Rep. Chris Hurt

Maddy summaryHB 513 changes a reporting deadline for Tennessee's Department of Environment and Conservation. It moves the date by which the commissioner must submit water quality reports under the Water Quality Control Act of 1977 from January 31 to February 15 each year. This affects the state agency responsible for environmental reporting and legislative committees that review these reports. The bill takes effect January 1, 2026, and is purely procedural with no substantive policy changes.

Maddy summaryHB 350 would amend Tennessee law to require the commissioner of correction to send the annual report on state correctional facility transactions to the legislative librarian, in addition to the general assembly. This procedural change updates the report distribution list without altering the report's content or the oversight process for correctional facilities. The bill specifically targets multiple Tennessee Code sections to formalize this new recipient. As introduced, it did not propose substantive policy changes to correctional operations.

Maddy summaryHB 352 requires the state to file and record final right-of-way plans with the register of deeds in *every* county where a highway project spans multiple counties. This directly affects state highway projects crossing county lines, ensuring all affected local governments have access to the plans. The bill amends Tennessee law to mandate this multi-county filing process, replacing the previous requirement that only applied to single-county projects. It does not change how rights-of-way are acquired, only where the documentation must be submitted. The bill is procedural and focuses on administrative clarity for county record-keeping.

Maddy summaryThis law requires children held in juvenile detention facilities to have at least one phone call and one 30-minute in-person visit with a parent or guardian within the first 24 hours of their admission. The rule applies to all minors admitted to these facilities before they are officially found guilty of a delinquent act. It was designed to ensure that detained youth maintain immediate contact with their families during the initial intake process. The legislation updates state codes related to juvenile justice and disability rights to enforce this visitation requirement.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates Tennessee education funding rules to ensure money follows students who are admitted to state-licensed or out-of-state mental health facilities. It requires that the student was previously enrolled in a public school in Tennessee and that their parents or guardians live in the state for the funding to transfer from the local school district to the facility. The changes apply to the 2024-2025 school year and all future years, ensuring that eligible students continue to receive state support while receiving residential mental health care.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends Tennessee law to allow school directors, who are appointed by locally elected school boards, to delegate specific duties to other administrators or employees. The change requires the school board to first adopt a formal policy authorizing such delegation before it can take place. By enabling this flexibility, the legislation aims to streamline school operations while maintaining oversight through local board approval. The law applies to all public school districts in Tennessee where the director is selected by an elected board.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends state laws to allow individuals holding temporary teaching permits to instruct physical education classes in elementary schools. Previously, these positions were restricted to licensed teachers with specific endorsements in physical education or specialists in the field. The change takes effect for the 2024-2025 school year and applies to all future school years. By updating the Tennessee Code Annotated, the legislation expands the pool of eligible instructors for elementary physical education.

Maddy summaryThis Tennessee bill changes how schools handle student threats of mass violence by requiring a formal threat assessment before any expulsion can occur. Under the new rules, school directors must first evaluate whether a threat is valid; if the assessment shows the threat was not real, the student cannot be expelled but may still face suspension. The law also mandates that school officials immediately report confirmed valid threats to local law enforcement. Additionally, the bill clarifies reporting duties for teachers and principals regarding various student safety incidents on school grounds.