AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4; Title 29; Title 47 and Title 65, relative to consumer protection.
Summary
HB2028 creates a new consumer-protection rule aimed at online search engines and their treatment of small businesses. It defines “blacklist” to include reducing a small business’s visibility in search results, removing its website or search result, or deleting at least 25% of its reviews. A small business with 50 or fewer full-time employees that believes it has been blacklisted may request a written or electronic explanation from the search engine.
The bill requires the search engine to respond within five business days with either an explanation and justification for the action or the steps needed to appeal, be restored, or be re-indexed, along with contact information for a representative. If the search engine fails to comply, the small business may sue in court. Available remedies include actual damages, punitive damages, court costs, attorneys’ fees, and injunctive relief to stop continued violations.
Impact
The bill amends Tennessee Code Annotated Title 47, Chapter 18, Part 1, adding a new private right of action and disclosure obligation for online search engines interacting with small businesses. It would affect search engine operators doing business in Tennessee by imposing a short response deadline and potential liability for noncompliance, while giving qualifying small businesses a statutory mechanism to challenge alleged de-indexing, demotion, or review removal. The act applies only to conduct on or after July 1, 2026.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests the bill moved forward with strong support in the House Commerce Committee and the House Banking and Consumer Affairs Subcommittee, both recommending passage unanimously. The only recorded setback was a 0-2 vote in the House Calendar & Rules Committee to re-refer the bill back to Commerce, after which Commerce again recommended passage. Overall, the committee record indicates generally favorable sentiment toward the bill, with no transcript evidence of substantive opposition in the provided materials.
Contention
The main policy tension is between protecting small businesses from perceived search-engine suppression and avoiding regulation of how search engines rank, index, or moderate content. Support appears to center on transparency, appeal rights, and remedies for small businesses that believe they have been unfairly buried or delisted. Potential concerns likely involve whether the bill intrudes on search-engine editorial discretion, how “blacklist” is defined, and whether the 25% review-removal threshold could be difficult to measure or enforce. The only recorded procedural resistance was the Calendar & Rules Committee’s decision to send the bill back to Commerce, but no specific objection was included in the provided record.