Tennessee Senate Bill SB1773

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/20/26
• Engrossed: 2/23/26
• Enrolled: 4/29/26
• Passed: 5/22/26
• Chaptered: 5/27/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36, Chapter 1, Part 1 and Title 68, Chapter 11, Part 2, relative to voluntary surrendering of an infant.

Summary

SB1773 revises Tennessee’s “safe surrender” law for newborn infants, which allows a parent or other person to voluntarily leave an infant at certain designated facilities without facing criminal liability, so long as the surrender follows statutory requirements. The bill expands and clarifies the types of locations that may host a newborn safety device or receive a surrendered infant, including adding ambulance stations staffed around the clock and specifying that participating facilities may include hospitals, fire stations, ambulance stations, police stations, emergency communications centers, and nursing homes. The bill also tightens operational requirements for newborn safety devices. It requires that qualifying devices be in conspicuous locations visible to staff, continuously monitored by a facility employee or medical professional, and located in facilities that are legally operating in Tennessee and have licensed EMS-provider coverage scheduled continuously on a 24-hour basis. If a newborn is physically accepted by staff or retrieved from a safety device, the bill directs staff to arrange immediate transport to the nearest hospital emergency room, authorizes implied consent for appropriate medical treatment, and requires the hospital to notify the Department of Children’s Services so the state can assume custody and care of the infant.

Impact

SB1773 amends Tennessee Code Annotated Title 68, Chapter 11, Part 2, Section 68-11-255, the statute governing voluntary surrender of newborn infants, and makes a related amendment to Title 36, Chapter 1, Part 1. The practical effect is to broaden the network of eligible surrender locations and impose more specific monitoring, staffing, and response procedures for newborn safety devices and surrendered infants. It also reinforces the role of hospitals and the Department of Children’s Services in taking custody and providing care after surrender.

Sentiment

The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial in the legislative process. It passed the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously and later cleared floor votes by wide margins, including a 31-0 vote on third consideration and a 91-0 final passage vote. The voting history suggests strong bipartisan agreement on the need to improve safe-surrender procedures and newborn protection.

Contention

No major opposition is reflected in the available record, and there are no committee transcripts indicating substantive debate. The main policy issues implicit in the bill are operational rather than ideological: how to define eligible facilities, whether ambulance stations should qualify, what staffing and monitoring standards should apply, and how quickly custody should transfer to the Department of Children’s Services after a surrender. Any concern would likely center on facility compliance and emergency-response logistics rather than the underlying safe-surrender policy.