Here are 10 Tennessee laws taking effect July 1 that you may have missed

This year, Gov. Bill Lee has signed nearly 500 bills into law — a good number of which take effect July 1, 2023.

Here’s a list of some of those:

SB 1059: Allows District Attorneys to charge book publishers and distributors with a Class E felony for knowingly selling or distributing obscene books to K-12 schools. 

Many Democrats voted against the bill, calling it unnecessary and a book banning bill. 

HB 535: Allows a child’s guardian to convert a restitution order into a civil judgement before the defendant is sentenced. This applies in cases where a child’s parent died from a vehicular homicide tied to a DUI.

SB 442: Decreases from 25 to 17 days the number of days a person convicted of a second offense of driving under the influence must serve before they can participate in a substance abuse treatment program.

For those convicted of a DUI three or more times, they must wear a transdermal alcohol monitoring device for a 90-day period of continuous sobriety.

HB 1198: Makes it a Class A misdemeanor for knowingly giving someone who is under the influence access to a motor vehicle. 

SB 256: Allows law enforcement officers and district attorneys to use discretion when giving a person who experiences a subsequent drug overdose immunity from being arrested, charged or prosecuted. Right now, those who experience a drug overdose are given automatic immunity the first time.

HB 486: Requires local candidates for public office to file a statement of all contributions received and expenditures made on behalf of the candidate with election commissions of the county where the election is held. Applies to political campaign committees as well.

SB 172: Removes pocket knives from the offense of “possession of weapons on school property” for adults who are visiting the property to vote in an election, as long as the pocket knife is concealed and not handled by the adult.

SB 570: Makes it a Class A misdemeanor to possess a device capable of programming a smart key or key fob with the intent to use it or allow it to be used to commit theft.

SB 586: Creates a grant program to help fund the expanded Worker’s Compensation Law that allows fire departments to help pay for portions of firefighters’ PTSD treatments. Firefighters would be eligible as long as diagnosed while still employed or within a year of leaving the department.

SB 97: Gives widows receiving workers compensation benefits due to their spouse dying due to a work-related incident a lump sum payment if they remarry. Previously, benefits ended with no payment. Also clarifies that surviving dependents would still receive benefits if they were to pursue postsecondary career or technical education. Those benefits would stop at 22 years of age.