Tennessee House Bill HB0253

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/21/25
• Refer: 2/3/25
• Refer: 2/10/25
• Chaptered: 3/21/25
• Passed: 3/21/25

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4, Chapter 29 and Title 58, Chapter 2, relative to the Interstate Earthquake Compact of 1988.

Summary

HB0253 amends Tennessee’s governmental entity sunset provisions to address the Interstate Earthquake Compact of 1988. The bill removes the compact from the list of entities scheduled for termination under Tennessee Code Annotated § 4-29-246 and adds a new sunset provision stating that the compact will terminate on June 30, 2033, unless continued, reestablished, or restructured under state law. The bill also preserves the general rule that state governmental entities created in calendar year 2031 terminate on June 30, 2033. In practical terms, the bill updates Tennessee’s statutory treatment of the Interstate Earthquake Compact, which is created in Title 58, Chapter 2, and keeps it within the state’s periodic review framework for governmental bodies. The measure does not appear to change the compact’s substantive emergency-management or earthquake-preparedness functions; rather, it adjusts the compact’s sunset date and aligns it with Tennessee’s administrative oversight process for boards, commissions, and similar entities.

Impact

The bill amends Tennessee Code Annotated Title 4, Chapter 29, which governs the termination and review of certain state entities, and Title 58, Chapter 2, which contains the Interstate Earthquake Compact of 1988. By deleting the compact from one termination list and adding it to a new sunset section, the bill changes the statutory expiration framework applicable to the compact and ensures it remains subject to legislative review through June 30, 2033. It affects the compact’s legal status and any state agencies or interstate arrangements operating under it, but it does not otherwise alter the compact’s operational provisions.

Sentiment

The available voting history suggests broad, noncontroversial support for the bill. The House Government Operations Committee recommended passage unanimously, and the House floor passed the measure on the consent calendar with 89 yeas and 0 nays. No committee transcript or recorded debate is provided, which also suggests the bill was treated as a routine administrative measure rather than a contentious policy change.

Contention

There is little evidence of substantive contention in the available record. The only identifiable issue is the administrative question of whether the Interstate Earthquake Compact should remain in force under Tennessee’s sunset-review system and on what timeline it should terminate. Because the bill passed unanimously and on consent, any concerns likely centered on procedural housekeeping, statutory cleanup, or ensuring continued oversight of the compact rather than opposition to earthquake preparedness or interstate cooperation.