Tennessee 114th General Assembly Status: Enacted 3 R cosponsors

SB 2597 — AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 70, relative to wildlife resources.

Last action — Effective date(s) 07/01/2026

  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 01, 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 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 3 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.

Summary

Tennessee Fish & Wildlife Commission - As enacted, authorizes the executive director of the wildlife resources agency to enter into agreements with local law enforcement agencies for the purpose of enforcing wildlife management laws and rules; creates a criminal offense for feeding black bears under certain circumstances. - Amends TCA Title 70.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Filed for introduction

  2. Intro., P1C.

  3. P2C, ref. to Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee

  4. Assigned to s/c Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee

  5. Placed on s/c cal Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee for 3/4/2026

  6. Rec for pass if am by s/c ref. to Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee

  7. Placed on cal. Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee for 3/10/2026

  8. Rec. for pass. if am., ref. to Finance, Ways, and Means Committee

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

  10. Placed on s/c cal Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 3/18/2026

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

  12. Placed on cal. Finance, Ways, and Means Committee for 3/24/2026

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

  14. Placed on cal. Calendar & Rules Committee for 3/26/2026

  15. H. Placed on Regular Calendar for 3/30/2026

  16. Comp. SB subst.

  17. Sponsor(s) Added.

  18. Comp. became Pub. Ch. 738

  19. Filed for introduction

  20. Sponsor change.

  21. Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  22. Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Energy, Ag., and Nat. Resources Committee

  23. Placed on Senate Energy, Ag., and Nat. Resources Committee calendar for 3/4/2026

  24. Recommended for passage with amendment/s, refer to Senate Calendar Committee Ayes 8, Nays 0 PNV 0

  25. Placed on Senate Regular Calendar for 3/16/2026

  26. Engrossed; ready for transmission to House

  27. Senate adopted Amendment (Amendment 1 - SA0595)

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

  29. Sponsor(s) Added.

  30. Rcvd. from S., held on H. desk.

  31. Subst. for comp. HB.

  32. Am. withdrawn. (Amendment 1 - HA0622)

  33. Passed H., Ayes 84, Nays 3, PNV 1

  34. Enrolled and ready for signatures

  35. Signed by Senate Speaker

  36. Signed by H. Speaker

  37. Transmitted to Governor for action.

  38. Signed by Governor.

  39. Pub. Ch. 738

  40. Effective date(s) 07/01/2026

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.

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"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 environment
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 2597 do?
Tennessee Fish & Wildlife Commission - As enacted, authorizes the executive director of the wildlife resources agency to enter into agreements with local law enforcement agencies for the purpose of enforcing wildlife management laws and rules; creates a criminal offense for feeding black bears under certain circumstances. - Amends TCA Title 70.
Who sponsors SB 2597?
SB 2597 is sponsored by Southerland, Steve (Republican), Bowling, Janice (Republican), and Seal, Jessie (Republican).
What is the current status of SB 2597?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced February 02, 2026. Enacted.
Where can I track SB 2597?
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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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