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SB 1968

Local Education Agencies - As introduced, requires a director of schools to refer to juvenile court a student who was formerly enrolled in the LEA, who was receiving truancy interventions, who withdrew from the LEA, and who did not transfer to another LEA; establishes that unexcused absences accumulated by a transfer student at their former school or LEA during the school year in which they transfer follow the student to the receiving school or LEA to determine habitual truancy, to implement a progressive truancy plan, and to identify cases of educational neglect. - Amends TCA Title 37, Chapter 1, Part 1; Title 49, Chapter 1; Title 49, Chapter 2 and Title 49, Chapter 6.

114th Regular Session (2025-2026) Introduced by Adam Lowe

Requires receiving schools to include prior year unexcused absences in truancy calculations when students transfer mid-year and clarifies record transfer timelines.

Pub. Ch. 844
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Bill Summary · SB 1968

Summary of SB 1968 (Session 114) — Tennessee

Proposed by amendment to align truancy and attendance record practices with existing processes, addressing transfers between local education agencies (LEAs) and public schools (including public charter schools).

Primary purpose and intent

  • Establish clearer procedures for handling attendance records and truancy when students transfer or withdraw during the school year.
  • Ensure receiving schools/LEAs consider unexcused absences from the student’s previous LEA when evaluating truancy and referring to juvenile court.
  • Require the director of schools to report certain absences to the juvenile court, with potential consequences for parents/guardians when a student labeled as unruly accumulates a threshold of unexcused absences.

Key provisions and changes

  1. Attendance records transfer and retention
  2. If a student transfers or withdraws after the school year has begun, the LEA/public school the student is leaving must maintain the student’s attendance records for the remainder of the school year.
  3. When enrolling a student after the school year has begun, the enrolling LEA/public school must determine if the student was previously enrolled elsewhere in the same school year and request attendance records from the former LEA(s)/school(s).

  4. The former LEA/school must provide attendance records within five business days of the request.

  5. Truancy counting and progressive plan

  6. The enrolling LEA/public school must include the number of unexcused absences the student accumulated at the former LEA during the same school year in the student’s total unexcused absences for truancy determinations.

  7. The enrolling LEA/public school must implement the appropriate tier of its progressive truancy plan, as applicable.

  8. Referrals to juvenile court and penalties

  9. The director of schools must report a student’s absences to the juvenile court judge in the county of residence when a student withdraws from an LEA where they were receiving tier-three truancy intervention and does not transfer to another LEA.

  10. If a juvenile court adjudicates a student as unruly due to five or more unexcused absences in a school year, the court may impose a fine up to $50 or require community service on the parent/guardian (the amendment gives the judge discretion on the amount of community service; previously a five-hour minimum was specified).

  11. Any juvenile court referral in these cases must include certification that progressive truancy interventions were applied while the student was enrolled and that the student withdrew without transferring to another LEA.

Who/what is affected

  • Local education agencies (LEAs) and public schools (including public charter schools) operating in Tennessee.
  • Students transferring or withdrawing after the school year has begun.
  • Receiving LEAs/schools that must incorporate prior-year unexcused absences into current truancy calculations.
  • Directors of schools and juvenile court judges in the counties of residence.

Procedural and timeline aspects

  • Attendance records transfers: 5 business days to respond to requests.
  • Record retention: LEA/School leaving the student must maintain attendance records for the remainder of the school year.
  • Juvenile court referrals: Triggered when a student withdraws mid-year from an LEA where tier-three truancy interventions were in place and does not enroll elsewhere.
  • Court penalties: Up to $50 fine or court-ordered community service for parents/guardians if a student is adjudicated unruly for accumulating five or more unexcused absences (judge has discretion on the community service hours).

Fiscal impact

  • Not significant. Analyses indicate workload and costs can be absorbed with existing staff and resources, given use of current truancy documentation, enrollment records, and established procedures.

Status (as of the provided material)

  • The bill was amended, advanced, and subsequently enrolled. It received legislative action, with related fiscal notes indicating a non-significant fiscal impact. Final signature events noted include actions in April 2026.

If you’d like, I can provide a side-by-side comparison of the bill’s current text (as amended) with existing law to highlight exact statutory changes.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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