Image Credit: Adelia Kirchner / The Tennessee Conservative
The Tennessee Conservative [By Adelia Kirchner] –
A bill giving Tennessee public school districts the option to unenroll or refuse enrollment of illegal immigrant students passed on the Senate floor by a 19-13 vote on Thursday morning.
Senate Bill 0836 (SB0836), sponsored by Senator Bo Watson (R-Hixson-District 11), “authorizes LEAs and public charter schools to refuse to enroll students who are unlawfully present in the United States.”
During the legislative proceedings, Sen. Paul Bailey (R-Sparta-District 15) asked about how a lawsuit against a school who decides to enact this would be handled.
“If a school district requests an individual to provide proof of being legally present within the U.S. or the state of Tennessee or denies enrollment of that student and that school district is sued,” Sen. Bailey asked, “who’s responsible for the court costs incurred for that suit?”
“I know that is a concern to some local school districts,” said Sen. Watson. “Under the construction of this piece of legislation and for reasons that it is constructed that way, the Attorney General of the great state of Tennessee would defend the lawsuit.”
Republicans Paul Bailey, Janice Bowling, Rusty Crowe, Bobby Harshbarger, Tom Hatcher, Joey Hensley, Ed Jackson, Jack Johnson, Adam Lowe, Bill Powers, Paul Rose, Jessie Seal, Steve Southerland, John Stevens, Brent Taylor, Bo Watson, Dawn White, Ken Yager and Lt. Gov. Randy McNally voted in favor of the bill.
Democrats Raumesh Akbari, Heidi Campbell, Sara Kyle, London Lamar, Charlane Oliver and Jeff Yarbro voted against it.
Republicans Todd Gardenhire, Ferrell Haile, Richard Briggs, Becky Massey, Mark Pody, Shane Reeves and Page Walley voted against the legislation as well.
The sponsors of this legislation have reiterated many times that this is a permissive bill, not requiring, but simply giving public schools the option to require students to provide proof of citizenship.
Under this legislation, if a student is determined to be unlawfully present public school districts in Tennessee can refuse to enroll that student, unenroll that student, or charge that student tuition at a rate consistent with the out-of-county charge for that district.
Families who might want to challenge the determination that their child is illegal could participate in an appeals process that would go up to the state Department of Education.
The intent of this legislation is for it to be challenged in court and potentially lead to the overturning of Plyler V. Doe (1982), a decision which ruled that states cannot deny undocumented children a free public education.
The corresponding House Bill 793 (HB0793) is sponsored by Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland-District 44) and most recently passed in the House Government Operations Committee by an 8-7 vote.
HB0793 is scheduled for consideration in the House Finance, Ways and Means Subcommittee on Monday, April 14th, 2025.
HB0793/SB0836 Authorizes LEAs & Public Charter Schools To Refuse To Enroll Students Who Are Unlawfully Present In The U.S.
Rep.ryan.williams@capitol.tn.gov, rep.kip.capley@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jesse.chism@capitol.tn.gov, rep.mark.cochran@capitol.tn.gov, rep.john.crawford@capitol.tn.gov, rep.ron.gant@capitol.tn.gov, rep.john.gillespie@capitol.tn.gov, rep.gary.hicks@capitol.tn.gov, rep.tim.hicks@capitol.tn.gov, rep.antonio.parkinson@capitol.tn.gov, rep.lee.reeves@capitol.tn.gov, rep.johnny.shaw@capitol.tn.gov, rep.jason.zachary@capitol.tn.gov
About the Author: Adelia Kirchner is a Tennessee resident and reporter for the Tennessee Conservative. Currently the host of Subtle Rampage Podcast, she has also worked for the South Dakota State Legislature and interned for Senator Bill Hagerty’s Office in Nashville, Tennessee. Adelia is The Tennessee Conservative’s on-site reporter for the Tennessee General Assembly. You can reach Adelia at adelia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
