Regional Authorities and Special Districts

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details about the financial impacts or benefits of the bill's changes.

Act to Change Rules for Infrastructure Development Districts

This bill modifies existing laws regarding infrastructure development districts in Tennessee by removing restrictions on overlapping central business improvement areas and simplifying petition requirements.

What This Bill Does

• Removes the restriction that prevents central business improvement areas from overlapping with infrastructure development districts created by municipalities.
• Simplifies the process of filing a petition to establish an infrastructure development district, no longer requiring it to contain signatures.
• Clarifies that public hearings can be held separately when approval is contingent on another governing body's decision.
• Requires establishment resolutions to include the maximum rate of special assessment instead of just the rate.
• Limits the term of bonds issued for multi-phase infrastructure projects, ensuring each phase does not exceed 30 years from issuance.
• Changes the dissolution date of districts based on when the last assessment is levied rather than the initial establishment date.

Who It Names or Affects

• Municipalities and governing bodies responsible for establishing infrastructure development districts.
• Residents and businesses within areas where these districts are established or proposed.

Terms To Know

Infrastructure Development District

A designated area where special assessments can be levied to fund improvements in public facilities and services.

Central Business Improvement Area

An area within a city or town that is focused on enhancing the business environment through additional funding for improvements.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify how overlapping central business improvement areas and infrastructure development districts will be managed.
• It remains unclear if existing laws governing other types of special districts are affected by these changes.

Official Summary Text

The
Real Estate Infrastructure Development Act of 2025
("the Act")
provides independent authority for the
establishment and governance of an infrastructure development district

and constitutes an alternative method of establishing and governing such a district.
Previous methods, including

municipal improvements by special assessments law, improvement bond law
, and
the Central Business Improvement District Act

remain
in full force and effect as separate and independent authority for the
establishment and governance of a central business improvement or infrastructure development district as long as
no
central bu
siness improvement overlap
s with
an area within an infrastructure development district created by a municipality.
This bill removes the condition that
a central business improvement
can
not overlap an

area within an infrastructure development district created by a municipality
for the previous methods to remain in full force and effect.

PETITIONS AND HEARINGS

Upon the filing of an initiating petition purporting to contain the requisite number of signatures,
present law

requires
each governing body of a host municipality required to receive such petition
s

to
order a public hearing to determine whether the infrastructure development district will be established.
This bill removes from the petition description that it must be
purporting to contain the requisite number of signatures
and clarifies that the
public hearing
will be held
by the governing body
.

When
a district must be approved by two

or more host municipalities,
present law authorizes
the governing bodies
to
hold joint public hearings.
This bill adds that
governing bodies may
alternatively
hold separate public hearings when a governing body makes approval contingent on the approval of another governing body.

ESTABLISHMENT RESOLUTIONS

Present law requires t
he establishment resolution adopted by the governing body of the municipality
to
include
certain information, including t
he rate of levy of the special assessment to be imposed
. This bill clarifies that the resolution must include t
he maximum rate of levy of the special assessment to be
imposed
, not just the
rate of levy
.

BONDS, NOTES, AND OTHER OBLIGATION
S

Present law requires that t
he maximum term of any bonds, notes, or other debt obligations issued to fund the costs of infrastructure, including any refinancing bonds, must not exceed 30 years from the first issuance of bonds, notes, or other debt.
This bill adds that, f
or development projects with multiple phases of development, bonds must be issued for each phase of the development and each phase must not exceed 30 years from date of issuance of the bonds for that phase.

DISSOLUTION OF DISTRICTS

Present law requires that e
ach district established
under
th
e Act to
be dissolved by the governing bodies of the host municipality no later than

30 years from the date the district is established, or if earlier
if certain events occur. This bill removes this provision and, instead, requires e
ach district established
under the Act to
be dissolved by the governing bodies of the host municipality no later than 30 years from the date that the last assessment is first levied, or if earlier if
those same
certai
n events occur.

Current Bill Text

<BillNo> <Sponsor>

SENATE BILL 1648
By Pody
SB1648
010146
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 7;
Title 9; Title 12; Title 13; Title 66; Title 67 and Title
68, relative to infrastructure development districts.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-84-804, is amended by deleting the
second sentence and substituting:
This part does not affect the operation and effect of chapters 32 and 33 of this
title, and parts 1-7 of this chapter, which continue in full force and effect as
separate and independent authority for the establishment and governance of a
central business improvement or infrastructure development district.
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-84-811, is amended by deleting
subsection (a) and substituting:
(a) Upon the filing of an initiating petition, each governing body of a host
municipality required to receive filing of such petition must order a public hearing by the
governing body to determine whether the infrastructure development district will be
established.
SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-84-811, is amended by deleting
subsection (b) and substituting:
(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), when a district must be approved by two (2)
or more host municipalities, the governing bodies may hold one (1) or more joint public
hearings, or the governing bodies may hold separate public hearings when a governing
body makes approval contingent on the approval of another governing body.
SECTION 4. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-84-814, is amended by deleting
subdivision (7) and substituting:

- 2 - 010146

(7) The maximum rate of levy of the special assessment to be imposed;
SECTION 5. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-84-815, is amended by deleting
subsection (d) and substituting:
(d) The maximum term of any bonds, notes, or other debt obligations issued
pursuant to this section to fund the costs of infrastructure, including any refinancing
bonds, must not exceed thirty (30) years from the first issuance of bonds, notes, or other
debt obligations for the purpose of funding infrastructure. For development projects with
multiple phases of development, bonds must be issued for each phase of the
development and each phase must not exceed thirty (30) years from date of issuance of
the bonds for that phase.
SECTION 6. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 7-84-827, is amended by deleting the
language:
Each district established pursuant to this part must be dissolved by the governing
bodies of the host municipality, no later than thirty (30) years from the date the district is
established, or if earlier, immediately upon:
and substituting:
Each district established pursuant to this part must be dissolved by the governing
bodies of the host municipality no later than thirty (30) years from the date that the last
assessment is first levied, or if earlier, immediately upon:
SECTION 7. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.