive level of support for schools in Tennessee's progressive tiered intervention system.

Limits and Unknowns

  • Does not specify how the state board will choose between different recommendations from the department.
  • It is unclear what happens if a school disagrees with the chosen intervention option.
  • The bill does not change other parts of Tennessee's education laws or policies.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  2. 2026-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled and ready for signatures

  3. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. SB subst.

  4. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., Ayes 90, Nays 0, PNV 2

  5. 2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Subst. for comp. HB.

  6. 2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Consent Calendar for 4/6/2026

  7. 2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/2/2026

  8. 2026-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee

  9. 2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.

  10. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/31/2026

  11. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in Education Committee to 4/1/2026

  12. 2026-03-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  13. 2026-03-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 29, Nays 0

  14. 2026-03-20 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Consent Calendar 2 for 3/23/2026

  15. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/24/2026

  16. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Calendar Committee

  17. 2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in Education Committee to 3/24/2026

  18. 2026-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Education Committee calendar for 3/18/2026

  19. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/17/2026

  20. 2026-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in Education Committee to 3/17/2026

  21. 2026-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/10/2026

  22. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/10/2026

  23. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Education Committee

  24. 2026-03-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Education Committee

  25. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal K-12 Subcommittee for 3/3/2026

  26. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Government Operations Committee calendar for 3/4/2026

  27. 2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Government Operations Committee

  28. 2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c K-12 Subcommittee

  29. 2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to Education Committee

  30. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  31. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  32. 2026-01-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  33. 2026-01-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Abstract summarizes the bill.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
SENATE BILL 2047
By Pody

HOUSE BILL 1960
By Cepicky
HB1960
011971
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49,
relative to accountability.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-1-602(b)(2)(J), is amended by
deleting the subdivision and substituting:
(J) The department shall recommend to the state board of education the
intervention option for a priority school assigned to tier three (3) of the progressive tiered
intervention system. The state board shall notify the priority school of the intervention
option selected by the state board. The priority school shall implement the state board-
selected intervention option.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2027, the public welfare requiring it.