Tennessee legislation · 114th General Assembly
Tennessee SB2509: AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 13, Chapter 7 and Title 71, Chapter 3, relative to childcare agencies.
Status: Chaptered, May 27, 2026
Fiscal Summary NOT SIGNIFICANT Bill Summary This bill requires local governments to establish and maintain an expedited review process for all child care agency permit applications, including conditional use permit applications, that prioritizes the applications above other non-emergency permitting activities. Child care agency permit applications must be processed with the same priority level as affordable housing development applications and must be assigned for review within five business days of receipt. A local government may do the following: Designate sufficient staff to ensure timely processing of permit applications. Provide applicants with a single point of contact for all permitting questions. Conduct an initial completeness review within 10 business days of receipt and notify applicants of any deficiencies. Except for applications for conditional use, issue a final permitting decision within 90 calendar days of receipt, unless the applicant agrees in writing to an extension. If the local government fails to issue a final decision within the 90-day period and no extension has been granted, then this bill provides that the permit application is deemed approved, subject to successful completion of a required fire safety inspection. This bill requires an application for a conditional use permit for a child care agency to be processed on an expedited basis within 60 days of receipt of a complete application and processed with the same priority level as conditional use permit applications for affordable housing developments. FIRE SAFETY INSPECTIONS This bill requires fire safety inspections for a child care agency seeking an initial license or license renewal to be conducted exclusively by the state fire marshal or its designated agents. A local fire marshal, fire department, or municipal co
What the bill says
From the amended text:
House Health 1 Amendment No. 1 to HB2413 Terry Signature of Sponsor AMEND S e n ate Bill No. 2509* House Bill No. 2413 by deleting all language after the enacting clause and substituting: SECTION 1. This act is known and may be cited as the "Tennessee Child Care Red Tape Reduction Act." SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 71-3-501, is amended by adding the following as a new, appropriately designated subdivision: ( ) "Fire safety inspection" means an inspection conducted to determine compliance with fire prevention and life safety codes applicable to a child care agency; SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 71, Chapter 3, Part 5, is amended by adding the following as a new section: (a) Legislative findings. The general assembly finds and declares that: (1) Access to quality, affordable child care is essential to this state's economic competitiveness and workforce participation; (2) Child care providers face significant regulatory barriers, including duplicative inspections, inconsistent requirements, and lengthy approval processes that discourage business development; (3) Employers seeking to provide on-site child care for their employees encounter unnecessary zoning obstacles despite the clear workforce benefits; (4) Streamlining child care agency licensing will reduce costs for providers, expedite the opening of new agencies, and better serve this state's families; and HA0807 (5) Eliminating duplicative state and local inspections while maintaining …