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SB1371 • 2026

Housing

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 5; Title 6; Title 7; Title 13 and Title 33, relative to housing.

Education Healthcare Housing
Active

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

Sponsor
Watson, Martin G
Last action
2025-02-12
Official status
Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Health and Welfare Committee
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Sober Living Home Regulations

This bill allows local governments in Tennessee to create rules for sober living homes that help people recover from alcohol and drug abuse, as long as these rules follow federal laws about housing and disabilities.

What This Bill Does

  • Defines what a 'sober living home' is: an alcohol-free and drug-free place where adults recovering from substance abuse live together in a supportive environment without formal treatment services.
  • Gives local governments the power to make rules that keep sober living homes at least one thousand feet away from schools, preschools, and daycares.
  • Allows local governments to set rules about how sober living homes are run within their area.
  • Requires people wanting to live in a sober living home to get a medical referral from a licensed healthcare provider before they can move in.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Local governments that want to make rules for sober living homes.
  • Operators of sober living homes who must follow local regulations and require medical referrals.
  • People recovering from alcohol or drug abuse who wish to live in a sober living home.

Terms To Know

Healthcare provider
A healthcare professional licensed under title 63 or 68 whose scope of practice includes the diagnosis and treatment of alcohol, drug, and substance abuse.
Local government
Includes counties, incorporated cities or towns, or metropolitan governments in Tennessee.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify what happens if a local government's rules do not follow federal housing or disability laws.
  • It is unclear how this legislation will be enforced or monitored by state agencies.

Bill History

  1. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Health and Welfare Committee

  2. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  3. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  4. 2025-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Withdrawn.

  5. 2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Cities & Counties Subcommittee

  6. 2025-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to State & Local Government Committee

  7. 2025-01-27 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  8. 2025-01-22 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

Abstract summarizes the bill.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 301
By Martin G

SENATE BILL 1371
By Watson

SB1371
001057
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 5;
Title 6; Title 7; Title 13 and Title 33, relative to
housing.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 7, Chapter 51, is amended by adding
the following new part:
7-51-2601.
As used in this part:
(1) "Healthcare provider" means a healthcare professional licensed
under title 63 or 68 whose scope of practice includes the diagnosis and treatment
of alcohol, drug, and substance abuse;
(2) "Local government" means a county, incorporated city or town, or
metropolitan government;
(3) "Operator" means the lawful owner of a sober living home or a person
or entity designated by such lawful owner to have primary responsibility for the
daily operation of such sober living home; and
(4) "Sober living home" means an alcohol-free and drug-free residence
where unrelated adults who are recovering from alcohol, drug, or substance
abuse choose to live together in a supportive environment during their recovery
where no formal alcohol, drug, or substance abuse treatment services are
provided.
7-51-2602.

- 2 - 001057

(a) The governing body of a local government may adopt an ordinance or
resolution:
(1) Requiring a sober living home to be located at a distance of not less
than one thousand feet (1,000') from a kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12)
educational facility, preschool, or daycare facility;
(2) Regulating the location or operation of a sober living home within the
jurisdiction of the local government; and
(3) Requiring that an operator, prior to authorizing an individual to reside
in a sober living home, receive a clinical referral from a licensed healthcare
provider indicating that placement in a sober living home is a medical necessity
for the individual based on the individual's status as recovering from alcohol,
drug, or substance abuse.
(b) An ordinance or resolution adopted pursuant to subsection (a) must comply
with the Fair Housing Act, as amended, (42 U.S.C. §§ 3601 et seq.) and the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq.).
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.