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SB1275 • 2026

Mining and Quarrying

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 59, Chapter 8, Part 3, relative to abandoned mine lands.

Energy
Enacted

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

Sponsor
Johnson, Lamberth
Last action
2025-04-28
Official status
Comp. became Pub. Ch. 189
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official source does not provide specific details on how property owners will prove they did not consent to or control the mining operations.

Changes to Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Liens

This bill changes how liens are filed for cleaning up abandoned coal mines in Tennessee by removing a prohibition on filing liens against certain property owners and adding requirements for the commissioner to notify property owners before filing liens.

What This Bill Does

  • Removes the rule that prevents filing a lien against someone who owned land before May 2, 1977, and did not consent to or control mining there.
  • Requires the commissioner to inform property owners about proposed liens for reclamation costs before filing them.
  • Allows property owners to avoid having a lien filed by showing they didn't consent to or control the mining, or by paying the department the amount of the lien.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Property owners who have land affected by abandoned coal mines in Tennessee.
  • The Department of Environment and Conservation in Tennessee.

Terms To Know

lien
A legal claim on a property to secure the payment of a debt, such as reclamation costs for cleaning up an abandoned mine.
reclamation
The process of restoring land that has been damaged by mining activities back to its original or better condition.

Limits and Unknowns

  • Does not specify the exact amount of federal funding at risk if this bill is not enacted.
  • Does not provide details on how property owners will prove they did not consent to or control the mining operations.
  • The full impact and implementation timeline are unclear without further guidance.

Bill History

  1. 2025-04-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Comp. became Pub. Ch. 189

  2. 2025-04-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Effective date(s) 04/11/2025

  3. 2025-04-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Pub. Ch. 189

  4. 2025-04-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Governor.

  5. 2025-04-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  6. 2025-04-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by Senate Speaker

  7. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Signed by H. Speaker

  8. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Enrolled; ready for sig. of H. Speaker.

  9. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Companion House Bill substituted

  10. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate, Ayes 30, Nays 0

  11. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  12. 2025-03-28 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  13. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Calendar Committee

  14. 2025-03-20 Tennessee General Assembly

    Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  15. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  16. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  17. 2025-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  18. 2025-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  19. 2025-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed H., Ayes 92, Nays 0, PNV 1

  20. 2025-03-13 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  21. 2025-03-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Consent Calendar for 3/17/2025

  22. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 3/13/2025

  23. 2025-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee

  24. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Finance, Ways, and Means Committee for 3/11/2025

  25. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  26. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 3/5/2025

  27. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  28. 2025-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  29. 2025-02-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee for 2/25/2025

  30. 2025-02-19 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  31. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

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

  32. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee for 2/19/2025

  33. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  34. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  35. 2025-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  36. 2025-01-28 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee

  37. 2025-01-16 Tennessee General Assembly

    Ref. to Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee

  38. 2025-01-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C held on desk, pending appointment of Standing Committees

  39. 2025-01-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  40. 2025-01-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Present law authorizes the commissioner of environment and conservation
to enter onto private property that is adversely affected by past coal mining practices and, after making certain findings, conduct reclamation activities to clean-up and restore the land. Once reclamation is complete, the commissioner is required to fi
l
e a statement, which constitutes a lien on the property in the amount of the cost of the reclamation and the land's increased value resulting from the reclamation, if significant. Present law prohibits filing such a l
ien against the property of any person

who owned the surface prior to May 2, 1977, and who neither consented to nor participated in, nor exercised control over, the mining operation which necessitated the reclamation
.

This bill replaces the prohibition against filing a lien against the prope
rty of a person
who owned the surface prior to May 2, 1977, and who neither consented to nor participated in, nor exercised control over, the mining operation which necessitated the reclamation
. This bill instead requires the commissioner, p
rior to filing
a statement
as described above, to
notify a property owner of the proposed creation of a lien, the amount of the proposed lien, and the ability of the property owner to avoid the lien
by either:

(
1
)
Not having
consent
ed
to, participate
d
in, or exercise
d
control over the mining operation which necessitated the reclamation; or

(
2
) Pay
ing
the department
of environment and conservation
the amount of the proposed lien specified in the notice prior to the
commissioner
filing a statement.

This bill also rem
oves a provision of present law that limits application of the notice and lien filing process reclamation of past coal mining practices to reclamation that occurs when the commissioner enters onto private lands without the landowner's permission as an exe
r
cise of the police power for the protection of public health and safety.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 123
By Lamberth

SENATE BILL 1275
By Johnson

SB1275
001208
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 59,
Chapter 8, Part 3, relative to abandoned mine
lands.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 59-8-302(b)(1), is amended by
deleting "under § 59-8-301(f)" and deleting the final sentence in the subdivision.
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 59-8-302(b), is amended by adding
the following as new subdivisions and redesignating the existing subdivision (b)(2) accordingly:
(2) Prior to filing a statement pursuant to subdivision (b)(1), the commissioner
shall notify a property owner of the proposed creation of a lien under this subsection (b),
the amount of the proposed lien, and the ability of the property owner to avoid the lien
under subdivision (b)(3).
(3) A lien must not be filed under this section against a property owner who:
(A) Did not consent to, participate in, or exercise control over the mining
operation which necessitated the reclamation performed hereunder; or
(B) Pays the department the amount of the proposed lien specified in the
notice provided pursuant to subdivision (b)(2) prior to the filing of a statement by
the commissioner pursuant to subdivision (b)(1).
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon becoming law, the public welfare requiring it.