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SB2530 • 2026

General Assembly

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 3, Chapter 1 and Title 4, relative to the general assembly.

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Active

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

Sponsor
Hatcher, Miller
Last action
2026-03-26
Official status
Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill text specifies that only the speakers of the senate and house, not the governor, have the authority to allow lying in state upon initiative.

Act for Honoring Deceased Legislators

This bill authorizes the speakers of the Tennessee General Assembly to allow deceased or former members to lie in state at the state capitol upon request by an immediate family member, with certain conditions.

What This Bill Does

  • Authorizes the speakers of the senate and house of representatives to let a deceased or former legislator lie in state at the state capitol if requested by their immediate family.
  • Limits the time for lying in state to one day that the capitol is open to the public.
  • Defines 'immediate family' as including spouses, parents, siblings, or children of the deceased member.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Deceased or former members of the Tennessee General Assembly
  • Immediate family members of deceased or former legislators
  • The speakers of the senate and house

Terms To Know

immediate family member
A spouse, parent, sibling, or child.

Limits and Unknowns

  • Does not specify what happens if there is a disagreement between the speakers about allowing lying in state.
  • The bill does not provide details on how to handle requests from multiple family members with different wishes.
  • It remains unclear how often this provision might be used.

Amendments

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

Amendment 1-0 to HB1532

Plain English: The amendment changes the conditions under which a deceased member or former member of the Tennessee General Assembly can lie in state at the state capitol.

  • A deceased member or former member cannot lie in state if they were convicted of a felony, unless they received a pardon for that felony.
  • A deceased former member who was expelled from office and not reelected is also ineligible to lie in state.
  • The amendment does not specify the process or criteria for granting pardons or expelling members from office, which may be important details for understanding its full impact.
Amendment 2-0 to HB1532

Plain English: The amendment allows for members of the Tennessee General Assembly who have passed away to lie in state at the state capitol under certain conditions.

  • Adds new rules allowing immediate family members or the governor and speakers to request that a deceased member or former member of the general assembly can lie in state at the state capitol for up to one full day's opening hours.
  • Specifies that lying in state is not allowed if the person was convicted of a felony without pardon, or expelled from office and not reelected.
  • The exact process and procedures for requesting and approving a lying-in-state are not detailed in this amendment.
Amendment 1-0 to SB2530

Plain English: The amendment allows for members of the Tennessee General Assembly to lie in state at the state capitol building upon request by an immediate family member or initiative by the speakers if there is no immediate family member.

  • Adds a new section allowing deceased members or former members of the general assembly to lie in state at the state capitol building for up to one full day that the building is open, based on a request from an immediate family member.
  • Defines 'immediate family member' as including spouses, parents, siblings, and children.
  • The amendment does not specify what happens if there are multiple requests for different days or conflicting requests from different family members.

Bill History

  1. 2026-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/16/2026

  2. 2026-04-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/14/2026

  3. 2026-04-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Calendar & Rules Committee

  4. 2026-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 4/13/2026

  5. 2026-04-08 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to the Next Calendar

  6. 2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 4/8/2026

  7. 2026-04-01 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 4/8/2026

  8. 2026-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.

  9. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/31/2026

  10. 2026-03-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 3/31/2026

  11. 2026-03-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  12. 2026-03-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 28, Nays 1

  13. 2026-03-23 Tennessee General Assembly

    Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0626)

  14. 2026-03-20 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 3/23/2026

  15. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/24/2026

  16. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 3/24/2026

  17. 2026-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/18/2026

  18. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 3/18/2026

  19. 2026-03-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 9, Nays 0 PNV 0

  20. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/11/2026

  21. 2026-03-04 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action def. in State & Local Government Committee to 3/11/2026

  22. 2026-03-03 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate State and Local Government Committee calendar for 3/10/2026

  23. 2026-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on cal. State & Local Government Committee for 3/4/2026

  24. 2026-02-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to State & Local Government Committee

  25. 2026-02-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Public Service Subcommittee for 2/18/2026

  26. 2026-02-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate State and Local Government Committee

  27. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  28. 2026-02-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  29. 2026-01-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Public Service Subcommittee

  30. 2026-01-15 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to State & Local Government Committee

  31. 2026-01-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  32. 2026-01-13 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

This bill requires the governor and speakers of the senate and house of representatives to grant a deceased member or former member of the general assembly the ability to lie in state at the state capitol building if it is requested by an immediate famil
y member. A deceased member or former member of the general assembly would be allowed to lie at the state capitol for no longer than one day that the state capitol building is open to the public.

Under this bill, "immediate family" means a spouse, parent, sibling, or child. If the deceased member or former member does not have an immediate family member, then the governor and speakers may authorize the deceased member or former member to lie in
state upon their own initiative.

ON MARCH 23, 2026, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED SENATE BILL 2530, AS AMENDED.

AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, authorize, rather than require, the speakers of the senate and the house of representatives, and not the governor, to allow a decreased member or former member of the general assembly to lie in state at the sta
te capitol building upon the request of an immediate family member for a specified period of time. If the deceased member or former member does not have an immediate family member, then the speakers may authorize the deceased member or former member to l
ie
in state upon the speakers' initiative.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
HOUSE BILL 1532
By Miller

SENATE BILL 2530
By Hatcher
SB2530
010653
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 3,
Chapter 1 and Title 4, relative to the general
assembly.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 3, Chapter 1, Part 1, is amended by
adding the following as a new section:
(a) Upon the request of an immediate family member of a deceased member or
former member of the general assembly, the governor and the speakers of the senate
and house of representatives shall allow the deceased member or former member to lie
in state at the state capitol building for a specified period of time not to exceed the entire
period of time during one (1) day that the state capitol building is open to the public. If
the deceased member or former member does not have an immediate family member,
the governor and the speakers may authorize the deceased member or former member
to lie in state in accordance with this subsection (a) upon their own initiative.
(b) As used in this section, "immediate family member" means a spouse, parent,
sibling, or child.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.