Privacy, Confidentiality

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 10; Title 24 and Title 38, relative to historical location data.

Privacy

Active

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

Sponsor: Walley, Hulsey
Last action: 2026-03-23
Official status: Assigned to General Subcommittee of Senate Judiciary Committee
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary text is incomplete, so some aspects like the exact penalties for violations are not fully detailed.

Privacy Protection for Historical Location Data

This bill restricts how government officials can access and use historical location data from databases to protect privacy.

What This Bill Does

Limits when a government official can access historical location data, requiring a warrant or specific exceptions like emergencies or consent.
Requires governmental entities to destroy most collected data within two to seven days unless it's needed for legal reasons.
Mandates that governmental entities keep detailed records of all times they access this data and audit these records monthly.
Prohibits selling or sharing historical location data with private parties except under specific conditions.
Requires government officials who work with such data to receive training on how to handle it properly.

Who It Names or Affects

Government officials and entities that collect historical location data
Individuals whose historical location data is stored in databases

Terms To Know

Historical Location Data: Information about where a person or vehicle was at specific times more than 24 hours ago.
Exigent Circumstances: Emergency situations that allow immediate access to data without a warrant, like when there's risk of death or serious harm.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if the required training is not provided.
It remains unclear how this will affect existing laws and practices in Tennessee regarding historical location data.

Bill History

2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly
Taken off notice for cal in s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee of Judiciary Committee
2026-03-23 Tennessee General Assembly
Assigned to General Subcommittee of Senate Judiciary Committee
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/23/2026
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/25/2026
2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly
Action Def. in s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee to 3/25/2026
2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/18/2026
2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly
Action Def. in s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee to 3/18/2026
2026-03-09 Tennessee General Assembly
Reset on Final calendar of Senate Judiciary Committee
2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/9/2026
2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/11/2026
2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Sponsor(s) Added.
2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly
Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee
2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly
Assigned to s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee
2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly
P2C, ref. to Judiciary Committee
2026-02-04 Tennessee General Assembly
Intro., P1C.
2026-02-03 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Introduced, Passed on First Consideration
2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly
Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

This
bill
prohibits a
government official
from
access
ing
a database that reveals historical location data
except in any of the following scenarios:



The government official obtains a search warrant, not in the form of a subpoena, to access the database in pursuit of a felony investigation
.



The defendant in a criminal case requests that the government preserve the defendant's historical location data, in which case the government
must
preserve the defendant's historical location data
.



All individuals whose historical location data would be revealed give the government official informed and express consent for the government official to access their historical location data in a specific database
.



The registered owner of a vehicle reports the vehicle lost or stolen, and gives the government official informed and express consent for the government official to access the vehicle's historical location data in a specific database
.



Exigent circumstances exist at the time of access, including a call for emergency services or during
an emergency situation that involves the risk of death or serious physical harm
, that make it impractical to obtain a search warrant before the exigency expires
.



The government official uses the historical location data solely for (i) toll collection and enforcement
,
(ii) traffic enforcement
,
(iii) parking enforcement
,
or (iv) information security as necessary to implement the requirements of this bill.

MAINTENANCE OF HISTORICAL LOCATION DATA

Except in the scenarios listed above, this bill prohibits a
government official or governmental entity that collects historical location data
from
shar
ing
it outside
of
the official's or governmental entity's scope of employment
or
sell
ing
or convey
ing
such data to a private,
non-governmental third party for any reason.

Requirements

This bill requires a
governmental entity that collects historical location data
to do all of the following:



Adopt and observe a written policy ensuring that the security and access provisions of this
bill
are followed
.



Destroy all historical location data not less than two days and not more than seven days after the data is collected, except when a criminal defendant requests that their historical location data be preserved
.



If permitted to maintain data for a lawful purpose, encrypt or otherwise render historical location data unreadable to an unauthorized accessor, using methodology or technology generally accepted in the field of information security
.



Create and maintain a record for every instance in which historical location data is accessed. Such records must include
(i) t
he identity of the government official or entity seeking access
,
(ii) the purpose for which access was sought
,
(iii) the
exception from the list above
that permitted access and the specific factual basis for believing that the provision was satisfied
,
(iv) the identity and written approval of the supervisor permitting access
,
(v) a full description of the historical location data accessed
,
and

(vi) the redaction of license plate numbers, facial images, or other personal information
.



Require that a supervisor audit
such
records on a monthly basis to verify and evaluate
(i) t
hat all information required has been provided
,
(ii) that the specific purpose for which access was sought complies with this bill
,
(iii) that the scope of the historical location data accessed was appropriate
,
and (iv) whether any other factors suggest noncompliance with this
bill.



Annually report on compliance with this
bill
to the judiciary committee of the senate and the committee of the house of representatives with jurisdiction over criminal justice. The report
must
summarize all records that the governmental entity created and maintained in the past year
.

Training

This bill requires e
ach government official whose duties include accessing a database that contains historical location data
to
undergo training on compliance with this
bill
. The training must not be created or administered by a private entity whose business involves collecting historical location data.

VIOLATIONS

If a governmental entity learns that a government official within that governmental entity has violated this
bill
,
then this bill generally requires
the governmental entity
to
suspend that government official's access to any database that contains historical location data for
s
even

days upon a first violation
, 30
days upon a second violation
,
and
p
ermanently upon a third violation.
However, this bill
does not preclude a government official or governmental entity from taking additional or more severe disci
plinary actions when such official becomes aware of a violation of this
bill
.

If the attorney general learns that a government official or governmental entity has violated this
bill
,
then this bill authorizes
the attorney general
to
bring a civil action for declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent ongoing or future violations.

PROHIBITION ON LESS RESTRICTIVE LOCAL LAWS

This bill prohibits a
municipality, county, metropolitan government, or other political subdivision of this state
from
enact
ing
a law, ordinance, resolution, regulation, rule, or policy that permits a government official or governmental entity to access historical location data in a manner less restrictive than
as
provided in this
bill.

CAPTURED PLATE DATA

Present law requires c
aptured plate data from automatic license plate reader systems
to
be treated as confidential and
are not
open for inspection by members of the public.
However, it is repealed
effective July 1, 2026
. This bill removes such repeal and adds that h
istorical location data, as defined
in this bill,
is confidential and not open to inspection by members of the public.

This
bill further provides that this paragraph does not
limit public access to a governmental entity's annual compliance re
port required by
this bill.

INADMISSIBLE AS EVIDENCE

This bill provides that h
istorical location data accessed in violation of t
his bill
is not admissible as evidence in a criminal or civil proceeding.
"H
istorical location data
"

m
eans a record that, when accessed, reveals an individual's or vehicle's location at specific points in time more than 24

hours prior to the date of access
. However, such term d
oes not include video or image recordings generated by cameras on or in government-owned buildings, or dashboard or body-worn cameras owned and operated by
governmental entities, regardless of whether such cameras transmit, store, or back up recordings to a local or centralized storage system, so long as the recordings are not indexed, searchable, or analyzed by an individual, vehicle, biometric identifier,
or another unique identifier for the purpose of tracking or reconstructing an individual's or vehicle's historical location data
.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HOUSE BILL 2608
By Hulsey

SENATE BILL 2215
By Walley
SB2215
012153
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 10;
Title 24 and Title 38, relative to historical location
data.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 38, is amended by adding the following
as a new chapter:
38-4-101. Short title.
This chapter is known and may be cited as the "Protecting Everyone from
Excessive Police Surveillance (PEEPS) Act."
38-4-102. Legislative findings.
The general assembly finds that government officials or entities violate the Fourth
Amendment of the United States Constitution when, without adequate safeguards, such
officials and entities create or access databases that reveal or contain information that
can be used to reveal an individual's or vehicle's historical locations. This chapter
regulates access to, and the security of, that information.
38-4-103. Chapter definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Access" means viewing, querying, retrieving, copying, transmitting,
analyzing, or otherwise using a database, whether manually or automatically;
(2) "Collect" means to gather information using technology, including, but
not limited to, license plate readers, cameras, or aerial drones that record data
about an individual's or vehicle's locations or movements;

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(3) "Database" means a physical or digital information storage system,
whether publicly or privately owned, that contains photos and videos of
individuals and vehicles, license plate data, facial recognition data, biometric
data, cellular device location data, or a combination thereof;
(4) "Governmental entity" means a government agency, office, bureau,
division, board, council, commission, or political subdivision, including a county,
municipality, or metropolitan government;
(5) "Government official" means an officer, employee, agent, contractor,
or representative of a governmental entity;
(6) "Historical location data" or "data":
(A) Means a record that, when accessed, reveals an individual's
or vehicle's location at specific points in time more than twenty-four (24)
hours prior to the date of access; and
(B) Does not include video or image recordings generated by
cameras on or in government-owned buildings, or dashboard or body-
worn cameras owned and operated by governmental entities, regardless
of whether such cameras transmit, store, or back up recordings to a local
or centralized storage system, so long as the recordings are not indexed,
searchable, or analyzed by an individual, vehicle, biometric identifier, or
another unique identifier for the purpose of tracking or reconstructing an
individual's or vehicle's historical location data; and
(7) "Supervisor" means a government official who possesses the
authority to direct and discipline one (1) or more government officials within a
governmental entity.
38-4-104. Government official's access to databases.

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A government official shall not access a database that reveals historical location
data unless:
(1) The government official obtains a search warrant, pursuant to title 40,
chapter 6, part 1, or Rule 41 of the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure, and
not in the form of a subpoena, to access the database in pursuit of a felony
investigation;
(2) The defendant in a criminal case requests that the government
preserve the defendant's historical location data, in which case the government
shall preserve the defendant's historical location data;
(3) All individuals whose historical location data would be revealed give
the government official informed and express consent for the government official
to access their historical location data in a specific database;
(4) The registered owner of a vehicle reports the vehicle lost or stolen,
and gives the government official informed and express consent for the
government official to access the vehicle's historical location data in a specific
database;
(5) Exigent circumstances exist at the time of access, including a call for
emergency services or during an emergency situation under § 38-1-602, that
make it impractical to obtain a search warrant before the exigency expires; or
(6) The government official uses the historical location data solely for the
following purposes:
(A) Toll collection and enforcement;
(B) Traffic enforcement;
(C) Parking enforcement; or

- 4 - 012153

(D) Information security as necessary to implement the
requirements of § 38-4-105.
38-4-105. Maintenance of historical location data.
(a) A government official or governmental entity that collects historical location
data shall not share it outside the official's or governmental entity's scope of
employment, except as permitted under § 38-4-104.
(b) A government official or governmental entity that collects historical location
data shall not sell or convey such data to a private, non-governmental third party for any
reason.
(c) A governmental entity that collects historical location data shall:
(1) Adopt and observe a written policy ensuring that the security and
access provisions of this chapter are followed;
(2) Destroy all historical location data not less than two (2) days and not
more than seven (7) days after the data is collected, except when a criminal
defendant requests that their historical location data be preserved under § 38-4-
104(2);
(3) If permitted to maintain data for a lawful purpose, encrypt or
otherwise render historical location data unreadable to an unauthorized
accessor, using methodology or technology generally accepted in the field of
information security;
(4) Create and maintain a record for every instance in which historical
location data is accessed. Such records must include:
(A) The identity of the government official or governmental entity
seeking access;
(B) The specific purpose for which access was sought;

- 5 - 012153

(C) The provision of § 38-4-104 that permitted access to such
data and the specific factual basis for believing that the provision was
satisfied;
(D) The identity and written approval of the supervisor permitting
access;
(E) A full description of the historical location data accessed; and
(F) The redaction of license plate numbers, facial images, or
other personal information;
(5) Require that a supervisor audit the records required by subdivision
(c)(4) on a monthly basis to verify and evaluate:
(A) That all information required under subdivision (c)(4) has
been provided;
(B) That the specific purpose for which access was sought
complies with this chapter;
(C) That the scope of the historical location data accessed was
appropriate in light of the specific purpose; and
(D) Whether any other factors suggest noncompliance with this
chapter, such as large volumes of searches by the same government
official, differing reasons for searching for similar historical location data,
or any other factors that would reasonably suggest that the specific
purpose provided to search such data was pretextual or not permitted
under this chapter. When the auditing supervisor determines or has
reason to believe that a government official or governmental entity has
violated this chapter, the supervisor shall order further investigation of the
violation; and

- 6 - 012153

(6) Annually report on compliance with this chapter to the judiciary
committee of the senate and the committee of the house of representatives with
jurisdiction over criminal justice. The report shall summarize all records that the
governmental entity created and maintained in the past year under subdivision
(c)(4).
(d) Each government official whose duties include accessing a database that
contains historical location data must undergo training on compliance with this chapter.
The training must not be created or administered by a private entity whose business
involves collecting historical location data.
38-4-106. Violations of this chapter.
(a) If a governmental entity learns that a government official within that
governmental entity has violated this chapter, the governmental entity shall suspend that
government official's access to any database that contains historical location data for:
(1) Seven (7) days upon a first violation;
(2) Thirty (30) days upon a second violation; and
(3) Permanently upon a third violation.
(b) If the attorney general and reporter learns that a government official or
governmental entity has violated this chapter, the attorney general and reporter may
bring a civil action for declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent ongoing or future
violations.
(c) This section does not preclude a government official or governmental entity
from taking additional or more severe disciplinary actions when such official becomes
aware of a violation of this chapter.
38-4-107. Prohibition on less restrictive local laws.

- 7 - 012153

A municipality, county, metropolitan government, or other political subdivision of
this state shall not enact a law, ordinance, resolution, regulation, rule, or policy that
permits a government official or governmental entity to access historical location data in
a manner less restrictive than that provided in this chapter.
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 10-7-504, is amended by deleting
subdivision (a)(32)(B) and substituting:
(i) Historical location data, as defined in § 38-4-103, is confidential and not open
to inspection by members of the public.
(ii) This subdivision (a)(32) must not be construed to limit public access to a
governmental entity's annual compliance report required by § 38-4-105(c)(6).
SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 24, Chapter 7, is amended by adding
the following as a new section:
Historical location data, as defined in § 38-4-103, accessed in violation of the
Protecting Everyone from Excessive Police Surveillance (PEEPS) Act, compiled in title
38, chapter 4, is not admissible as evidence in a criminal or civil proceeding.
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.