114th General Assembly reconvenes
Legislators returned to Nashville on Jan. 13, 2026. to convene the second session of the 114th General Assembly.
Top priorities expected for this session include the expansion of Gov. Bill Lee’s Education Freedom Act from the 20,000 private school scholarships approved last year, immigration, infrastructure improvements and funding, artificial intelligence, and the state’s grocery tax.
There has also been a significant discussion about capping local government property tax increases. Enactment of a property tax cap will have an immediate and lasting impact on local governments, including legal and financial consequences, constraining government revenues and creating diminished quality of life for residents.
Other legislative priorities for TML this session include the full restoration of the historic state sales tax sharing relationship, residential rental property protections, modernizing public notices, and harmonizing public record requests that burden municipalities and taxpayers.
To keep up-to-date with TML’s legislative priorities and advocacy, members should check the Legislative Bulletin every week. Published each Friday, the bulletins focus on priority bills as they move through the legislative process, recap the week’s legislative activity, and preview the upcoming week.
This includes monitoring pending legislation that directly affects or has the potential to affect towns and cities. Bills can evolve quickly, and the weekly bulletin alerts municipal leaders to what they need to know.
These issues come as lawmakers must also balance a state budget amid declining revenues. Inflation has seen state revenues drop with the Tennessee State Funding Board projecting a growth rate of between 1.59% and 2.04% for all state revenues in the upcoming fiscal year, well below the 3-5% growth range the state typically enjoys.
While this rate is higher than projected last year, the state’s November 2025 revenues came nearly $50 million under estimates. Notably, the state eliminated certain franchise and excise taxes in 2024, which saw budget impacts last year. Ongoing economic uncertainty on the federal level also continues to play a role in financial forecasting.
Following a new rule approved last session, rank-and-file members of the legislature may only file 12 bills – down from a previous limit of 15 – while subcommittee chairs can file 2 additional bills and chairs of full panels can file an additional 5 bills.
Committee assignments for the legislative session can be viewed at the Tennessee General Assembly’s website:
Gov. Bill Lee is expected to outline his legislative priorities at the annual State of the State Address, which has been scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2026 at the Tennessee State Capitol.
Find more information on TML’s legislative priorities, as well as how TML members can help advance these causes by educating their citizens and legislators, at the TML website.
