2025 TN Legislative Scorecard

SB207 creates a Farmland Preservation Fund managed by the Department of Agriculture. It provides $25 million in grants to help landowners—including farmers and forest owners—place their property under permanent conservation easements. These easements ensure the land remains used for agriculture or forestry, and grants are available only to nonprofit easement holders or directly to landowners working with such organizations. Nonprofits that hold easements cannot later sell or release them, and government entities are not eligible for grants.

The Tennessee State House of Representatives passed SB207 on April 16, 2025 by a vote of 84 to 8. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this bill expands government involvement in land use through taxpayer-funded grants, which unjustly pick winners and losers and impose permanent land restrictions. While preserving farmland may sound beneficial, this approach undermines private-property rights—particularly those protected by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution—by incentivizing landowners to surrender control to nonprofit groups, many of which are aligned with environmentalist agendas, including the United Nations' Agenda 2030. This results in a loss of national sovereignty and cedes control over land use to global interests. Additionally, the bill distorts the free market by using public funds to influence private land decisions, rather than allowing supply, demand, and voluntary agreements to determine land use. It is not the purpose of governments to regulate land conservation or land ownership.

HB1237 ends the ability of state regulatory and health-related boards to use race, color, ethnicity, or national origin as factors in their membership decisions. It bans race-based policies such as quotas and affirmative action on these boards, and removes older requirements that certain boards include minority representatives. The law also allows individuals to sue boards that discriminate, with a minimum of $4,000 in statutory damages and potential for additional actual or punitive damages.

The Tennessee State House of Representatives passed HB1237 on April 7, 2025 by a vote of 73 to 22. We have assigned pluses to the ayes because, while many of these regulatory and health-related boards are unconstitutional to begin with, state governments should not prop up one group over another based on race or ethnicity. Such policies embrace equity over equality—undermining the foundational American principle that all individuals are to be treated equally under the law. Race-based preferences constitute reverse discrimination and racism and conflict with the fundamental principle expressed in the Declaration of Independence: “That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” Additionally, efforts to elevate or exclude individuals based on race—whether through segregation, quotas, or affirmative action—have always undermined justice and fostered division rather than unity.

HB749 makes it a Class B misdemeanor to drive in Tennessee using an out-of-state driver's license issued exclusively to illegal aliens.

The Tennessee State House of Representatives passed HB749 on April 3, 2025 by a vote of 68 to 21. We have assigned pluses to the ayes because this bill reinforces the rule of law and affirms Tennessee's sovereign authority—affirmed by the Tenth Amendment—to determine which forms of identification are valid within its borders. Allowing out-of-state licenses issued solely to illegal aliens undermines state and national sovereignty, blurs the line between legal and illegal residency, and weakens public safety. HB749 strengthens state-level enforcement, protects communities from unchecked illegal migration, and pushes back against policies that erode state and national sovereignty. By imposing penalties for violations, the bill ensures immigration laws are taken seriously and upholds the legal framework essential to preserving our Republic.

SB734 extends by six years the authority for Nashville-Davidson County to continue collecting a hotel occupancy tax of up to $2.50 per room, instead of $2.00. The extra $0.50 will continue to fund the county’s Event and Marketing Fund, which brings in about $5 million annually. The bill also extends the terms of the Event and Marketing Fund Committee members.

The Tennessee State House of Representatives passed SB734 on March 24, 2025 by a vote of 58 to 22. We have assigned pluses to the nays because this bill extends a local tax increase and continues funneling millions in taxpayer-generated revenue into government-controlled marketing efforts—an approach that is not constitutionally grounded. Instead of letting the free market determine tourism and event success, SB734 expands the role of government in promoting private industry, embracing corporate welfare, distorting market forces, and encouraging cronyism. Using tax dollars to subsidize entertainment, tourism, or large venues through an unelected marketing committee is not the proper role of government. Legislators should oppose policies that empower government to pick winners and losers.

HB6004 creates a state-funded scholarship program offering up to 20,000 K–12 vouchers for private-school tuition and related expenses. Half are reserved for low-income or otherwise eligible students, while the rest are open to all qualifying applicants. Each scholarship is worth about the same as the state’s base Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) funding and can be used for tuition, tutoring, transportation, and more. Participating private schools must give annual standardized tests in grades 3–11, with results reported to the General Assembly. To protect public schools, the state will maintain prior-year TISA funding for districts losing students to the program. The bill also includes a one-time $2,000 bonus for public school teachers (with local approval) and directs 80% of sports betting tax revenue to school facility upgrades.

The Tennessee State House of Representatives passed HB6004 on January 30, 2025 by a vote of 54 to 43. We have assigned pluses to the nays because, while private and home education are better options, this bill expands government control by funding private schooling with taxpayer dollars—propping up people and institutions the free market would otherwise hold accountable. Government funding always comes with strings, and HB6004 proves this by requiring participating private schools to administer annual standardized tests and report results to the state. This undermines the independence of private education and sets a dangerous precedent. Education is not a legitimate function of government, and using public funds to boost teacher pay by $2,000 to secure buy-in appears more like political leverage than reform. Instead of reducing government’s role in education, this bill grows it—further entrenching a system plagued by academic failure, taxpayer waste, and ideological indoctrination. We urge parents to exit the government school system altogether and seek truly independent alternatives such as homeschooling or private institutions, including FreedomProject Academy, that reject government funding and oversight, and embrace parental rights.