HOUSE BILL 2936

By Faison

SENATE BILL 2749

By Haile

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 33;

Title 36; Title 37; Title 49; Title 63 and Title 68,
relative to families' rights and responsibilities.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:

SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 36, is amended by adding the following

new chapter:

36-8-101. This chapter is known and may be cited as the "Families' Rights and

Responsibilities Act."

36-8-102. As used in this chapter:

(1) "Child" means an unemancipated, unmarried individual who has not attained

eighteen (18) years of age;

(2) "Decision-making authority" means the power granted by the state to a

nonparent to make important decisions regarding a child, including decisions regarding

the child's education, religious training, health care, extracurricular activities, and travel;

(3) "Government entity" means any branch, department, agency, commission, or

instrumentality of state government, any official or other person acting under color of

state law, or any political subdivision of the state; and

(4) "Parent" means a biological, legal, or adoptive parent or an individual who

has been granted decision-making authority over the child under state law.

36-8-103.

(a) The liberty of a parent to the care, custody, and control of the parent's child,

including the right to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of

the child, is a fundamental right.

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 (b) A government entity shall not substantially burden the fundamental rights of a

parent as provided under this section unless the government entity demonstrates that

the burden, as applied to the parent and the child, is required by a compelling

governmental interest of the highest order and is the least restrictive means of furthering

that compelling governmental interest.

(c) All parental rights are exclusively reserved to a parent of a child without

obstruction by or interference from a government entity, including the following rights

and responsibilities:

(1) To direct the upbringing of the child;

(2) To direct the moral or religious training of the child;

(3) To make all physical and mental healthcare decisions for the child

and consent to all physical and mental health care on the child's behalf;

(4) To access and review all health and medical records of the child;

(5) To direct the education of the child, including the right to choose

public, private, religious, or home schools, and the right to make reasonable

choices within public schools for the education of the child;

(6) To inspect and review the child's educational records maintained by a

school;

(7) To have the child excused from school attendance for religious

purposes;

(8) To participate in parent-teacher associations and school

organizations that are sanctioned by the board of education of a local education

agency;

(9) To be notified promptly if an employee of the state reasonably

believes that abuse, neglect, or any criminal offense has been committed against

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 the child by someone other than the parent, unless doing so would interfere with

a criminal investigation or department of children's services investigation;

(10) To consent before the collection, storing, or sharing of any individual

biometric data, data relative to analysis of facial expressions,

electroencephalogram brain wave patterns, skin conductance, galvanic skin

response, heart-rate variability, pulse, blood volume, posture, and eye-tracking,

as specified in § 49-1-706;

(11) To consent before any record of the child's blood or

deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is created, stored, or shared, unless authorized by

law or pursuant to a court order; and

(12) To consent before any government entity makes a video or voice

recording of the child, unless the video or voice recording is made during or as a

part of:

(A) A court proceeding;

(B) A law enforcement investigation;

(C) A forensic interview in a criminal or department of children's

services investigation;

(D) The security or surveillance of buildings or grounds;

(E) A photo identification card; or

(F) A public event where the child has no reasonable expectation

of privacy.

(d) This section does not authorize or allow any individual to abuse, neglect, or

endanger a child as defined by § 39-15-401.

(e) A public employee, other than law enforcement personnel, shall not

encourage or coerce a child to withhold information from the child's parent. A public

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employee shall not withhold from a child's parent information that is relevant to the

physical, emotional, or mental health of the child.

(f)

(1) A parent whose rights have been burdened by a government entity in

violation of this section may assert that violation of this section as a claim or

defense in any judicial or administrative proceeding, without regard to whether

the proceeding is brought by or in the name of the state, a private person, or

another party.

(2) A parent who prevails in a proceeding to enforce this section against

a government entity may recover the following from a court of competent

jurisdiction:

(A) Declaratory relief;

(B) Injunctive relief; and

(C) Compensatory damages, including reasonable costs and

attorney's fees.

36-8-104. This chapter must be construed using the following rules:

(1) The protections of the fundamental right of parents to the care, custody, and

control of their child afforded by this chapter are in addition to the protections provided

under federal law, state law, and the state and federal constitutions;

(2) This chapter must be construed in favor of a broad protection of the

fundamental right of parents to the custody, care, and control of their children, including

the right to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of their child;

(3) If a child has no affirmative right of access to a particular surgical, medical, or

mental health procedure or service, then this act does not grant that child's parent an

affirmative right of access to that procedure or service on that child's behalf; and

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 (4) State law enacted after July 1, 2024, is subject to this chapter unless the law

explicitly excludes such application by reference to this chapter.

SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 63, Chapter 6, Part 2, is amended by

adding the following new section:

63-6-249.

(a) As used in this section:

(1) "Government entity" means the state, any branch, department,

agency, commission, or instrumentality of state government, any official or other

person acting under color of state law, or any political subdivision of the state;

(2) "Healthcare provider" means a healthcare professional, healthcare

establishment, or healthcare facility licensed, registered, certified, or permitted

pursuant to this title or title 68 or regulated under the authority of either the

department of health or an agency, board, council, or committee attached to the

department, and that is authorized to provide health or medical care or mental

health services in this state;

(3) "Medical decision-making authority" means the power granted by the

state to a nonparent to make important decisions regarding a child's health care;

(4) "Minor":

(A) Means an individual who has not attained eighteen (18) years

of age; and

(B) Does not include an individual who:

(i) Is emancipated pursuant to title 29, chapter 31;

(ii) Needs emergency treatment pursuant to § 63-6-222;

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 (iii) Is or was previously a member of the armed forces of

the United States or a member of a reserve or national guard unit;

or

(iv) Is the parent of a minor child and has full custody of

that minor child;

(5) "Parent" means a biological, legal, or adoptive parent or an individual

who has been granted medical decision-making authority over the child under

state law; and

(6) "Person" means an individual, corporation, or any other legal or

commercial entity, whether or not a citizen or domiciliary of this state and

whether or not organized under the laws of this state.

(b) Except as otherwise provided by law or court order, a government entity, a

healthcare provider, or any other person shall not knowingly take any of the following

actions with regard to a minor without first obtaining the consent of a parent of the minor:

(1) Treat, profess to diagnose, operate on, or prescribe for any physical

ailment, physical injury, or deformity;

(2) Prescribe, dispense, deliver, or administer any drug or medication;

(3) Render psychological services specified in §§ 63-11-202 and 63-11-

203; or

(4) Render counseling services specified in § 63-22-122.

(c) This section does not apply when:

(1) A parent of the minor has given blanket consent authorizing the

person or entity to perform an activity listed in subsection (b);

(2) A government entity, healthcare provider, or any other person

reasonably relies in good faith on an individual's representations that the

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 individual is the parent of a minor or has otherwise been granted authority to

make decisions regarding a minor's health care under state law;

(3) A licensed physician performs emergency medical or surgical

treatment pursuant to § 63-6-222;

(4) Licensed personnel render appropriate emergency medical care and

provide emergency medical services pursuant to § 68-140-309;

(5) A person participates or assists in rendering emergency care

pursuant to § 63-6-218; or

(6) An employee of a local education agency acts to control bleeding

using a bleeding control kit pursuant to § 49-2-137.

(d) A violation of this practice is an unlawful practice and is grounds for the

offending healthcare provider's licensing authority to suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew

the healthcare provider's license or take other disciplinary action allowed by law.

(e) If the licensing authority of a healthcare provider receives information of a

violation or potential violation of this section by the healthcare provider, then the

licensing authority shall conduct an immediate investigation and take appropriate

disciplinary action.

(f) A parent may bring a civil cause of action to recover compensatory damages,

punitive damages, and reasonable attorney's fees, court costs, expenses, and any other

appropriate relief against the person, government entity, or healthcare provider alleged

to have violated this section.

(g) If a court in any civil action brought pursuant to this section finds that a

healthcare provider knowingly violated this section, then the court shall notify the

appropriate regulatory authority and the attorney general and reporter by mailing a

certified copy of the court's order to the regulatory authority and the attorney general and

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 reporter. Notification pursuant to this subsection (g) must be made upon the judgment of

the court being made final.

(h) A civil action commenced under this section must be brought within one (1)

year from the date of discovery of the violation of this section.

(i) This section is declared to be remedial in nature, and this section must be

liberally construed to effectuate its purposes.

SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2024, the public welfare requiring it, and

applies to acts committed on or after that date.

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