Tennessee House Bill HB0315

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/22/25
• Refer: 2/3/25
• Refer: 3/3/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 8; Title 10; Title 16; Title 36; Title 39; Title 67 and Title 68, relative to marriage.

Summary

HB0315 creates the “Tennessee Covenant Marriage Act,” a new legal framework for couples who choose a covenant marriage. Under the bill, a covenant marriage is available only to one man and one woman who are adults, who declare that marriage is lifelong, and who complete premarital counseling and file a declaration of intent with the county clerk. The bill also allows couples already married to convert their marriage into a covenant marriage beginning July 1, 2025, by filing the required declaration and related documents. The bill sets out special rules for covenant marriages that make divorce and legal separation more limited than under Tennessee’s general divorce law. It specifies the exclusive grounds for divorce or legal separation, including adultery, felony imprisonment, abandonment, abuse, and extended separation, and requires counseling before a spouse may obtain relief. It also restricts lawsuits between spouses in a covenant marriage except for certain matters such as contracts, property, support, custody, divorce, and legal separation. The secretary of state must publish an informational pamphlet explaining the consequences of covenant marriage, and county clerks must note covenant marriage status on marriage licenses and transmit declarations to vital records.

Impact

HB0315 would amend Tennessee’s marriage and divorce statutes in Title 36 by creating a separate legal category of marriage with different formation, counseling, filing, and dissolution requirements. It would also modify existing divorce provisions so that the general grounds for divorce apply except in covenant marriages, and it would add new clerk, recordkeeping, and pamphlet-publishing duties for state and county officials. The practical effect would be to give participating couples a more restrictive marital status with narrower paths to divorce and legal separation than ordinary Tennessee marriages.

Sentiment

The available vote history suggests the bill had at least some support in the House Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee, which recommended passage with amendment by a 5-1 vote. No committee transcript is available, so there is no recorded debate to show broader sentiment. Based on the bill’s content, it appears to be framed as a voluntary, values-based option for couples who want a more binding marriage commitment, which may appeal to supporters of traditional marriage policy.

Contention

The main points of contention are likely to be the bill’s gender-specific definition of covenant marriage as between one man and one woman, and its more restrictive divorce and separation rules. Critics may object that the bill creates unequal treatment within Tennessee marriage law and could make it harder for spouses to exit harmful or failed marriages, even though the bill preserves grounds for abuse, adultery, and abandonment. Supporters are likely to emphasize that the option is voluntary and that counseling and disclosure requirements ensure informed consent before couples enter the arrangement.