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SB0215 • 2026

Criminal Offenses

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39, Chapter 17; Title 43, Chapter 27 and Title 49, Chapter 6, relative to hemp-derived cannabinoids.

Children Crime Labor
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Gardenhire, Howell
Last action
2025-04-04
Official status
Comp. became Pub. Ch. 77
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material specifies the maximum fine as $1,500 instead of $2,500.

Tennessee Law Changes for Hemp-Derived Cannabinoids

This law changes penalties and restrictions related to selling hemp-derived cannabinoid products to people under 21 years old in Tennessee.

What This Bill Does

  • Changes the punishment for selling or giving hemp-derived cannabinoid products to someone under 21 from a Class A misdemeanor to jail time of at least 48 hours and up to 11 months, 29 days, plus a fine between $500 and $1,500.
  • Requires that hemp-derived cannabinoid products be kept out of reach of employees who are under 21 years old in retail stores.
  • Makes it illegal for retailers to let employees younger than 21 handle or sell hemp-derived cannabinoid products.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People selling or giving hemp-derived cannabinoid products to those under 21 will face stricter penalties.
  • Retail store employees who are under 21 years old cannot access, handle, or sell these products.

Terms To Know

hemp-derived cannabinoids
Chemicals found in hemp plants that can be used to make certain products.
Class A misdemeanor
A type of crime that is less serious than a felony but more serious than other types of misdemeanors.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law does not specify what happens if someone under 21 tries to buy these products.
  • It's unclear how strictly retailers will enforce the new rules about employees under 21 handling these products.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to SB0215

Plain English: The amendment changes penalties for certain violations related to hemp-derived cannabinoids and restricts access by minors in retail establishments.

  • Increases jail time and fines for violating specific sections of Tennessee law regarding hemp-derived cannabinoids, setting a minimum sentence of 48 hours and a fine of at least $500.
  • Prohibits retailers from allowing employees under the age of 21 to handle or sell products containing hemp-derived cannabinoids.
  • The exact nature of subdivisions (b)(2) and (b)(3) is not provided, so details about what specific actions are penalized are unclear.
  • It's not clear from the amendment text which sections of Tennessee Code Annotated these changes will affect beyond those explicitly mentioned.

Bill History

  1. 2025-04-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 77

  2. 2025-04-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 07/01/2025

  3. 2025-04-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 77

  4. 2025-03-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-03-20 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  6. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  7. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  8. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled; ready for sig. of H. Speaker.

  9. 2025-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. concurred in S. am. no. 1 Ayes 86, Nays 8 PNV 0 HB0072

  10. 2025-03-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Message Calendar for 3/17/2025

  11. 2025-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  12. 2025-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Companion House Bill substituted

  13. 2025-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 27, Nays 3

  14. 2025-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0049)

  15. 2025-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  16. 2025-03-07 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 3/10/2025

  17. 2025-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 8, Nays 0 PNV 1

  18. 2025-02-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  19. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/4/2025

  20. 2025-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  21. 2025-02-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., Ayes 87, Nays 8, PNV 0

  22. 2025-02-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  23. 2025-02-20 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 2/24/2025

  24. 2025-02-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 2/20/2025

  25. 2025-02-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee

  26. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 2/19/2025

  27. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  28. 2025-02-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  29. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  30. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 2/12/2025

  31. 2025-01-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee

  32. 2025-01-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  33. 2025-01-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  34. 2025-01-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Judiciary Committee

  35. 2025-01-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C held on desk, pending appointment of Standing Committees

  36. 2025-01-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  37. 2025-01-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Under present law, it is an offense for a person to kn
owingly sell or distribute a product containing hemp-derived cannabinoid to a person who is under 21 or to purchase a product containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid on behalf of a person who is under 21. It is also an offense for a person to knowingly ass
i
st a person who is under 21 to purchase, acquire, receive, or attempt to purchase a product containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid. Under present law, a violation of either of these provisions is a Class A misdemeanor with imprisonment not more than 11 mo
n
ths, 29 days or a fine not to exceed $2,500, or both.

This bill, instead, requires that a person violating the above provisions must be sentenced to serve in the county jail or workhouse not less than 48 consecutive hours nor more than 11 months and 29 d
ays and be fined not less than $500 and no more than $1,500.

Present law requires a product containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid to be maintained behind the counter of a retail establishment in an area inaccessible to a customer. This bill requires su
ch product to also be inaccessible to an employee of the retail establishment who is younger than 21. It is a violation of this bill for a retailer to knowingly allow an employee younger than 21 to access, handle, or sell any product containing a hemp-de
r
ived cannabinoid on the premises of the retail establishment.

ON MARCH 10, 2025, THE SENATE SUBSTITUTED HOUSE BILL 72 FOR SENATE BILL 215, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 72, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 raises the maximum limit on the fine fr
om $1,500 to $2,500.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 72
By Howell

SENATE BILL 215
By Gardenhire

SB0215
001017
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39,
Chapter 17; Title 43, Chapter 27 and Title 49,
Chapter 6, relative to hemp-derived cannabinoids.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 43-27-203(d), is amended by adding
the following language at the end of the subsection:
A person violating subdivision (b)(2) or (b)(3) shall be sentenced to serve in the county
jail or workhouse not less than forty-eight (48) consecutive hours nor more than eleven
(11) months and twenty-nine (29) days and be fined not less than five hundred dollars
($500) nor more than one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500).
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 43-27-204(b), is amended by
deleting the language "to a customer." and substituting instead the following:
to a customer or an employee of the retail establishment who is younger than twenty-
one (21) years of age. It is unlawful for a retailer to knowingly allow an employee
younger than twenty-one (21) years of age to access, handle, or sell any product
containing a hemp-derived cannabinoid on the premises of the retail establishment.
SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.