Tennessee Senate Bill SB2696

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/10/26
• Engrossed: 3/23/26
• Enrolled: 3/25/26
• Passed: 4/13/26
• Chaptered: 5/1/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Chapter 28 of the Private Acts of 1997; and any other acts amendatory thereto, relative to Cheatham County.

Summary

SB2696 is a local private act for Cheatham County that amends a 1997 private act governing the county’s tax collection and the use of the resulting revenue. The bill replaces Section 8 of the prior act to specify how the county may collect the tax and how the proceeds must be allocated. Under the new language, the revenue is directed into the county general fund and then divided among county purposes, with the largest shares dedicated to education-related debt service and school construction reserves, and a smaller share set aside for highway and public works needs. More specifically, the bill requires 46.67% of the tax proceeds to go to the Cheatham County Education Debt Service Fund, another 46.67% to a separately accounted reserve within that fund for debt tied to acquiring, constructing, or reconstructing school buildings, and 6.66% to the Cheatham County Highway/Public Works Fund. The act also leaves collection details to the county governing body, consistent with the referenced provisions of the prior private act. Like many private acts, it is contingent on local approval and does not take effect unless the Cheatham County legislative body approves it by a two-thirds vote.

Impact

The bill amends a local private act rather than the general Tennessee Code, so its legal effect is limited to Cheatham County. It changes the statutory direction for how a county tax is collected and earmarked, formally dedicating revenue to education debt service, school facilities financing, and highway/public works. The act is contingent on approval by the Cheatham County legislative body, meaning it alters local law only if the county adopts it as required.

Sentiment

The available voting history shows strong support, with the Senate adopting the measure 30-0 on the floor. No committee transcripts are available, but the unanimous vote suggests the bill was viewed favorably and without significant opposition in the legislature. The final enactment and gubernatorial approval further indicate broad acceptance of the local funding arrangement.

Contention

There is little evidence of legislative contention in the available record. The main policy choice embedded in the bill is how to divide county tax proceeds among education debt, school construction reserves, and highway/public works, but no recorded debate or dissent identifies objections to those allocations. Any potential contention would likely have been local rather than statewide, since the bill depends on Cheatham County’s own legislative body approving the change by a two-thirds vote.