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SB0258 • 2026

Water

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 68, relative to public water systems.

Active

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

Sponsor
Pody, Boyd
Last action
2025-04-29
Official status
Effective date(s) 07/01/2025
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill's impact on federal funding and the number of affected buildings are speculative based on current information.

Water Softening Systems Regulation

This bill changes Tennessee's regulations to exclude water softening systems from defining a building as a public water system unless other criteria are met and requires monitoring and reporting if such a system meets the definition of a public water system.

What This Bill Does

  • Excludes water softening systems from being considered part of a public water system unless other criteria are met.
  • Requires buildings that become public water systems due to water softening devices to monitor and report on water quality, including hardness, alkalinity, pH, and sodium levels.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Buildings with water softening systems that meet the definition of a public water system under Tennessee law.
  • Operators and owners of facilities that become consecutive systems due to water softening devices.

Terms To Know

Consecutive System
A public water system that receives some or all of its finished water from one or more wholesale systems. Delivery may be through a direct connection or through the distribution system of one or more consecutive systems.
Point-of-Entry Treatment Device
A device installed to treat drinking water entering a building for the purpose of reducing contaminants throughout the building.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill may affect federal funding if Tennessee's regulations are seen as not meeting federal standards.
  • It is unclear how many buildings will be affected by this change in regulation.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB1139

Plain English: The amendment adds requirements for facilities that become public water systems due to the installation of hard water softening devices.

  • Defines a 'consecutive system' as a public water system receiving finished water from one or more wholesale systems.
  • Defines a 'point-of-entry treatment device' used in houses, buildings, or complexes for reducing contaminants.
  • Requires facilities that become public water systems due to hard water softening devices to monitor and report specific water quality parameters.
  • The amendment text does not specify the consequences if a facility fails to comply with monitoring and reporting requirements.

Bill History

  1. 2025-04-29 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 07/01/2025

  2. 2025-04-29 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 233

  3. 2025-04-29 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 233

  4. 2025-04-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for action.

  6. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  7. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  8. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled and ready for signatures

  9. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Concurred, Ayes 31, Nays 0 (Amendment 1 - HA0220)

  10. 2025-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Message Calendar for 4/10/2025

  11. 2025-04-07 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., as am., Ayes 94, Nays 0, PNV 1

  12. 2025-04-07 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. adopted am. (Amendment 1 - HA0220)

  13. 2025-04-07 Tennessee General Assembly

    Subst. for comp. HB.

  14. 2025-04-07 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. SB subst.

  15. 2025-04-07 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  16. 2025-04-03 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  17. 2025-04-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/7/2025

  18. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/3/2025

  19. 2025-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  20. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  21. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 30, Nays 0

  22. 2025-03-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Consent Calendar 2 for 3/31/2025

  23. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Calendar Committee

  24. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee for 4/1/2025

  25. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee

  26. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Energy, Ag., and Nat. Resources Committee calendar for 3/26/2025

  27. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Energy, Ag., and Nat. Resources Committee to 3/26/2025

  28. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee for 3/26/2025

  29. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee to 3/26/2025

  30. 2025-03-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Energy, Ag., and Nat. Resources Committee calendar for 3/19/2025

  31. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee for 3/19/2025

  32. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee

  33. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee

  34. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Energy, Ag., and Nat. Resources Committee

  35. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  36. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  37. 2025-01-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  38. 2025-01-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON APRIL 7, 2025, THE HOUSE SUBSTITUTED SENATE BILL 258, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 258, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites this bill. Under this amendment, i
f a point-of-entry treatment device
is installed in a facility solely to soften hard water and, because of the installation of such a device, the house, building, or complex of buildings meets the definition of a public water system under
the
Tennessee Safe Drinking Water Act of 1983
, then t
he facility constitutes a consecutive system, and
is required to
monitor the influent and finished water for hardness, alkalinity, and pH on a quarterly basis, and sodium on an annual basis, and report the results to
TDEC
within 15 days of the end of the r
eporting period.

For purposes of this amendment:

(1) "Consecutive system" means a public water system that receives some or all of the system's finished water from one or more wholesale systems. Delivery may be through a direct connection or through
the distribution system of one or more consecutive systems; and

(2) "Point-of-entry treatment device" means a treatment device applied to the drinking water entering a house, building, or complex of buildings under single ownership for the purpose of red
ucing contaminants in the drinking water distributed throughout the house, building, or complex of buildings.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HOUSE BILL 1139
By Boyd

SENATE BILL 258
By Pody

SB0258
001705
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 68,
relative to public water systems.

WHEREAS, the General Assembly seeks to exclude water softening systems from the
definition of public water system; now, therefore,
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 68-221-703, is amended by deleting
subdivision (19)(A)(i) and substituting:
(i) Any collection, storage, or distribution facility, or a treatment facility, other
than a treatment facility that treats solely for the purpose of softening hard water, under
control of the operator of such system and used primarily in connection with such
system; and
SECTION 2. If any provision of this act or the application of any provision of this act to
any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or
applications of the act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to
that end, the provisions of this act are severable.
SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.