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SB1239 • 2026

Children

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36 and Title 37, relative to children.

Children Education
Active

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

Sponsor
Jackson, Littleton
Last action
2025-05-13
Official status
Effective date(s) 05/05/2025, 07/01/2025
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

End Childhood Hunger Act

This act establishes a task force to develop strategies for addressing childhood hunger in Tennessee by improving access to nutrition and coordinating government efforts with nonprofits.

What This Bill Does

  • Creates a 14-member task force to make plans on how to reduce childhood hunger.
  • Includes members from different state departments, the legislature, and nonprofit organizations focused on food insecurity.
  • Requires the task force to submit a report by July 1, 2026, with recommendations for addressing childhood hunger challenges.
  • Aims to improve coordination between government agencies and nonprofits in tackling issues like affordability and accessibility of high-quality nutrition.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Children facing food insecurity in Tennessee
  • Nonprofit organizations focused on food assistance
  • State departments involved in human services, education, health, labor, and children's services

Terms To Know

EBT cards
Electronic benefit transfer cards used to provide financial aid for food purchases.
SNAP
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a federal program that helps low-income individuals buy food.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how the task force will be funded.
  • It is unclear what specific actions will come from the recommendations made by the task force.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB1357

Plain English: The amendment creates a new task force to develop and implement strategies to end childhood hunger in Tennessee.

  • Adds a new chapter to Title 37 of the Tennessee Code Annotated to establish the Tennessee Task Force to End Childhood Hunger.
  • Specifies that the task force will create an action plan addressing affordability, accessibility, public resource utilization, partnerships with nonprofits, coordination between government departments, and administrative challenges related to EBT cards.
  • Details the composition of the task force, including representatives from various state agencies and nonprofit organizations focused on food insecurity and childhood hunger.
  • The amendment does not specify how the task force will be funded or what specific actions it must take beyond developing a strategic action plan.
  • It is unclear how effective the recommendations of the task force will be in actually ending childhood hunger.
Amendment 1-0 to SB1239

Plain English: The amendment creates a task force to develop and implement strategies to end childhood hunger in Tennessee.

  • Adds a new chapter to Title 37 of the Tennessee Code Annotated to establish the Tennessee Task Force to End Childhood Hunger.
  • Specifies that the task force will create an action plan addressing affordability, accessibility, public resource utilization, partnerships between government and nonprofits, coordination among state departments, and administrative challenges with EBT cards.
  • Details the composition of the task force, including representatives from various state agencies and nonprofit organizations focused on food insecurity and childhood hunger.
  • The amendment does not specify how the task force will be funded or what specific actions it must take beyond developing a strategic action plan.
  • It is unclear how the recommendations of the task force will be implemented after the report is submitted to the General Assembly.

Bill History

  1. 2025-05-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 05/05/2025, 07/01/2025

  2. 2025-05-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 397

  3. 2025-05-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 397

  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 92, Nays 0, PNV 0

  10. 2025-04-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Am. withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - HA0334)

  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. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  15. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  16. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 31, Nays 0

  17. 2025-04-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0365)

  18. 2025-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/15/2025

  19. 2025-04-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/15/2025

  20. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  21. 2025-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  22. 2025-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  23. 2025-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  24. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  25. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  26. 2025-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 7, Nays 0 PNV 0

  27. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 4/1/2025

  28. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 4/1/2025

  29. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/31/2025

  30. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  31. 2025-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  32. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee for 3/25/2025

  33. 2025-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee to 3/25/2025

  34. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  35. 2025-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 4/1/2025

  36. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/11/2025

  37. 2025-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Taken off notice for cal in s/c Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee of Judiciary Committee

  38. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee for 3/4/2025

  39. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee

  40. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Judiciary Committee

  41. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  42. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  43. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  44. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  45. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  46. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON APRIL 15, 2025, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED
SENATE BILL 1239, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites this bill to enact the
"End Childhood Hunger Act
,
"
which establishes a 14-member task force to
develop
and
recommend a strategic action plan to guide the administration and general assembly on how to:

(1) Address the challenges of affordability and accessibility of high quality nutrition in this state;

(2) More effectively use public resources to address those challenges, including, but not limited to, the temporary assistance for needy families (T
ANF) program, the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP), and the summer food service program;

(3) Build partnerships between government and the nonprofit sector, through which nonprofits are motivated to create and participate in strategies th
at address the hunger needs of children;

(4) Streamline coordination between the department of human services, the department of education, the department of health, and the department of children's services in developing solutions to the state's childho
od hunger challenges; and

(5) Address administrative challenges with electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards, including, but not limited to, theft and fraud.

The task force will consist of the following members:

(1) The commissioner of human service
s, or the commissioner's designee;

(2) The commissioner of labor and workforce development, or the commissioner's designee;

(3) The commissioner of education, or the commissioner's designee;

(4) The commissioner of health, or the commissioner's desi
gnee;

(5) The commissioner of children's services, or the commissioner's designee;

(6) The executive director of the Tennessee commission on children and youth, or the executive director's designee;

(7) One member of the senate to be appointed by the
speaker of the senate;

(8) One
m
ember of the house of representatives to be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives; and

(9) Six representatives from nonprofit organizations whose focus is food insecurity and childhood hunger, two of
whom must be appointed by the speaker of the senate, two of whom must be appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, and two of whom must be appointed by the governor.

The full text of this amendment specifies various organizational and
procedural requirements that apply to the task force.

The task force is administratively attached to the department of human services.
This amendment requires the
task force
to
submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the general assembly
no later than July 1, 2026. The task force ceases to exist upon completion of the task force's report and recommendations.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 1357
By Littleton

SENATE BILL 1239
By Jackson

SB1239
003351
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36
and Title 37, relative to children.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-2-411(a), is amended by deleting
"Each year" and substituting "By March 1 of each year".
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.