Tennessee Senate Bill SB0143

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/14/25

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49; Title 63; Title 67 and Title 68, relative to hygiene products for women and children.

Summary

SB0143 would require the Tennessee Department of Health, subject to appropriations, to provide free diapers to Tennessee residents who are new mothers or working parents/guardians of children under age two upon request. The bill also directs the department to post instructions on its website and to work with the Department of Human Services and other agencies on a public health campaign to promote diaper access using funds specifically appropriated for fiscal year 2025-2026. Residents already receiving diapers through TennCare Medicaid or CoverKids would not be eligible for this new diaper benefit. The bill also expands Tennessee’s school hygiene-product law to include public charter schools, not just public schools, and requires both LEAs and charter schools to provide feminine hygiene products in women’s and girls’ bathrooms and locker rooms regularly used by students in grades 4-12. It adds a definition of public charter school, requires the state to reimburse LEAs and charter schools for the cost of the products they provide, and directs the Department of Health to collaborate on a public health campaign encouraging donations of feminine hygiene products to eligible schools. Most of the school-related provisions take effect July 1, 2025 and apply beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.

Impact

This bill would amend Tennessee Code Annotated Titles 49 and 68 by creating a new state diaper-assistance program and by broadening existing menstrual hygiene requirements to cover public charter schools. It would impose new duties on the Department of Health, the Department of Human Services, LEAs, and charter schools, while also creating a reimbursement obligation for the state for feminine hygiene products supplied by schools. The bill would affect families with infants and toddlers, as well as school districts and charter schools serving grades 4-12, but its implementation depends on appropriations and specified funding for the public health campaigns.

Sentiment

Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee discussion or votes, the measure appears to be framed as a public health and family-support initiative rather than a controversial policy change. Its provisions suggest broad support for access to basic hygiene products for infants and school-aged students, along with an effort to reduce out-of-pocket costs for schools. No formal vote history or transcript evidence is available here to indicate opposition or support from specific legislators or stakeholders.

Contention

The main potential points of contention are fiscal and administrative. The diaper program is expressly subject to appropriations, and the school reimbursement requirement would create a new state spending obligation, which may raise budget concerns. Another possible issue is the expansion of obligations from LEAs to public charter schools and the requirement that products be provided in bathrooms and locker rooms used by students in grades 4-12, which could prompt operational questions about compliance, supply, and reimbursement. No specific opposing or supporting groups are identified in the available record.