Children

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

Children

Present law establishes the Tennessee second look commission, which reviews an appropriate sampling of cases involving a second or subsequent incident of severe child abuse in order to provide recommendations and findings to the general assembly regardin g whether or not severe child abuse cases are handled in a manner that provides adequate protection to the children of this state.

What This Bill Does

• Present law establishes the Tennessee second look commission, which reviews an appropriate sampling of cases involving a second or subsequent incident of severe child abuse in order to provide recommendations and findings to the general assembly regardin g whether or not severe child abuse cases are handled in a manner that provides adequate protection to the children of this state.
• This bill adds the commissioner of mental health and substance abuse services, or the commissioner's designee, to the commi ss ion.
• REQUESTS MADE BY SECOND LOOK COMMISSION Present law requires certain persons, teams, and agencies to provide all of the following to the second look commission upon request by the commission:  Information and data concerning a second or subsequent incident of severe abuse.
•  Cause the person most knowledgeable with the case to testify regarding any cases concerning a second or subsequent incident of severe abuse.

Limits and Unknowns

• This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Official Summary Text

Present law establishes the Tennessee second look commission, which reviews an appropriate sampling of cases involving a second or subsequent incident of severe child abuse in order to provide recommendations and findings to the general assembly regardin
g whether or not severe child abuse cases are handled in a manner that provides adequate protection to the children of this state. This bill adds the commissioner of mental health and substance abuse services, or the commissioner's designee, to the commi
ss
ion.

REQUESTS MADE BY SECOND LOOK COMMISSION

Present law requires certain persons, teams, and agencies to provide all of the following to the second look commission upon request by the commission:



Information and data concerning a second or subsequent incident of severe abuse.



Cause the person most knowledgeable with the case to testify regarding any cases concerning a second or subsequent incident of severe abuse.



Recommendations concerning where gaps and deficiencies may exist in the various systems involved in protecting children from severe child abuse.

This bill removes the limitation that such information must concern a second or subsequent incident of severe child abuse, and requires, instead, that the information must be supplied for any case being reviewed by the commission. Additionally, the comm
ission may request and have access to any records held by a state agency that are necessary for performance of the commission's duties and responsibilities. Further, any representative of the mental health disciplines involved in investigations conducted
b
y provision of services to dependent and neglected youth must also provide the above to the commission upon request.

SEVERE CHILD ABUSE
—
STRANGULATION

Present law designates several acts that constitute severe child abuse, including the exposure of a child to serious bodily injury or death, or the risk of serious bodily injury or death, caused by brutality, abuse, neglect, or use of force. This bill a
dds that severe child abuse also includes the exposure of a child to serious bodily injury or death, or the risk of such, caused by strangulation.

AGGRAVATED CHILD ABUSE AND AGGRAVATED CHILD NEGLECT OR ENDANGERMENT

Present law provides that a person commits the offense of aggravated child abuse, aggravated child neglect, or aggravated child endangerment, who commits child abuse, child neglect, or child endangerment and additionally commits one or more of several ac
ts. One such act is when the abuse, neglect, or endangerment was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel, or involved the infliction of torture to the victim. This bill adds that it would also constitute such an aggravated offense if that abuse involved
st
rangulation.

STATUTORY AND AGGRAVATED STATUTORY RAPE

Present law provides that statutory rape is the unlawful sexual
penetration of a victim by the defendant, or of the defendant by the victim, when the victim is 13 or 14 and the defendant is four to 10 years older, or the victim is 15, 16, or 17 and the defendant is more than five but less than 10 years older. Aggrava
ted statutory rape is the unlawful sexual penetration of a victim by the defendant, or of the defendant by the victim, when the victim is 13 to 17 and the defendant is at least 10 years older.

If a law enforcement officer receives a report of a violation of statutory or aggravated statutory rape as described in the paragraph above, this bill requires the law enforcement officer to refer the victim to the child advocacy center serving that geog
raphical area for a forensic interview and to notify the child protective team of the reported child sexual abuse.

ON APRIL 21, 2026, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 2081, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 makes the following revisions:



Adds

one at large member to the commission with experience advocating for children, appointed by the commission's co-chairs. Such member will serve a four-year term. Following three successive absences by such member from commission meetings, the co-chairs may declare a vacancy and request that a new member be appointed who meets the same criteria.



Removes the provisions summarized in the bill summary under the heading "REQUESTS MADE BY SECOND LOOK COMMISSION."



Removes the provisions summarized in the bill summary under the heading "STATUTORY AND AGGRAVATED STATUTORY RAPE."



Moves the commission's annual report due date from January 1 each year to July 1 each year beginning July 1, 2027.



If a child who is younger than one is found to be dependent and neglected and has been diagnosed by a licensed physician with neonatal abstinence syndrome, then this amendment authorizes the court to order the child's parent, guardian, or other custodian to (i) submit to the department documentation of compliance with preventative pediatric care consistent with the periodicity schedule of the American Academy of Pediatrics until the child turns one; and (ii) submit to drug testing at regular intervals at the parent's, guardian's, or other custodian's expense if there are allegations that such person has engaged in substance misuse. The department may also initiate a visit to ascertain the well-being of the child if the documentation provided contains allegations of abuse or neglect.

Current Bill Text

HOUSE BILL 2081
By Littleton

SENATE BILL 1937
By Jackson
SB1937
011115
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 37;
Title 38; Title 39 and Title 40, relative to abuse of
children.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-3-804(a), is amended by adding
the following as a new subdivision:
(14) The commissioner of mental health and substance abuse services or the
commissioner's designee;
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-3-804(b)(1)(A), is amended by
deleting "subdivisions (a)(1)-(5)" wherever it appears and substituting "subdivisions (a)(1)-(5)
and (a)(14)".
SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-3-809, is amended by deleting
"child protective teams," and substituting "child protective teams or the provision of services to
dependent and neglected youth,".
SECTION 4. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-3-809(1), is amended by deleting
"a second or subsequent incident of severe child abuse" and substituting "a case being
reviewed by the commission".
SECTION 5. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-3-809(2), is amended by deleting
"concerning a second or subsequent incident of severe abuse" and substituting "being reviewed
by the commission".
SECTION 6. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-3-809, is amended by designating
the existing language as subsection (a) and adding the following subsection (b):

- 2 - 011115

(b) Notwithstanding another law to the contrary, the commission may request
and have access to any records held by a state agency that are necessary for
performance of the commission's duties and responsibilities under this part.
SECTION 7. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 37-1-102(b)(28)(A)(i), is amended by
deleting "abuse, neglect, or use of force" and substituting "abuse, neglect, use of force, or
strangulation, as defined in § 39-13-102(a)(2)".
SECTION 8. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 39-15-402(a)(3), is amended by
deleting "involved the infliction of torture" and substituting "involved strangulation, as defined in
§ 39-13-102(a)(2), or the infliction of torture".
SECTION 9. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 39-13-506, is amended by adding
the following as a new subsection:
(e) If a law enforcement officer receives a report of a violation of subsection (b)
or (c), then the law enforcement officer shall refer the victim to the child advocacy center
serving that geographical area for a forensic interview and notify the child protective
team, established pursuant to § 37-1-607, of the reported child sexual abuse.
SECTION 10. Sections 1-6 and 9 of this act take effect upon becoming a law, the public
welfare requiring it. For all other sections, this act takes effect July 1, 2026, the public welfare
requiring it.