Tennessee’s Newest Laws (Jan. 1, 2024)
Whether you love them or loathe them, the Tennessee legislature passed a number of new laws during the 2023 session which are set to go in effect January 1, 2024. Most of the resolutions passed and signed into law this year were fairly boring (no offense to “Eye Lash Specialists,” who must now be licensed to practiced their trade by the Board of Cosmetology), while other new laws might leave you scratching your head—for instance, the month of May was officially declared Tennessee’s “Save Your Tooth” month in support of—wait for it—root canals. Having a root canal is usually only slightly less bearable than dealing with politicians in the first place, so I guess that law makes sense.
In any event, here are some of the laws that likely will impact many Tennesseans and a quick summary of what they may mean for you:
GPS Tracking for Ignition Interlock Devices
Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, Tennesseans required to have breathalyzer devices installed in their vehicle ignitions will now have even more technology to contend with: GPS tracking. The new law will require ignition interlock devices to electronically “geotag” the vehicle’s location during initial startup tests, failed tests, random retests, and when tests are skipped. In other words, the public will now have some comfort in knowing that law enforcement will have the last known whereabouts of drivers who might have failed a breathalyzer test from the moment the device was triggered.
While this is comforting from the standpoint of public safety (I’m personally a fan of this law), there are those who have raised legitimate privacy concerns here. Namely, how often will the tracking mechanism provide a vehicle’s location and for what purposes can the information transmitted by the device be used? While the new law specifically provides that GPS functionality “shall not be used for constant monitoring” of a vehicle, many Tennesseans subject to the law may feel uneasy.
Do You Text While Driving? Prepare to Meet Eddie Conrad
Eddie Conrad was a businessman from the Lebanon area who was sadly killed by a distracted driver several years ago. To help combat the worsening epidemic of distracted drivers, the legislature passed the Eddie Conrad Act this year which increases penalties for distracted driving—effectively increasing the “points” drivers already accumulate when caught a second time using a handheld device while driving.
The new law is especially aggressive for minors with a previous violation already on their records—now, a second violation will tack an additional seven points onto their driving records. For those of us over the age of 18, first and second violations of the law will now carry a four-point penalty with a five-point penalty assessed for fourth and fifth violations.
For reference, keep in mind that minors who receive eight points on their records during a twelve-month time period must attend an administrative hearing with the Tennessee Department of Safety or their driver’s license will be suspended. The same rule is in place for adults who receive twelve points on their licenses.
So, if you’re reading this on your phone right now while sitting at a red light, here’s your sign to put that phone down.
No-Cost License Plates for Parents/Guardians of Disabled Children
Currently, state law allows direct applicants for plates denoting a disability to receive their plate without cost. Of course, this practice only applies to those actually applying for the cost waiver—it doesn’t apply to parents or guardians of children with disabilities because the parents themselves are not disabled. The new law rights this wrong and allows able bodied parents/guardians of disabled children to receive the same benefit currently offered only to disabled drivers.
This is fantastic, albeit late, news for these parents—good job, legislature.
Vouchers for Gun-Safety Course Completion
Passed with bipartisan support, this law will reimburse any individual who takes and passes a handgun safety course approved by the Department of Safety. The law also directs firearm retailers to post signage in their stores which publicizes the need for safety and the $30 rebate now offered through the state (purchase of a handgun is not required to take advantage of the program).
Having a Baby and Wanting Time off? Ask Your Boss (Nicely).
The Tennessee Paid Family Leave Insurance Act, signed into law last March, will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.
The law amends statutory code to allow insurances companies to offer paid family leave, which employers could then purchase for their employees. The insurance is voluntary, and the new law does not guarantee paid family leave for any Tennesseans.
Supporters of paid family leave have argued that insurance could offset the overall cost for employers, but it remains unclear how many businesses around the state will take advantage of these benefits and equally unclear how many insurance companies will opt to sell the products in the first place.
For those curious, the law applies to those insurance policies which pay all or part of the costs associated with:
· The birth or adoption of a child by the employee;
· Placement of a child with the employee for foster care;
· Care of a family member of the employee who has a serious health condition; or
· The status of a family member of the employee who is a service member on active duty or who has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty.
For any business owners reading this post, you should expect an earful about this from your employees on January 1.
ID Required for XXX Online Content
While this law won’t be effective until July 1, 2024, parents will be pleased with the Protect Tennessee Minors Act. This new law mandates that websites, apps, and other electronic “publishers” of pornography enact certain age verification safeguards to protect minors from obscene online content. The law requires distributors of this content to obtain and verify the age of any user attempting to access such material in Tennessee. The statute looks to primarily rely on driver’s license data as proof of age, although it allows for other methods as well.
The law is modeled after similar efforts in Utah and Virginia where there was some debate over the distributor’s First Amendment rights and logistical questions of how to practically regulate the internet over state lines. Those laws have so far withstood scrutiny from the courts; hopefully, that will also be the case here.
Owners and operators of these sites believed to be in violation of the law are subject to prosecution—a Class C misdemeanor if found guilty. The law will be enforced through the Tennessee Department of Homeland Security.
My take: it’s worth remembering that back in 2017, Tennessee joined a number of other states in jointly declaring pornography a public health crisis afflicting the country’s youth. This law is a logical extension of those sentiments and a good example of the legislature “walking the walk” where it had earlier “talked the talk.” Again, good job legislature.
Green Means Go. Red Means Stop. Yellow Means . . . Speed Up?
Apparently, the legislature was made aware of a number of cities and counties around the state who had enacted local ordinances bent against those of us whose feet suddenly become heavier when faced with a yellow light. Apparently, those monsters had reduced the amount of time yellow lights would flash in their traffic lights and then placed cameras at the intersections as a means of catching drivers who would effectively drive through the speedy red light—ultimately increasing traffic violations and, consequently, revenue from fines.
This new state law now forbids and preempts any municipality from reducing the amount of time a yellow light can flash to under three seconds. If you have a lead foot like me, this law vindicates every time I’ve pled “but officer, I swear it was yellow . . .” While I would never, ever, under any circumstance speed up at a yellow light (if you think you saw me do this, no you didn’t), I actually had no idea this practice existed. Thankfully, state law now prevents local governmental bodies from using their traffic lights as cash cows. Again, good job legislature.
Make Your Teacher Friends Take You to Dinner
Teachers are no doubt already aware of this, but mandatory base salary increases are now in effect across the state (keep in mind, salaries vary across school systems and personnel practices). These increases are tiered to increase over the next four years as follows:
2023-2024 School Year: $42,000.00
2024-2025 School Year: $44,500.00
2025-2026 School Year: $ 47,000.00
2026-2027 School Year: $ 50,000.00
My thoughts: thank the teachers in your life—they go beyond the call of duty every single day and deserve far more compensation than these minimums. This is a good start and “every penny helps,” but teachers are the superheroes of our communities and safety-nets for our kids—maybe the next legislative session will take these salaries one step farther.
New Signage at Your Voting Precinct
The coming changes at your voting precinct are all bark without bite—worst of all, this new law is nothing more than politicians being . . . well, politicians. Beginning in 2024, the following sign must be placed at every polling station where a primary race is on the ballot:
The powers that be in Nashville were evidently made aware of a growing trend where voters of one political party strategically cast their votes against certain candidates of the other party. This is usually done in areas where their preferred candidate is anticipated to easily win their party’s primary nomination. So, rather than cast their vote in the primary race their candidate is unlikely to lose, they instead cross party lines to vote in the other party’s primary—for the candidate they believe is more “beatable” in the eventual general election.
What’s wrong with this practice? Well, I’ll save my gripes about this for another post, but the signage is intended to curtail the practice of “party swapping” at the ballot box, a technical violation of T.C.A. § 2-7-115(b)(1)-(2).
Are You a “Mature Minor?” Still, No Shot For You.
Tennessee, along with the majority of other states, recognizes what’s called the “mature minor” doctrine—essentially, this allows a minor (usually between the ages of 14-18) to give consent for medical care if the healthcare provider believes the minor is sufficiently “mature.” Ordinarily, parental consent is required by the parent before treatment can be provided. Under this rule, however, a physician sued by the the minor’s parent could defend his or her care by arguing the minor’s maturity permitted the care to be provided—this is entirely lawful under the rule. The mature minor rule is not codified as an actual statutory law, but instead court-made law based on longstanding common law precedent.
In the past, Tennessee has recognized the mature minor exception in almost every context, with the legislature actually stepping in to codify treatment of a minor without parental consent for juvenile drug abusers and certain emergencies. Historically, the only legislative prohibition on the practice applied to abortions and certain other prenatal care.
Now, though, the “mature minor” doctrine is specifically excluded from application to vaccines of any type. Beginning January 1, 2024, healthcare providers must have parental consent before vaccinating minors—regardless of their maturity. The law goes further than most, providing grounds for the provider’s license to practice be suspended or revoked if violated.
That’s All for Now –
I may add another post to cover some of the sillier resolutions that were passed this year or comment on some of the more controversial laws that went into effect regarding social issues at schools.
In light of the coming holidays, though, I leave you with this resolution (tabled, for now at least) which, if passed, would honor singer/songwriter Brenda Lee by making “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree” our state holiday song. Nothing against Mrs. Lee, but surely any one of Dolly Parton’s Christmas songs is more deserving.