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HB2319 • 2026

County Government

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 2; Title 4; Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 8; Title 12 and Title 49, relative to public office.

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Active

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

Sponsor
Wright, Briggs
Last action
2026-04-09
Official status
H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/13/2026
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide details on the consequences for breaking the rule or the number of current employees who will be affected by this change.

County Government Employee Rules

This bill changes Tennessee laws to prevent county government workers from serving on their local legislative bodies.

What This Bill Does

  • Changes rules so that people who work for a county cannot be part of the group that makes decisions for the county.
  • Allows current employees serving on the legislative body to finish their term but stops them from starting new terms after this law takes effect.

Who It Names or Affects

  • County government employees
  • Local legislative bodies

Terms To Know

county employee
A person who works for a county's government.
legislative body
The group that makes decisions and laws for the local area, like a city council or county commission.

Limits and Unknowns

  • Does not specify what happens if someone breaks this rule.
  • It is unclear how many current employees will be affected by this change.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

Amendment 1-0 to HB2319

Plain English: The amendment changes the effective date of certain sections in HB2319 to January 1, 2027.

  • Changes the effective date of the bill's provisions from an unspecified date to January 1, 2027.
  • The amendment does not specify which sections or parts of HB2319 are affected by this new effective date.
  • It is unclear what specific public welfare reasons necessitate the change in the effective date.
Amendment 2-0 to HB2319

Plain English: The amendment changes Tennessee law so that county employees cannot become members of their county legislative bodies, except for those already serving as of the amendment's effective date.

  • County employees are disqualified from becoming members of the county legislative body.
  • The text does not specify what happens to current county employees who serve on a county commission after the amendment takes effect.
Amendment 3-0 to HB2319

Plain English: The amendment changes Tennessee law so that a person appointed by the governor to temporarily fill a U.S. Senate vacancy cannot run for election to that same U.S. Senate seat once their temporary appointment ends.

  • Adds new rules stating that someone appointed by the governor to finish a term of a U.S. Senator who leaves office early is not allowed to run in an election to become a U.S. Senator after finishing this temporary role.
  • The amendment text does not explain what happens if such an appointee wants to run for other offices or how long they must wait before running again for the U.S. Senate.
Amendment 1-0 to SB2591

Plain English: The amendment changes the effective date of the bill to January 1, 2027.

  • Changes the effective date of the bill from its current unspecified date to January 1, 2027.
  • The original effective date is not specified in the provided amendment text, so it's unclear what the previous effective date was.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/15/2026

  2. 2026-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/13/2026

  3. 2026-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/9/2026

  4. 2026-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Calendar & Rules Committee

  5. 2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 4/8/2026

  6. 2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 4/8/2026

  7. 2026-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 5, Nays 3 PNV 0

  8. 2026-03-30 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/31/2026

  9. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/31/2026

  10. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 3/31/2026

  11. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/31/2026

  12. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate State and Local Government Committee to 3/31/2026

  13. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/25/2026

  14. 2026-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/25/2026

  15. 2026-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate State and Local Government Committee to 3/25/2026

  16. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/24/2026

  17. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to State & Local Government Committee

  18. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/24/2026

  19. 2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate State and Local Government Committee to 3/24/2026

  20. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Cities & Counties Subcommittee for 3/18/2026

  21. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Cities & Counties Subcommittee to 3/18/2026

  22. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/17/2026

  23. 2026-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate State and Local Government Committee to 3/17/2026

  24. 2026-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate State and Local Government Committee

  25. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Cities & Counties Subcommittee for 3/11/2026

  26. 2026-03-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/10/2026

  27. 2026-03-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  28. 2026-03-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Approved by Delayed Bills Committee

  29. 2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Cities & Counties Subcommittee

  30. 2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to State & Local Government Committee

  31. 2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  32. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  33. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Refer to Senate Delayed Bills Committee

  34. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Abstract summarizes the bill.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
SENATE BILL 2591
By Briggs

HOUSE BILL 2319
By Wright
HB2319
012754
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 2;
Title 4; Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 8; Title 12 and
Title 49, relative to public office.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 5-5-102(c)(1), is amended by
deleting the subdivision and substituting instead:
(1) A county employee is disqualified from serving as a member of the county
legislative body. A county employee serving on a county commission on the effective
date of this act may continue to hold such office until the expiration of the term.
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-51-1501, is amended by deleting
the language "unless otherwise authorized by law or local ordinance,".
SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-51-1502, is amended by deleting
the section.
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.