Tennessee legislation · 114th General Assembly
Tennessee HB656: AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4 and Title 49, relative to education.
Status: Chaptered, May 14, 2026
Fiscal Summary NOT SIGNIFICANT Bill Summary ON APRIL 13, 2026, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 656, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 rewrites this bill to extend present law concerning compensated unused leave for teachers to all employees of LEAs and public charter schools. Present law authorizes an LEA or public charter school to compensate the estate of a teacher who died on or after September 1, 2024, while employed by the LEA or public charter school, for the teacher's unused and accrued annual and sick leave in the same manner that the estates of deceased state employees are compensated. A teacher may designate a beneficiary to receive payment for accrued annual and sick leave upon the teacher's death. Unless a teacher designates differently, the beneficiary is the same as the beneficiary designated for receipt of retirement benefits with the TCRS. This amendment makes the above provisions applicable to all employees of an LEA or public charter school
What the bill says
From the amended text:
House Education 1 Amendment No. 1 to HB0656 White Signature of Sponsor AMEND S e n ate Bill No. 687* House Bill No. 656 by deleting all language after the enacting clause and substituting instead the following: SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-5-717, is amended by deleting the section and substituting instead the following: (a) An LEA or public charter school may compensate the estate of an employee who died on or after September 1, 2024, while employed by the LEA or public charter school, for the employee's unused and accrued annual and sick leave in the same manner estates of deceased state employees are compensated pursuant to § 8-50-808. (b) An employee may designate a beneficiary to receive payment for accrued annual and sick leave upon the employee's death. Unless an employee designates differently, the beneficiary is the same as the beneficiary designated for receipt of retirement benefits with the Tennessee consolidated retirement system. SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it. HA0815