Tennessee House Bill HB2355

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/2/26
• Refer: 2/5/26
• Refer: 3/4/26
• Refer: 3/10/26
• Engrossed: 3/17/26
• Enrolled: 3/24/26
• Passed: 4/16/26
• Chaptered: 4/24/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39 and Title 68, Chapter 221, relative to unlawful disposal of waste.

Summary

HB2355 amends Tennessee’s criminal and environmental enforcement laws to increase penalties for certain waste-disposal offenses when committed by people who are in the business of removing accumulated wastes from subsurface sewage disposal systems. The bill creates a higher misdemeanor classification for those actors when they unlawfully dispose of waste, sewage, effluent, or other contaminants, moving the offense from a Class C misdemeanor to a Class B misdemeanor in specified circumstances. The bill also requires courts to notify the Commissioner of Environment and Conservation upon conviction so the commissioner can suspend, revoke, or refuse to issue the offender’s permit to operate in the septic-waste removal business. It establishes escalating permit consequences: at least a 30-day suspension for a first violation, at least 90 days for a second, and permanent revocation or refusal to issue a permit for a third or subsequent violation. The act applies only to violations committed on or after July 1, 2026.

Impact

HB2355 changes Tennessee Code Annotated Title 39 and Title 68, Chapter 221 by adding enhanced criminal penalties and mandatory licensing consequences for unlawful disposal of waste by septic and sewage-hauling operators. It affects persons engaged in removing accumulated wastes from subsurface sewage disposal systems, the courts that hear these cases, and the Department of Environment and Conservation, which gains a mandatory notification and permit-enforcement role. The bill does not eliminate existing authority to suspend or revoke permits under other provisions, but it adds a specific summary-action process tied to convictions under the amended statutes.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial in the legislative process. It advanced unanimously through subcommittee and full committee and then passed the House and Senate floor votes without any recorded opposition. The voting history suggests general agreement with the bill’s goal of strengthening enforcement against improper waste disposal by licensed operators.

Contention

There is little evidence of substantive opposition in the available record. The main policy choice reflected in the bill is whether to treat these violations more severely when committed by professionals handling septic waste and to impose automatic permit consequences after conviction. Any potential concern would likely center on the increased criminal classification and the mandatory suspension or revocation of permits, but no committee transcript or recorded vote indicates active disagreement on those points.