Tennessee Senate Bill SB1065

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/5/25
• Chaptered: 5/27/25
• Passed: 5/27/25

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 8, Chapter 10 and Title 38, Chapter 8, relative to constables.

Summary

SB1065 revises Tennessee law governing constables by conditioning their law-enforcement powers on completion of required in-service education. A constable who does not complete the training requirements in Title 8, Chapter 10 would be prohibited from exercising the law-enforcement powers listed in the bill, and a violation would be a Class C misdemeanor punishable by fine only, with each day treated as a separate offense. The bill also creates a new training standard for constables newly elected or appointed on or after July 1, 2025. Those constables must complete 128 hours of POST-approved law-enforcement training during their first year in office. Until that training is completed, they must be paired with another fully trained constable or a POST-certified law-enforcement officer while performing official duties, unless they recently served as a full-time POST-certified officer within the prior five years. The 128-hour requirement may be waived if the constable completes a comparable basic law-enforcement course within one year of election or appointment.

Impact

The bill amends Tennessee Code Annotated Title 8, Chapter 10, and references several statutes in Title 38, Chapter 8 and related law-enforcement provisions to limit constables’ authority unless they meet training requirements. It strengthens oversight of constables by tying their ability to exercise certain powers to POST-approved education, adds a criminal penalty for noncompliance, and establishes a new baseline training requirement for future constables. The practical effect is to increase professional standards and supervision for constables and to affect counties, constables, and POST-certified officers who may need to accompany untrained constables.

Sentiment

The available voting history suggests broad support for the bill, with unanimous approval in the Senate Judiciary Committee and strong support in the Senate Finance, Ways and Means Committee. The bill ultimately passed and was enacted, indicating that lawmakers generally viewed it favorably as a public-safety and training measure. No committee transcript was provided, so there is no recorded floor or committee debate to indicate significant opposition in the materials supplied.

Contention

The main policy issue appears to be whether constables should be allowed to exercise law-enforcement powers without completing standardized training. Supporters of the bill likely favored requiring POST-approved instruction and supervision to improve public safety and consistency, while any potential concern would center on the added burden for newly elected or appointed constables, especially in rural or small jurisdictions. The bill’s fine-only misdemeanor penalty and the pairing requirement suggest an effort to balance enforcement with a transition period for compliance.