KLS Keeping Law Simple Legislation in plain English

Straight-ahead summaries built from the official bill text. We keep the source links front and center and leave the decision up to you.

Back to Tennessee

SB0411 • 2026

State Employees

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 8, Chapter 42 and Title 9, Chapter 8, relative to state employees.

Labor
Active

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

Sponsor
Bailey, Grills
Last action
2025-05-15
Official status
Effective date(s) 05/09/2025
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Expanding State Employee Protections

This bill changes Tennessee laws to include board members, officers, employees, agents of soil and water conservation districts, and designated volunteers as state employees for legal defense and compensation purposes.

What This Bill Does

  • Adds board members, officers, employees, and agents of soil and water conservation districts to the definition of 'state employee'.
  • Includes persons designated by a district as participants in volunteer programs authorized by that district under the same definition.
  • Allows the attorney general to provide legal defense for these individuals if they are sued for actions within their job duties, except for willful misconduct or personal gain.
  • Permits the board of claims to pay final judgments against these employees if it is determined they were acting in good faith and following lawful orders when the incident occurred.
  • Gives the claims commission exclusive authority to decide monetary claims against the state based on actions by these individuals.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Board members, officers, employees, and agents of soil and water conservation districts
  • Persons designated as volunteers in programs authorized by soil and water conservation districts

Terms To Know

State employee
A person working for the state who is now also defined to include board members, officers, employees, agents of soil and water conservation districts, and designated volunteers.
Legal defense
Protection provided by a lawyer when someone is sued while performing their job duties.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill may increase state spending on the Risk Management Fund due to unknown variables.
  • It's unclear how much this will affect the fund or when any changes might occur.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 05/09/2025

  2. 2025-05-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 425

  3. 2025-05-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 425

  4. 2025-05-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-05-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for action.

  6. 2025-04-30 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  7. 2025-04-29 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  8. 2025-04-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled and ready for signatures

  9. 2025-04-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., Ayes 89, Nays 0, PNV 0

  10. 2025-04-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Subst. for comp. HB.

  11. 2025-04-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. SB subst.

  12. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/21/2025

  13. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/17/2025

  14. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee

  15. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  16. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/17/2025

  17. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/14/2025

  18. 2025-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  19. 2025-04-03 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  20. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed behind the budget

  21. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  22. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 30, Nays 0

  23. 2025-03-28 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  24. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/2/2025

  25. 2025-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Calendar Committee

  26. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/25/2025

  27. 2025-03-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee

  28. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass; ref to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  29. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/12/2025

  30. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  31. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Public Service Subcommittee for 3/5/2025

  32. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  33. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  34. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Public Service Subcommittee

  35. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to State & Local Government Committee

  36. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  37. 2025-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  38. 2025-01-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

This bill classifies
board of supervisors and other officers, employees, and agents of a soil and water conservation district
, and p
ersons designated by a soil and water conservation district as participants in volunteer programs authorized by a soil and water conservation district
as state employees for purposes of:

(1) Authorization for the attorney general and reporter to provide
legal defense to a state employee w
h
o is sued
for any acts or omissions of the state employee within the scope of the employee's employment, except for willful, malicious, or criminal acts or omissions or for acts or omissions done for personal gain
;

(2)
Authorization for the
board of claims to pay
a
final judgment for
a
state employee

in a civil lawsuit against the employee
w
here it is determined by the board that the incident on which such damages were awarded occurred when the employee was acting in g
ood faith within the scope of such employee's official duty and under apparent lawful authority or orders
; and

(3) Exclusive jurisdiction of the claims commission to
determine all monetary claims against the state based on the acts or omissions of state
employees
under certain circumstances.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 802
By Grills

SENATE BILL 411
By Bailey

SB0411
001779
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 8,
Chapter 42 and Title 9, Chapter 8, relative to state
employees.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 8-42-101(3), is amended by adding
the following as a new subdivision:
(J) "State employee" also includes, solely for the purposes of this chapter and
under §§ 9-8-112 and 9-8-307:
(1) The board of supervisors and other officers, employees, and agents
of a soil and water conservation district; and
(2) Persons designated by a soil and water conservation district as
participants in volunteer programs authorized by a soil and water conservation
district.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming law, the public welfare requiring it.