Tennessee 114th General Assembly Status: Enacted 3 R cosponsors

HB 1979 — AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4; Title 43; Title 49; Title 57; Title 67 and Title 71, relative to child care.

Last action — Effective date(s) 05/19/2026, 01/01/2027

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed House
  4. ✓
    Passed Senate
  5. ✓
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 22, 2026. Enacted.

Signed by Governor Bill Lee (Republican) on April 30, 2026.

Odds of enactment

High chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a high chance of becoming law.

Upgrade to see the exact probability and what's driving it.

A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 76% · moderate confidence

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 3 sponsors

    1 primary, 2 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (3 R).

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

In plain language

This bill amends various titles related to child care in Tennessee.

The bill enacts the 'Promising Futures Act' and amends several sections of the Tennessee Code regarding child care. It relates to the Department of Human Services and involves multiple titles of code.

What this means for you
  • Families: This means potential changes in access to and quality of child care services for families in Tennessee.

Summary

Human Services, Dept. of - As enacted, enacts the "Promising Futures Act." - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 43; Title 49; Title 57; Title 67 and Title 71.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Filed for introduction

  2. Sponsor(s) Added.

  3. Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  4. Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Health and Welfare Committee

  5. Placed on Senate Health and Welfare Committee calendar for 2/25/2026

  6. Sponsor(s) Added.

  7. Action deferred in Senate Health and Welfare Committee to 3/4/2026

  8. Placed on Senate Health and Welfare Committee calendar for 3/4/2026

  9. Action deferred in Senate Health and Welfare Committee to 3/11/2026

  10. Placed on Senate Health and Welfare Committee calendar for 3/11/2026

  11. Action deferred in Senate Health and Welfare Committee to 3/18/2026

  12. Placed on Senate Health and Welfare Committee calendar for 3/17/2026

  13. Recommended for passage, refer to Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  14. Sponsor(s) Added.

  15. Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/20/2026

  16. Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/21/2026

  17. Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/21/2026

  18. Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 11, Nays 0 PNV 0

  19. Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/22/2026

  20. Companion House Bill substituted

  21. Sponsor(s) Added.

  22. Comp. became Pub. Ch. 997

  23. Filed for introduction

  24. Intro., P1C.

  25. P2C, ref. to Health Committee - Government Operations for Review

  26. Assigned to s/c Health Subcommittee

  27. Placed on s/c cal Health Subcommittee for 3/4/2026

  28. Action Def. in s/c Health Subcommittee to 3/11/2026

  29. Placed on s/c cal Health Subcommittee for 3/11/2026

  30. Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Health Committee

  31. Placed on cal. Health Committee for 3/17/2026

  32. Action def. in Health Committee to 3/24/2026

  33. Placed on cal. Health Committee for 3/24/2026

  34. Action def. in Health Committee to 3/31/2026

  35. Placed on cal. Health Committee for 3/31/2026

  36. Rec. for pass; ref to Government Operations Committee

  37. Placed on cal. Government Operations Committee for 4/6/2026

  38. Rec. for pass; ref to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  39. Assigned to s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee

  40. Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/8/2026

  41. Placed behind the budget

  42. Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/14/2026

  43. Taken off notice for cal in s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee of Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  44. Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 4/20/2026

  45. Rec for pass if am by s/c ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

  46. Placed on cal. Finance, Ways, and Means Committee for 4/20/2026

  47. Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Calendar & Rules Committee

  48. Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/20/2026

  49. H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/21/2026

  50. H. adopted am. (Amendment 1 - HA1231)

  51. Sponsor(s) Added.

  52. Passed H., as am., Ayes 73, Nays 8, PNV 10

  53. Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  54. Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  55. Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  56. Amendment withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - SA1105)

  57. Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 2 - SA1106)

  58. Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 31, Nays 0

  59. H. Placed on Message Calendar #2 for 4/22/26

  60. H. concurred in S. am. no. 2 Ayes 77, Nays 3 PNV 5

  61. Enrolled; ready for sig. of H. Speaker.

  62. Signed by H. Speaker

  63. Signed by Senate Speaker

  64. Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  65. Signed by Governor.

  66. Pub. Ch. 997

  67. Effective date(s) 05/19/2026, 01/01/2027

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 2 co-sponsors · 130 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (2)

Not signed on (130)

130 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 130 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

Subjects

public-safety labor education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does HB 1979 do?
Human Services, Dept. of - As enacted, enacts the "Promising Futures Act." - Amends TCA Title 4; Title 43; Title 49; Title 57; Title 67 and Title 71.
Who sponsors HB 1979?
HB 1979 is sponsored by White, Mark (Republican), Cepicky, Scott (Republican), and Wright, Dave (Republican).
What is the current status of HB 1979?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 22, 2026. Enacted.
Where can I track HB 1979?
Track HB 1979 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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