Tennessee House Bill HB2318

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/2/26
• Refer: 2/5/26
• Refer: 3/25/26
• Refer: 3/31/26
• Chaptered: 5/1/26
• Passed: 5/1/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 4-4-116 and Chapter 512 of the Public Acts of 2025, relative to the joint committee on ways and means.

Summary

HB2318 revises Tennessee’s procedures for legislative review of federal aid applications and acceptances by state agencies and other executive-branch recipients. The bill updates the definition of “recipient,” clarifies when notice must be given to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, and changes the review thresholds so that federal aid under $25 million is subject to notice and potential committee review before application or acceptance, while aid at or above $25 million remains subject to the more formal review and approval process. It also allows the committee to hold hearings on smaller awards if the chairs agree, and preserves special approval requirements for federal aid that is a loan or other repayable indebtedness. The bill further adjusts exemptions and timing rules for recurring federal funds. It specifies how annual installments and multi-year grant programs are handled, requires annual compliance in certain cases, exempts federal formula transportation funds, and moves the committee’s reporting deadline from February 1 to February 15. The act takes effect July 1, 2026, and amends Tennessee Code Annotated Section 4-4-116 and related public act provisions governing the Joint Committee on Ways and Means.

Impact

The bill changes state law governing executive-branch receipt of federal funds by tightening and clarifying notice, hearing, and approval procedures before agencies may apply for or accept federal aid. It affects the administrative office of the courts, executive departments and agencies, the comptroller, and the departments of state and treasury, while also carving out transportation formula grants and preserving separate review for federally funded loans or indebtedness. In practical terms, it shifts some federal-aid oversight from a strict dollar-threshold model to a more detailed procedural framework for recurring grants, multi-year awards, and committee-initiated hearings.

Sentiment

The available voting history shows strong, unanimous support throughout the legislative process, with 13-0 in subcommittee, 24-0 in full committee, and 89-0 on the House floor. That pattern suggests the bill was broadly viewed as a technical or administrative update rather than a controversial policy change. No committee transcript is available, but the absence of recorded opposition indicates general agreement on the need to clarify and modernize the federal-aid review process.

Contention

No notable substantive contention is reflected in the available record. The main policy choices embedded in the bill are procedural: how much federal aid should trigger committee review, when hearings are required or optional, whether annual and multi-year grants need repeated review, and which funds should be exempt. The only potentially sensitive issue is the balance between legislative oversight of federal money and administrative flexibility for agencies, but the unanimous votes suggest those concerns did not produce visible disagreement.