SB2207 • 2026

Education

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 10, Chapter 7; Title 49; Title 62, Chapter 35 and Title 68, relative to school facilities.

Education

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Johnson, Moody
Last action: 2026-04-10
Official status: Transmitted to Governor for action.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill text does not provide information on annual reviews or updates by the advisory board.

School Safety Design Guidelines

This bill creates a safe school design advisory board to recommend guidelines for K-12 schools in Tennessee.

What This Bill Does

Creates an advisory board to suggest safety rules for building or fixing K-12 public schools.
The board includes experts from education, safety, fire protection, architecture, and the American Institute of Architects.
Requires the board to give guidelines to a state official by January 1, 2027.

Who It Names or Affects

K-12 public schools in Tennessee
Local education agencies (LEAs) and public charter schools

Terms To Know

advisory board: A group of people who give advice or recommendations to a government agency.
commissioner: An official in charge of a department or agency, like the commissioner of education or safety.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if schools do not follow the guidelines.
It is unclear how much input from the public will be allowed for these guidelines.
The exact details of the school safety design components are not provided in this summary.

Amendments

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

HA0818

Amendment 1-0 to HB2275

Plain English: The amendment creates a safe school design advisory board to recommend guidelines for K-12 schools on safety considerations.

Establishes a new advisory board within the Department of Commerce and Insurance to develop safe school design guidelines.
Includes representatives from various state departments, professional organizations, and experts in school facility design.
Sets deadlines for initial recommendations by January 1, 2027, and annual reviews thereafter.

The exact details of the safety guidelines are not specified in the amendment text.

HA1003

Amendment 2-0 to HB2275

Plain English: The amendment changes how certain parts of school safety guidelines are shared with the public to protect sensitive security information.

Guidelines for school facilities will be posted on a government website, but specific details about security vulnerabilities can be kept private and only shown to other government groups if there is a clear reason.
Meetings of the advisory board that discuss security issues can be closed to the public, but the general topics discussed must be made available in minutes within 30 days.

The amendment text does not specify how often or under what circumstances sensitive information will be restricted from public view.
It is unclear how detailed the justifications for restricting access to security vulnerability information need to be.

SA0786

Amendment 1-0 to SB2207

Plain English: The amendment creates a safe school design advisory board to recommend guidelines for K-12 schools on safety considerations.

Establishes a new advisory board within the Department of Commerce and Insurance to develop safe school design guidelines.
Includes representatives from various state departments, professional organizations, and experts in school facility design.
Sets deadlines for the first meeting (July 1, 2026) and submission of initial guidelines (January 1, 2027).
Specifies that the advisory board will meet annually to review and update the guidelines.

The exact details on how the advisory board will operate are not fully explained in the amendment text.
It is unclear what specific actions LEAs and public charter schools must take based on these guidelines.

Bill History

2026-04-10 Tennessee General Assembly
Transmitted to Governor for action.
2026-04-09 Tennessee General Assembly
Signed by H. Speaker
2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly
Signed by Senate Speaker
2026-04-06 Tennessee General Assembly
Enrolled and ready for signatures
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed H., Ayes 90, Nays 2, PNV 0
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Am. withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - HA0818)
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Subst. for comp. HB.
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Sponsor(s) Added.
2026-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Comp. SB subst.
2026-03-30 Tennessee General Assembly
Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.
2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly
Engrossed; ready for transmission to House
2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly
Sponsor(s) Added.
2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 30, Nays 0
2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly
Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0786)
2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly
H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/2/2026
2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 3/26/2026
2026-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 3/26/2026
2026-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly
Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Calendar & Rules Committee
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 7, Nays 0 PNV 0
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/24/2026
2026-03-17 Tennessee General Assembly
Action def. in Education Committee to 3/24/2026
2026-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Education Committee calendar for 3/18/2026
2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Action deferred in Senate Education Committee to 3/18/2026
2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on cal. Education Committee for 3/17/2026
2026-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly
Rec for pass if am by s/c ref. to Education Committee
2026-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Education Committee calendar for 3/11/2026
2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Education Administration Subcommittee for 3/10/2026
2026-03-03 Tennessee General Assembly
Action Def. in s/c Education Administration Subcommittee to 3/10/2026
2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Education Administration Subcommittee for 3/3/2026
2026-02-17 Tennessee General Assembly
Action Def. in s/c Education Administration Subcommittee to Next Available Calendar
2026-02-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Education Administration Subcommittee for 2/17/2026
2026-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly
Assigned to s/c Education Administration Subcommittee
2026-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly
Ref. to Education Committee
2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Education Committee
2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly
P2C, caption bill, held on desk - pending amdt.
2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Intro., P1C.
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Introduced, Passed on First Consideration
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

ON MARCH 26, 2026, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 2207, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 r
ewrites this bill to create a
safe school design advisory board to recommend to the commissioner of
commerce and insurance
safe school design guidelines for LEAs and public charter schools to consider when constructing or remodeling
K
-12 public school facilities.

The
ad
visory board is administratively attached to the department of
commerce and insurance
. The safe school design advisory board consist
s
of:

(1) A representative of the department of education, who is appointed by the commissioner of education;

(2) A representative of the department of safety, who is appointed by the commissioner of safety;

(3) A representative of the state fire marshal, who is appointed by the state fire marshal;

(4) A representative of the office of the state architect, who is appointed by the state architect;

(5) A member from the American Institute of Architects in this state who is a licensed architect with experience in designing K-12 educational facilities, who is appointed by the commissioner of
commerce and insurance
; and

(6) A member with knowledge of K-12 school facilities, who is appointed by the commissioner of education.

The full text of this amendment lists seven components of school safety design for which the
advisory board
is required to
recommend
guidelines
to the commissioner of
commerce and insurance.
Th
is amendment requires th
e advisory board
to
submit its recommended guidelines to the commissioner of
commerce and insurance
no later than January 1, 2027. The advisory board shall meet at least once per year after January 1, 2027, to review the guidelines to ensure that the guidelines reflect any emerging threats,
new technologies, evolving best practices, and any updates of building or safety codes. The advisory board shall submit any recommended updates to the guidelines to the commissioner of
commerce and insurance
.

The advisory board meetings are not subject to the open meetings laws
and the a
dvisory board's recommended guidelines are not open to the public and may only be shared with governmental entities.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HOUSE BILL 2275
By Moody

SENATE BILL 2207
By Johnson
SB2207
012303
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 10,
Chapter 7; Title 49; Title 62, Chapter 35 and Title
68, relative to school facilities.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-6-2006(c)(1), is amended by
deleting "thirty (30) days" and substituting "forty-five (45) days".
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2026, the public welfare requiring it.