Local Education Agencies - As enacted, enacts the "Tennessee Religious Freedom Act," which authorizes a local board of education to open a meeting of the board with a prayer led by a member of the board as long as the pr, the official text

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                             PUBLIC CHAPTER NO. 710

                                                    SENATE BILL NO. 1957

                             By Pody, Seal, Crowe, Hensley, Reeves, Rose, Stevens

                                           Substituted for: House Bill No. 1834

                 By Eldridge, White, Maberry, Moody, Todd, Bricken, Bulso, Garrett, Capley

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49, relative to education.

          WHEREAS, the framers of the United States Constitution intended for citizens to have the
right to freely exercise their religious beliefs; and

          WHEREAS, the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the United States
Constitution does not specifically exclude school board members from exercising religious
expression; and

          WHEREAS, concerning religious exercise within public education, the United States
Supreme Court abandoned Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 U.S. 602 (1971) and its endorsement test in
establishment of religion cases and instructed that the Establishment Clause must be interpreted by
reference to historical practices and understandings in Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, 597
U.S. 507 (2022); and

          WHEREAS, in Town of Greece v. Galloway, 572 U.S. 565 (2014), a majority of the Supreme
Court held that sectarian prayers at legislative meetings are permissible under the United States
Constitution, stating, "Legislative bodies do not engage in impermissible coercion merely by
exposing constituents to prayer they would rather not hear and in which they need not participate";
and

          WHEREAS, opinions vary among school districts as to whether a personal prayer may be
recited by a school board member during a school board meeting that is open to the public; and

          WHEREAS, the Tennessee General Assembly takes a firm position on religious freedom by
codifying the right of local board of education members to exercise their religious beliefs by reciting a
non-coercive personal prayer to open a school board meeting; now, therefore,

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:

          SECTION 1. This act is known and may be cited as the "Tennessee Religious Freedom Act."

          SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-2-203(b), is amended by adding the
following as a new subdivision:

                    (17) Open a meeting of the board of education with a prayer led by a member of the
          board of education; provided, that:

                              (A) The prayer does not require participation of any person in attendance at
                    the meeting; and

                              (B) No person is harassed or coerced to participate in the prayer.

          SECTION 3. This act takes effect July 1, 2026, the public welfare requiring it.
         SENATE BILL NO. 1957

PASSED:  March 30, 2026

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                         \                    RANDY"cNALLY

                                     SPEAKER OF THE SENATE

                            CAMERON SEXTON, SPEAKER
                            HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

f\>r:;, APPROVED this ft.ftL day of           2026

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                          BILL LEE, GOVERNOR