Tennessee legislation · 114th General Assembly

Tennessee SB1909: AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 16, Chapter 22, relative to drug courts.

Status: Chaptered, May 27, 2026

Fiscal Summary OTHER FISCAL IMPACT To the extent that additional offenders must be allowed to participate in drug court treatment programs, there will be additional expenditures to the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to support the programs. Such an increase is dependent on a number of unknown factors and cannot be reasonably estimated. Bill Summary ON MARCH 30, 2026, THE HOUSE SUBSTITUTED SENATE BILL 1909 FOR HOUSE BILL 1471, ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND RESET SENATE BILL 1909, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 rewrites the bill to, instead, create a pilot project expanding the eligibility of participants in the drug court treatment program in the first, second, and third judicial districts who are referred to the Northeast Tennessee Regional Recovery Center. Such judicial districts include Carter, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, and Washington counties. The pilot project expires on June 30, 2028. ELIGIBILITY For purposes of the pilot project, this amendment provides that the presiding judge of the drug court treatment program for the first, second, and third judicial districts has discretion in determining the eligibility of participants in the drug court treatment program who are referred to the Northeast Tennessee Regional Recovery Center. When determining eligibility of participants in the pilot project, a "violent offender" means a person who meets all of the following criteria: (1) Has been convicted of a felony offense within the previous 10 years, during which (i) the person carried, possessed, or used a firearm or dangerous weapon; (ii) there occurred the death of or serious bodily injury to any person; or (iii) the person committed a felony involving the use of force against the person of another. (2) Has one or more prior convictions for a felony crime of