Tennessee Senate Bill SB1854

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/21/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 18; Title 36, Chapter 1; Title 37; Title 49, Chapter 4, Part 9; Title 49, Chapter 5, Part 7 and Section 49-6-1304, relative to adoption.

Summary

SB1854 makes a narrow change to Tennessee’s adoption law by reducing the maximum age of a prospective adoptive parent in Tennessee Code Annotated § 36-1-149 from 100 years to 90 years. The bill does not add new adoption procedures or eligibility categories; it simply revises an existing age-related limit in the adoption statutes. Because the bill is limited to a single statutory amendment, its practical effect is to tighten the upper age threshold for adoption-related eligibility under state law. The measure takes effect immediately upon becoming law, indicating legislative intent for prompt implementation.

Impact

The bill amends Tennessee Code Annotated § 36-1-149, which is part of the state’s adoption code, by changing the referenced age limit from 100 to 90 years. This affects adoption-related eligibility standards for older prospective adoptive parents and any administrative or judicial application of that statute. No other sections are changed in the text provided, though the caption references additional titles and sections not altered by the enrolled language.

Sentiment

No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of debate, support, or opposition in the available materials. Based on the text alone, the bill appears technical and narrowly targeted rather than controversial, with the likely general sentiment being procedural or administrative rather than policy-driven.

Contention

No specific points of contention are documented in the provided record. If any concern were raised, it would most likely involve whether lowering the maximum age from 100 to 90 is necessary or whether it could affect older adoptive applicants, but no speaker or vote history is available to confirm such objections or support.