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SB0664 • 2026

Water Pollution

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 69, Chapter 3, relative to permits.

Enacted

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

Sponsor
Taylor, Vaughan
Last action
2025-05-08
Official status
Comp. became Pub. Ch. 342
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source does not provide specific details on how the exempted area will be determined or what happens if there are disqualifying factors besides size.

Water Pollution Permit Changes

This law changes Tennessee's rules about permits for activities that might harm water and wetlands by adjusting requirements for compensatory mitigation based on area size.

What This Bill Does

  • Expands the rule so that if an applicant is disqualified from getting a general permit only because of the size of the affected area, they don't have to provide compensation for that part of the area.
  • Clarifies that measurements used under this law will be based on the acreage of wetland impacts or the length of stream impacts.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who need permits for activities affecting water and wetlands in Tennessee.
  • The Department of Environment and Conservation, which issues these permits.

Terms To Know

Aquatic Resource Alteration Permit (ARAP)
A permit required by the state to allow changes or removals from streams or wetlands that might affect water quality.
Compensatory Mitigation
Actions taken to replace or improve areas damaged by human activities, like restoring wetlands or planting trees.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law does not specify how the exempted area will be determined.
  • It is unclear what happens if there are other factors disqualifying an applicant besides the size of the affected area.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB0612

Plain English: The amendment changes how applicants who almost qualify for a general aquatic resource alteration permit (ARAP) are treated regarding compensatory mitigation requirements.

  • Removes the requirement for compensatory mitigation if an applicant's only disqualification from a general ARAP is due to the size of wetland impacts or length of stream impacts.
  • The amendment text does not specify how the exemption will be implemented in practice, which may leave some details unclear.
Amendment 1-0 to SB0664

Plain English: The amendment changes how applicants who almost qualify for a general aquatic resource alteration permit (ARAP) are treated regarding compensatory mitigation requirements.

  • Modifies Tennessee Code Annotated Section 69-3-141(c) to allow the department to exempt certain applicants from compensatory mitigation if their only disqualification is due to wetland or stream impact size.
  • The amendment text does not specify how the exemption will be applied in practice, leaving some details unclear.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 342

  2. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 07/01/2025

  3. 2025-05-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 342

  4. 2025-05-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-04-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  6. 2025-04-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  7. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  8. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled; ready for sig. of H. Speaker.

  9. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  10. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Companion House Bill substituted

  11. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 26, Nays 6

  12. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Amendment withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - SA0246)

  13. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  14. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  15. 2025-04-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/14/2025

  16. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  17. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., as am., Ayes 74, Nays 20, PNV 0

  18. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  19. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. adopted am. (Amendment 1 - HA0224)

  20. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Refer to Senate Calendar Committee

  21. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recalled from Senate Finance, Ways & Means Committee

  22. 2025-04-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/10/2025

  23. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  24. 2025-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  25. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee Ayes 7, Nays 2 PNV 0

  26. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  27. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  28. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  29. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  30. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  31. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  32. 2025-03-13 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  33. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  34. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  35. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  36. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee

  37. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee

  38. 2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  39. 2025-01-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  40. 2025-01-30 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

In order to avoid pollution and environmental degradation, present law requires the commissio
ner of environment and conservation to issue permits for certain activities and discharges. If the commissioner finds that a category of activities or discharges would be appropriately regulated under a general permit, which is the lowest level permit, t
h
en the commissioner may issue such a permit instead of an individual permit. However, the department of environment and conservation may issue an aquatic resource alteration permit (ARAP) to a person in connection with the removal of sand, gravel, and si
m
ilar sediments or deposits from streams or wetlands. Both permits require a provision for certain adequate compensatory mitigation, by mitigation banking, permittee-responsible mitigation, or in-lieu fee payments as approved by the department.

Present l
aw provides that if the only factor that disqualifies an applicant for an ARAP for wetland impacts from having the activities for which a permit is sought covered under a general permit is the size of the wetland that the permit will apply to, then the de
p
artment must exempt from compensatory mitigation an amount of wetland equal in size to the area for which mitigation would not be required if the permit applicant qualified for coverage under a general permit. In other words, if the only issue with getti
n
g the general permit is that the wetland is too big, then the department must exempt the permit from providing compensation for an equivalent size of wetland that would not have been required compensation under the general permit.

This bill expands the a
bove provision from the size of any wetlands to the size of the area as a whole. Therefore, if the only factor that disqualifies an applicant for an ARAP from having the activities covered under a general permit is the size of the area that the permit wi
l
l apply to, then the department must exempt from compensatory mitigation an area equal in size to the area for which mitigation would not be required if the permit applicant qualified for coverage under a general permit.

ON APRIL 10, 2025, THE HOUSE ADO
PTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 612, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 clarifies that the measurements that will be utilized under this bill are
the acreage of wetland impacts or the length of stream impacts
instead of "the size of the area the permit wil
l apply to".

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 612
By Vaughan

SENATE BILL 664
By Taylor

SB0664
002542
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 69,
Chapter 3, relative to permits.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 69-3-141(c), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting the following:
(c) If the only factor that disqualifies an applicant for an aquatic resource
alteration permit (ARAP) from having the activities for which a permit is sought covered
under a general permit is the size of the area that the permit will apply to, the department
shall exempt from compensatory mitigation an area equal in size to the area for which
mitigation would not be required if the permit applicant qualified for coverage under a
general permit.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.