Tennessee 114th General Assembly Status: Enacted 1 R cosponsors

SB 2161 — AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 39 and Title 40, relative to bail.

Last action — Comp. became Pub. Ch. 1026

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

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 02, 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.

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

Prognosis

Likely to advance 72% · moderate confidence

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 1 sponsor

    1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (1 R).

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 4 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

The bill changes the rules for listing defendants as fugitives for failing to appear in court.

This bill removes the requirement to list defendants as fugitives for failing to appear in court, unless it's for a felony. It also allows courts to relieve sureties of liability if a defendant isn't listed within five days of a warrant being issued.

What this means for you
  • Workers: Workers involved in the bail system may experience changes in how sureties manage liability for defendants.

Summary

Bail, Bail Bonds - As enacted, removes the requirement to place a defendant on a state or federal list or database as a fugitive from justice for failure to appear, unless it is on a felony; authorizes a court to relieve the surety of liability for an undertaking if the defendant has not been placed on the available state or federal list or database within five business days of the entering agency's receipt of the bench warrant or capias. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Filed for introduction

  2. Intro., P1C.

  3. P2C, ref. to Judiciary Committee

  4. Assigned to s/c Criminal Justice Subcommittee

  5. Placed on s/c cal Criminal Justice Subcommittee for 3/18/2026

  6. Rec. for pass by s/c ref. to Judiciary Committee

  7. Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 3/23/2026

  8. Action def. in Judiciary Committee to 4/1/2026

  9. Placed on cal. Judiciary Committee for 4/1/2026

  10. Rec. for pass; ref to Calendar & Rules Committee

  11. Sponsor(s) Added.

  12. Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 4/2/2026

  13. H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 4/6/2026

  14. Passed H., Ayes 95, Nays 0, PNV 0

  15. Engrossed; ready for transmission to Sen.

  16. Received from House, Passed on First Consideration

  17. Senate substituted House Bill for companion Senate Bill.

  18. Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0912)

  19. Passed Senate as amended, Ayes 30, Nays 0

  20. H. Placed on Message Calendar

  21. H. nonconcurred in S. am. no. 1

  22. Placed on Senate Message Calendar for 4/16/2026

  23. Placed on Senate Message Calendar for 4/16/2026

  24. Senate refused to recede from amendment

  25. H. Placed on Message Calendar 3 for 4-16-26

  26. H. refused to recede from its non-concurrence

  27. Conf. comm. appointed. (Rep. Scarbrough, Atchley, Hemmer, Doggett)

  28. Conference Committee appointed. (Haile, Hatcher, Lamar)

  29. H. Placed on Message Calendar for 4/22/2026

  30. Conf. comm. report adopted, Ayes 83, Nays 1, PNV 4

  31. Conference Committee report adopted, Ayes 33, Nayes 0

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

  33. Signed by H. Speaker

  34. Signed by Senate Speaker

  35. Transmitted to Governor for his action.

  36. Signed by Governor.

  37. Pub. Ch. 1026

  38. Effective date(s) 05/19/2026

  39. Filed for introduction

  40. Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  41. Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  42. Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/16/2026

  43. Reset on Final calendar of Senate Judiciary Committee

  44. Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/23/2026

  45. Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 3/23/2026

  46. Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/24/2026

  47. Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 3/25/2026

  48. Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/25/2026

  49. Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 9, Nays 0 PNV 0

  50. Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 4/9/2026

  51. Companion House Bill substituted

  52. Comp. became Pub. Ch. 1026

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 132 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (132)

132 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 132 →

"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
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 SB 2161 do?
Bail, Bail Bonds - As enacted, removes the requirement to place a defendant on a state or federal list or database as a fugitive from justice for failure to appear, unless it is on a felony; authorizes a court to relieve the surety of liability for an undertaking if the defendant has not been placed on the available state or federal list or database within five business days of the entering agency's receipt of the bench warrant or capias. - Amends TCA Title 39 and Title 40.
Who sponsors SB 2161?
SB 2161 is sponsored by Haile, Ferrell (Republican).
What is the current status of SB 2161?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 02, 2026. Enacted.
Where can I track SB 2161?
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Last checked for changes about 2 months ago · updated continuously

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