Tennessee legislation · 114th General Assembly

Tennessee HB1271: AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 1; Title 3; Title 4; Title 5; Title 6; Title 7 and Title 8, relative to biological sex.

Status: Chaptered, May 15, 2026

Fiscal Summary NOT SIGNIFICANT Bill Summary ON MARCH 30, 2026, THE HOUSE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1 AND PASSED HOUSE BILL 1271, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, require each state and local governmental entity to revise any existing ordinance, resolution, rule, policy, and procedure that includes a reference to a natural person's sex or gender to state that those terms are defined as the immutable characteristics of the person's reproductive system that identify the person as male or female, as determined by anatomy and genetics testing at the time of birth, by January 1, 2027. Further, after July 1, 2026, a state or local governmental entity is prohibited from adopting or enacting any ordinance, resolution, rule, policy, or procedure that reflects a sex or gender that is not based upon or defined as the immutable characteristics of the person's reproductive system that identify the person as male or female, as determined by anatomy and genetics testing at the time of birth. However, a state or local governmental entity is not noncompliant with these provisions based solely on the local governmental entity's acceptance of a valid birth certificate or other lawfully issued form of identification. REMEDIES FOR NON-COMPLIANCE Local Governmental Entities This amendment authorizes a person residing in the jurisdiction of the local governmental entity that has not complied with the above provisions may file a complaint in a chancery court in that person's county of residence, such person must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the local governmental entity has not complied. If the court finds the local governmental entity is in violation, then the court must issue a writ of mandamus ordering the entity to comply, and may take any other action within the scope of the jurisdiction of the court to ensure com