AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36 and Title 63, relative to children.
Summary
HB1355 amends Tennessee law in two main areas related to children and parental authority. First, it clarifies the definition of “token financial support” in the state’s adoption statutes. Under the bill, minimal, perfunctory, infrequent, or short-duration payments made to or for the benefit of a child or the child’s mother during pregnancy or while the mother had physical custody would not count as meaningful financial support for purposes of the adoption code. This change is aimed at tightening how courts evaluate whether a parent has provided sufficient support in adoption-related proceedings.
Second, the bill expands the forms of sworn statements that may be used in certain adoption filings by allowing a declaration under Rule 72 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure in addition to an affidavit. It also changes Tennessee’s minor-vaccination consent law by requiring a healthcare provider to obtain informed consent from a parent, legal guardian, or prospective adoptive parent before vaccinating a minor, and to document that consent in the child’s medical record. The bill takes effect immediately upon becoming law.
Impact
The bill amends provisions in Title 36 and Title 63 of the Tennessee Code Annotated, affecting adoption procedures and medical consent for minors. In adoption law, it narrows what qualifies as financial support and broadens acceptable sworn documentation. In health law, it imposes a clearer parental-consent requirement before vaccination of minors and creates a documentation obligation for healthcare providers, potentially affecting clinics, physicians, parents, guardians, and prospective adoptive parents.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests the bill moved with strong support in committee, passing the House Children and Family Affairs Subcommittee 5-0 and the House Judiciary Committee 17-0. No committee transcripts were provided, but the unanimous votes indicate little formal opposition at the committee stage. The bill was enacted as Public Chapter No. 390, suggesting it ultimately received sufficient support in both chambers and from the governor.
Contention
The most likely points of contention are the bill’s vaccination-consent provision and the adoption-law clarification on financial support. The vaccination language shifts decision-making authority firmly to parents, legal guardians, and prospective adoptive parents, which may be viewed as strengthening parental rights but could concern healthcare providers or those favoring broader minor access to vaccines. The adoption provision may also be debated by parties involved in termination of parental rights or adoption disputes, because defining “token financial support” more narrowly can affect whether a parent is deemed to have maintained a sufficient relationship with a child.