Tennessee House Bill HB1109

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/5/25
• Refer: 2/10/25
• Failed: 3/25/25

Caption

AN ACT to amend Chapter __ of the Public Acts of 2025 (1st Ex. Sess. – SB 6001 / HB 6004); and Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49, Chapter 10, Part 14 and Title 49, Chapter 6, Part 26, relative to background checks.

Summary

HB1109 would expand and standardize background-check requirements for people working in or around certain Tennessee schools, with a focus on private schools that enroll recipients and participating schools under the state’s school choice framework. The bill requires criminal history records checks before hiring teachers or other employees in positions requiring proximity to schoolchildren, and before allowing contractors or their employees to have direct contact with students or access to school grounds when children are present. The checks must be fingerprint-based or Social Security number-based and must include state and national sex offender registries and the Department of Health’s abuse registry. The bill also requires schools to search the state educator licensure database to see whether an applicant has ever had an educator license suspended or revoked for misconduct in Tennessee. In addition, schools must exclude from employment anyone barred by state law from working in a nonpublic school and anyone who might reasonably pose a threat to student safety. The bill amends existing statutes governing participating schools and private schools to make these requirements explicit and consistent across those settings.

Impact

HB1109 would amend Tennessee Code Annotated Title 49, Chapter 10, Part 14 and Title 49, Chapter 6, Part 26, as well as a related 2025 public act, to impose or clarify screening obligations for private schools and participating schools. It would affect hiring and contractor vetting practices by requiring more comprehensive background checks, registry searches, and educator-licensure reviews before allowing adults to work near students or on school grounds. The practical effect would be to tighten school safety screening standards and potentially disqualify more applicants or contractors based on criminal history, registry status, licensure discipline, or safety concerns.

Sentiment

The available voting history suggests the bill faced opposition in committee and did not advance in the House K-12 Subcommittee, where it failed 2-6. No committee transcript is available, so there is no recorded debate to show support or opposition arguments in detail. Based on the bill’s subject matter, the proposal appears to have been framed as a student-safety measure, but the committee result indicates that the proposal did not receive broad support at that stage.

Contention

The main points of contention likely center on how far private-school and participating-school screening requirements should extend, especially for contractors and others with access to school grounds. Opponents may have been concerned about administrative burden, hiring constraints, or the scope of state oversight over private schools, while supporters would emphasize child protection, registry checks, and preventing individuals with misconduct histories from working near students. The failed subcommittee vote indicates that at least some members were unconvinced that the bill’s approach was necessary or appropriately tailored.