SB 1674 Tennessee Senate · 114th Regular Session (2025-2026)

Children - As introduced, revises various provisions governing surrendering custody of unwanted infants, including adding an ambulance station that has staff scheduled 24 hours a day to the list of facilities that must receive possession of a newborn infant left on the premises with an employee or member of the professional medical community if certain listed conditions are met. - Amends TCA Title 36, Chapter 1, Part 1 and Title 68, Chapter 11, Part 2.

SB 1674 expands Tennessee's safe haven law by adding 24-hour ambulance stations to the list of facilities where parents can safely leave newborns without legal consequences. The bill modifies existing statutes (TCA §68-11-255) to require that ambulance stations, like hospitals and fire departments, have staff continuously scheduled 24/7 to accept surrendered infants. This directly affects parents seeking to relinquish custody of newborns under the state's safe surrender program. The key change clarifies that facilities must meet specific staffing requirements (24/7 coverage by licensed providers) to qualify as safe surrender locations.
Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Jan 15, 2026 Last action Jan 20, 2026