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SB0482 • 2026

Criminal Offenses

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39, Chapter 13 and Title 40, relative to criminal offenses.

Crime Privacy
Active

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

Sponsor
Bowling, Crawford
Last action
2026-04-14
Official status
Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/21/2026
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not mention specific increases in jail time or fines, only that it changes from a misdemeanor to a felony.

Changing Laws About Unlawful Photography

This bill changes Tennessee law by making it a more serious crime to take photos of someone without their permission for sexual reasons.

What This Bill Does

  • Changes the punishment for taking unauthorized photos with sexual intent from a Class A misdemeanor to a Class D felony.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who take unauthorized photos with sexual intent will face stricter punishments.

Terms To Know

Class D felony
A serious crime that can lead to a longer jail sentence and higher fines than a misdemeanor.
Intimate area
Parts of the body that are usually kept private, like genitals or breasts.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how local governments will fund increased incarceration costs.
  • It is unclear if this change will prevent future cases of unlawful photography.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB0403

Plain English: The amendment updates Tennessee law to make it illegal to secretly photograph individuals in private situations without their consent for certain purposes.

  • Adds new offenses for taking secret photos of people when they expect privacy and these photos are meant to cause embarrassment or sexual arousal, or show intimate body parts.
  • Defines what counts as a 'reasonable expectation of privacy' based on how the photo is taken and what it shows.
  • Changes penalties: Secretly photographing someone with intent to embarrass (first offense) becomes a misdemeanor; doing so for sexual reasons becomes a felony.
  • The amendment text does not specify all details about enforcement or exceptions, which might be needed for full understanding.
Amendment 1-0 to SB0482

Plain English: The amendment updates Tennessee law to make it illegal to secretly photograph someone in private situations without their consent if the photos are taken for sexual reasons or to embarrass them.

  • Adds new rules making it a crime to take secret photos of people when they expect privacy, especially if these photos show private body parts or are meant to be embarrassing or sexually arousing.
  • Defines what counts as a 'reasonable expectation of privacy' and clarifies that this applies even in public places where someone might not normally expect privacy.
  • Changes penalties for breaking the new rules, making some violations felonies and others misdemeanors depending on the circumstances.
  • The amendment text is quite detailed and technical, so there may be nuances that are hard to explain without legal expertise.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/21/2026

  2. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/21/2025

  3. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/15/2025

  4. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rule #83(8) Suspended, to be heard in Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee on 4/15/2025

  5. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  6. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed behind the budget

  7. 2025-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee Ayes 9, Nays 0 PNV 0

  8. 2025-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/18/2025

  9. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/18/2025

  10. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 3/19/2025

  11. 2025-03-06 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  12. 2025-03-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  13. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  14. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  15. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 3/5/2025

  16. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  17. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  18. 2025-02-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 2/26/2025

  19. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  20. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  21. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee

  22. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to Judiciary Committee

  23. 2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  24. 2025-01-29 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  25. 2025-01-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Present law provides that it is an offense
for a person to knowingly photograph, or cause to be photographed, an individual without the prior effective consent of the individual, or in the case of a minor, without the prior effective consent of
the minor's parent or legal guardian, if the photograph
(i) would offend
or embarrass an ordinary person if the person appeared in the photograph
or is
focused on the intimate area of the individual and would be considered offensive or embarrassing by the
individual
and (ii) was
taken for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification of the defendant
.

Under present law, this offense is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by a sentence of imprisonment not greater than 11 months, 29 days or a fine not to e
xceed $2,500, or both. This bill raises this offense to a Class D felony, punishable by a sentence of imprisonment not less than two years nor more than 12 years and a potential fine not to exceed $5,000.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 403
By Crawford

SENATE BILL 482
By Bowling

SB0482
001145
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39,
Chapter 13 and Title 40, relative to criminal
offenses.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 39-13-605(d)(1)(A), is amended by
deleting "Class A misdemeanor" and substituting "Class D felony".
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 39-13-605, is amended by deleting
subdivisions (d)(2) and (d)(3).
SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it, and
applies to offenses committed on or after that date.