Bill > SB2119

This bill, known as the "Parental Rights Protection Act," significantly alters the legal framework surrounding the termination of parental rights (TPR) in Tennessee by establishing stricter standards for state intervention and ensuring greater protection for parents' fundamental rights. Key provisions include raising the burden of proof the state must meet to terminate parental rights to "beyond a reasonable doubt," a standard typically reserved for criminal cases, and requiring that any such termination be proven necessary to prevent serious and specific harm that cannot be remedied by less restrictive means. The bill also grants parents the right to a trial by jury on all factual questions in TPR proceedings, provided they elect this right in writing, and mandates that a jury's verdict to terminate parental rights must be unanimous. Furthermore, it clarifies that "adjudication," a formal judicial determination of allegations against a parent, must occur before TPR can be considered, and prohibits termination without a prior lawful adjudication that includes timely notice, the right to counsel, a meaningful evidentiary hearing with the opportunity to cross-examine witnesses, and written findings of fact. The act also defines terms like "family integrity" as the constitutional interest parents and children have in their relationship free from unwarranted state interference and "emergency removal" as a temporary separation based on imminent and substantial risk of serious physical harm, explicitly excluding generalized risk, poverty, or predictive neglect as grounds for such removal. Importantly, the bill requires the state to disclose any federal financial incentives tied to case outcomes, such as child removal or adoption, to ensure judicial impartiality and prevent funding considerations from influencing decisions, and prohibits termination based solely or primarily on factors like poverty, disagreement with services without proof of necessity, or predictive harm. Any order affecting parental rights entered in violation of these provisions is considered voidable, and the bill emphasizes that these protections are not waivable and apply to proceedings initiated on or after its effective date, as well as pending cases where a final TPR order has not yet been issued.

Justice

https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/Billinfo/default.aspx?BillNumber=SB2119&ga=114