Our General Assembly completed its business for the 2025 Legislative Session on Tuesday, April 22. The session was highlighted by a focus on investing in infrastructure, combating illegal immigration, improving public safety and maintaining fiscal responsibility with Tennessee taxpayers’ dollars.
Legislative highlights of the 2025 session include:
Caring for Communities and Infrastructure
● Passed my bill to redirect tire sales tax revenues to our highway fund. This will add $80 to $96 million per year for desperately needed road improvements.
● Added $1 Billion one-time investment to road fund to help address road projects
● Provided $516 million for Hurricane Helene recovery to individuals and local governments
Agriculture
● Established $25 million Farmland Preservation Fund landowners to put property in conservation easement
● Eased burdensome environmental regulations on wetlands to protect our farmers while maintaining strong conservation efforts
Strong Public Schools
● Increased investments in K-12 education by $439 million, including teacher pay raises and infrastructure improvements
Illegal Immigration
● Created the Centralized Immigration Enforcement Division within the Dept. of Safety to coordinate with federal and local governments to implement immigration policies
● Established the Immigration Enforcement Grant Program to aid local law enforcement
● Created a felony offense for smuggling and trafficking illegal immigrants
● Increased accountability for organizations housing criminal illegal immigrants
Dismantled DEI and Restored Merit-Based Systems
● Prohibited public and private colleges in Tennessee from using race or national origin to make admissions or scholarship decisions
● Ended race-based selection for membership of state boards
● Prohibited state and local governments and public universities from having DEI departments or hiring practices
Public Safety
● Protected private property rights
● Cracked down on organized retail crime
● Raised penalty for exposing children to fentanyl
● Strengthened penalties for sexual abuse
Protecting Children and Families
● Strengthened several penalties related to child abuse
● Improved the adoption and foster care system
● Enhanced protections and rights for children in DCS custody
● Established a domestic violence registry
● Cracked down on AI-generated child pornography
Pro-Life
● Targeted illegal distribution of abortion pills
● Established pro-life protections for mothers facing serious pregnancy complications
Health
● Expanded prenatal screenings to protect mothers and babies
● Required medical examinations of deceased mass shooters to test for psychotropic drugs
● Removed insurance barriers for cancer patients to access recommended medications
Cut excessive environmental red tape on wetlands
In the final week of Session the legislature passed Senate Bill 670 to ease burdensome regulations on Tennessee’s wetlands, creating new opportunities for responsible development across the state while maintaining basic environmental safeguards.
The legislation addresses isolated wetlands, which are areas no longer protected under federal law following a U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that returned regulatory authority to the states.
I worked countless hours with TDEC, the sponsor and other stakeholders to craft this legislation. The goal is to provide property owners with a more reasonable framework to determine how to develop and use their land. We are not eliminating regulation. We are modernizing it.
The bill divides isolated wetlands into four categories, based on ecological function: artificial, low-quality, moderate-quality, and high-quality. It exempts certain isolated wetlands from mitigation and permitting requirements depending on the size and quality of the wetland.
The legislation also stipulates that:
● Existing stormwater measures must be considered when determining mitigation.
● Isolated wetlands do not factor into cumulative project impact assessments under federal Clean Water Act regulations.
● The state board must establish classification criteria and allow public input on wetland assessment tools
In the coming weeks, I’ll be highlighting other legislation. I’m so glad to be able to spend an increased amount of time in the district attending events, updating you on what we achieved, and even hearing from you about what we need to do in 2026. Please know you can always reach me at 615-741-2368 or sen.page.walley@capitol.tn.gov.
