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HB2459 • 2026

Children

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36, Chapter 8; Title 49 and Title 63, Chapter 1, relative to treatment of minors.

Children Education Healthcare Labor Parental Rights
Active

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

Sponsor
Faison, Akbari
Last action
2026-03-24
Official status
Taken off notice for cal. in Health Committee
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide details on the implementation or enforcement specifics.

Amending Rules for School Social Workers to Treat Minors

This bill changes Tennessee laws to allow school social workers to provide certain counseling services to minors without needing parental consent.

What This Bill Does

  • Adds a new rule that allows licensed school social workers to give preventative and developmental counseling to students under 18 years old without getting permission from their parents or guardians first, if the social worker believes it is necessary for the student's well-being.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Licensed school social workers who provide counseling services.
  • Minors receiving preventative or developmental counseling from a school social worker.

Terms To Know

school social worker
A professional licensed by the state board of education to offer counseling and support services in schools.
preventative and developmental counseling
Services aimed at helping students develop healthy behaviors and prevent future problems through early intervention.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not change other rules about getting parental consent for medical or psychological treatment.
  • It only applies to school social workers who are licensed by the state board of education in Tennessee.
  • The exact details on how this will be implemented and enforced are not provided.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to SB2675

Plain English: The amendment adds new duties for school social workers regarding emergency counseling and suicide risk assessments.

  • School social workers will now be required to provide counseling in emergencies related to suicide or conduct suicide risk assessments if licensed by the state board of education.
  • The amendment does not specify how these new duties for school social workers will be implemented or funded.
  • It is unclear what constitutes 'emergency circumstances' and who determines when a situation qualifies as such.

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Taken off notice for cal. in Health Committee

  2. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  3. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 7, Nays 1 PNV 0

  4. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  5. 2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  6. 2026-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  7. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  8. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  9. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Education Committee to 3/18/2026

  10. 2026-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Education Committee calendar for 3/11/2026

  11. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Health Subcommittee for 3/11/2026

  12. 2026-02-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Health Subcommittee

  13. 2026-02-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Health Committee

  14. 2026-02-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor change.

  15. 2026-02-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) withdrawn.

  16. 2026-02-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  17. 2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, caption bill, held on desk - pending amdt.

  18. 2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Education Committee

  19. 2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  20. 2026-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  21. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  22. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Present law prohibits a healthcare provider or any other person to knowingly take any of the following actions with regard to a minor without first obtaining the consent of a parent of the minor:



Treat, profess to diagnose, operate on, or prescribe for any physical ailment, physical injury, or deformity.


Prescribe, dispense, deliver, or administer any drug or medication.


Render psychological services.


Render counseling services.

However, t
his prohibition does not apply
in the following situations:



A parent of the minor has given blanket consent authorizing the person or entity to perform an activity listed above.


A government entity, healthcare provider, or any other person reasonably relies in good faith on an individual's representations that the individual is the parent of a minor or has otherwise been granted authority to make decisions regarding a minor's health care under state law.


A licensed physician performs emergency medical or surgical treatment.


Licensed personnel render appropriate emergency medical care and provide emergency medical services.


A person, including a law enforcement officer, participates or assists in rendering emergency care.


An employee of a local education agency acts to control bleeding using a bleeding control kit.


A person acts reasonably to render appropriate, non-emergency first aid to a minor appearing or represented to be sick or injured. Such non-emergency first aid includes dressing minor wounds, applying topical agents, providing fluids or ice, and performing checks to identify minor illnesses.


A healthcare provider, using reasonable medical judgment, based upon the facts known to the healthcare provider at the time, performs a screening of a minor who the healthcare provider reasonably believes is a trafficked person or a victim of brutality, neglect, or abuse in order to determine whether the healthcare provider must make a report.


A school counselor or school psychologist, licensed by the state board of education, who provides preventative and developmental counseling.

This
bill includes a school social worker, licensed by the state board of education, who provides preventative and developmental counseling to the list in which the prohibition does not apply.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
SENATE BILL 2675
By Akbari

HOUSE BILL 2459
By Faison
HB2459
011038
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36,
Chapter 8; Title 49 and Title 63, Chapter 1, relative
to treatment of minors.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 63-1-176(c), is amended by adding
the following as a new subdivision:
(10) A school social worker, licensed by the state board of education, provides
preventative and developmental counseling.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.