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SB1116 • 2026

Vital Records

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36 and Title 68, relative to records.

Children
Active

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

Sponsor
Haile, Littleton
Last action
2025-05-13
Official status
Effective date(s) 05/05/2025
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide details on the exact nature and extent of record sharing or usage beyond what is stated in the summary.

Making Adoption Records Available for Foster Care Placements

This law requires certain adoption records to be shared with the Department of Children's Services to help find kinship foster care homes.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires specific adoption and related records to be given to the Department of Children's Services.
  • Allows these records to be used for finding family members who can take in children needing foster care.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People involved in adoptions or attempted adoptions
  • Departments like health, adoption courts, and child-placing agencies
  • The Department of Children's Services

Terms To Know

Kinship foster care
Placing children with relatives or close family friends when their parents cannot take care of them.
Adoption records
Documents that show information about a child's adoption process, including who was involved and what happened during the adoption.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify exactly how these records will be shared or used.
  • It is unclear if this change affects all types of adoption records or only specific ones.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB1356

Plain English: The amendment adds a new provision to allow the Department of Children’s Services to access certain records for finding kinship foster care placements.

  • Adds a new subdivision (iii) to Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 36-1-127(c)(1)(A), allowing the Department of Children's Services to search for kinship foster care placements.
  • The exact records and extent of access granted to the Department of Children’s Services are not specified in this amendment text.
Amendment 1-0 to SB1116

Plain English: The amendment adds a new provision to allow the Department of Children’s Services to access certain records for finding kinship foster care placements.

  • Adds a new subdivision (iii) to Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 36-1-127(c)(1)(A), allowing the Department of Children's Services to search for kinship foster care placements.
  • The exact records and extent of access granted to the Department of Children’s Services are not specified in this amendment text.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 05/05/2025

  2. 2025-05-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 393

  3. 2025-05-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 393

  4. 2025-05-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-04-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for action.

  6. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  7. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  8. 2025-04-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled and ready for signatures

  9. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., Ayes 93, Nays 0, PNV 0

  10. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Am. withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - HA0333)

  11. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Subst. for comp. HB.

  12. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. SB subst.

  13. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  14. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/14/2025

  15. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  16. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/10/2025

  17. 2025-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  18. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 4/9/2025

  19. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in Judiciary Committee to 4/9/2025

  20. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  21. 2025-03-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  22. 2025-03-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  23. 2025-03-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 31, Nays 0

  24. 2025-03-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0146)

  25. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 4/2/2025

  26. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in Judiciary Committee to 4/02/2025

  27. 2025-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 3/27/2025

  28. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 3/26/2025

  29. 2025-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 9, Nays 0 PNV 0

  30. 2025-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  31. 2025-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  32. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  33. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee for 3/18/2025

  34. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee

  35. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Judiciary Committee

  36. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  37. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, caption bill, held on desk - pending amdt.

  38. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  39. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  40. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  41. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON MARCH 27, 2025, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 1116, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, require certain
adoption records, sealed records, sealed adoption records, post-adoption records, o
r any other records or papers for a person relating to the adoption or attempted adoption of a person

in the
possession of the
office of the clerk of the adoption court
;
the offices of the department of health
;
the office of any child-placing agency, wheth
er or not it is chartered or licensed
;
or any other information source,
to
be made available to
t
he department of children's services for the purpose of searching for a kinship foster care placement
.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 1356
By Littleton

SENATE BILL 1116
By Haile

SB1116
003335
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36
and Title 68, relative to records.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 68-3-312(g), is amended by deleting
the language "within forty-five (45) days of receipt" and substituting "within sixty (60) days of
receipt".
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.