Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN Legal & Legislation

Tennessee: Busy Year Ahead as Important Pro-Gun and Anti-Gun Bills Get Filed

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Tennessee: Busy Year Ahead as Important Pro-Gun and Anti-Gun Bills Get Filed

As the Tennessee General Assembly reconvenes, many pro-gun and anti-gun bills have been filed.  The following pro-gun bills are among many, but not all, that aim to promote and protect your Second Amendment rights and right to self-defense:

House Bill 508 and Senate Bill 445, sponsored by Representative William Lamberth (R-44), Representative Andy Holt (R-3) and Senator John Stevens (R-24), would create a private cause of action for a party that is adversely affected by a local ordinance, resolution, policy, rule, or other enactment on firearms preempted by state law.  This bill would prohibit local or state government entities from prohibiting or restricting firearms on state or local property unless certain conditions are met.  Citizens with no criminal intent should not be placed in jeopardy of running afoul of local restrictions they don`t even know exist simply because they have crossed from one municipality to another.  Gun owners continue to be unduly burdened by local ordinances which violate the current state firearm preemption law.

House Bill 752 and Senate Bill 983, sponsored by Representative Tilman Goins (R-10), Representative Debra Moody (R-81) and Senator Dolores Gresham (R-26), would allow a person, who is granted an order of protection and who is not otherwise a prohibited person, to carry a firearm for 60 days after the initial order of protection is issued. This would allow a person under an order of protection to exercise his or her right to self-defense while allowing time to complete the Tennessee handgun carry permit process.

House Bill 1006 and Senate Bill 861, sponsored by Representative Andy Holt (R-3) and Senator Kerry Roberts (R-25), would apply criminal and civil immunity upon a person who lawfully uses a firearm in self-defense, defense of another, or defense from a person committing criminal offense.

House Bill 40 and Senate Bill 147, sponsored by Representative James Van Huss (R-6) and Senator Mae Beavers (R-17), would allow lawful gun owners to openly carry their firearms without a permit.

House Bill 27 and Senate Bill 24, sponsored by Representative Timothy Hill (R-3) and Senator Mark Green (R-22), would exempt active-duty military service members and veterans who have specialties as military police, special operations, or Special Forces from concealed carry permit firing range requirements.

Additionally, your NRA-ILA will be working hard to fight several anti-gun bills are aimed to infringe on your rights including:

House Bill 961 and Senate Bill 670, sponsored by Representative Johnnie Turner (D-85) and Senator Lee Harris, would allow the issuance of a temporary order of protection preventing a person to possess a firearm based on a law enforcement officer’s judgement that the person is a danger to another person.  This bill would violate your right to due process. 

House Bill 962 and Senate Bill 671, sponsored by Representative Harold M. Love, Jr. (D-58) and Senator Lee Harris (D-29), would create within the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations a voluntary "Do Not Sell" firearm registry, making it a criminal offense of transferring a firearm to anyone on the registry.

House Bill 1319 and Senate Bill 1097, sponsored by Representative Mike Stewart (D-52) and Senator Sara Kyle (D-30), would criminalize the private transfer of a firearm by requiring any sale or transfer to be done only through a federally licensed gun dealer with limited exceptions.

Your NRA-ILA will keep you updated on the status of these bills as they move through the General Assembly.  To help assure success in 2017, please continue to check www.NRAILA.org and your email inbox for alerts on the latest action items.

TRENDING NOW
FBI Releases Final Crime Report for 2025 to the Dismay of Firearm Prohibitionists

News  

Monday, August 24, 2026

FBI Releases Final Crime Report for 2025 to the Dismay of Firearm Prohibitionists

There has been a certain amount of anticipation while the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) analyzed the available crime data for last year. The speculation among many was that the report would be, not just ...

Questions and Answers About the Texas NFA Case

News  

Monday, August 17, 2026

Questions and Answers About the Texas NFA Case

On August 12, we reported on an important development in the ongoing litigation over the National Firearms Act (NFA) filed by multiple plaintiffs in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. These included, ...

DOJ Relaunches Federal Firearms Rights Restoration with New Final Rule

News  

Monday, August 24, 2026

DOJ Relaunches Federal Firearms Rights Restoration with New Final Rule

On August 20, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) published a final rule in the Federal Register that establishes application standards for those seeking relief from federal firearm disabilities under the Gun Control Act of ...

ATF Director Corrects Gun Control Advocates on Regulatory Reform

News  

Monday, August 17, 2026

ATF Director Corrects Gun Control Advocates on Regulatory Reform

In a stark departure from the last administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is taking gun control advocates to task for their sensationalist rhetoric and questionable legal claims. 

SCOTUS Statutory Ruling Not the Final Word on Biden-Era “Frame or Receiver” Rule

News  

Monday, August 24, 2026

SCOTUS Statutory Ruling Not the Final Word on Biden-Era “Frame or Receiver” Rule

For years, NRA-ILA has closely followed and reported on the legal and regulatory saga surrounding the Biden-Harris administration’s so-called “Frame or Receiver” rule. 

Federal Court Strikes Down NFA Registration Requirements for Suppressors, Short-Barreled Rifles, and Short-Barreled Shotguns in NRA Case

Wednesday, August 5, 2026

Federal Court Strikes Down NFA Registration Requirements for Suppressors, Short-Barreled Rifles, and Short-Barreled Shotguns in NRA Case

In another major victory for the National Rifle Association and law-abiding gun owners, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas today held that the National Firearms Act’s registration and approval requirements for ...

DOJ’s Post Office Directive Marks Another Second Amendment Milestone

News  

Monday, August 17, 2026

DOJ’s Post Office Directive Marks Another Second Amendment Milestone

For decades, federal law and United States Postal Service regulations turned one of the most ordinary stops in American life, your local post office, into a federal “gun free zone.”  That changed on August 12 with ...

California: Multiple Anti-Gun Bills Still Alive as Legislature Enters Final Week

Friday, August 21, 2026

California: Multiple Anti-Gun Bills Still Alive as Legislature Enters Final Week

The California Legislature enters its final full week of the 2026 Legislative Session on Monday, with several anti-gun bills eligible for floor votes. The most egregious bills include AB 2047, which further restricts the use ...

What Does the Texas NFA Decision Mean for You?

News  

Wednesday, August 12, 2026

What Does the Texas NFA Decision Mean for You?

On August 5, 2026, Judge Wesley Hendrix of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas held that the National Firearms Act’s registration and approval requirements for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns ...

Meet the New Far Left; Same as the Establishment Left on Guns

News  

Monday, August 17, 2026

Meet the New Far Left; Same as the Establishment Left on Guns

Primary election season is winding down, and the final slates of candidates in most states have emerged ahead of the 2026 fall elections. Second Amendment issues may or may not have been front in center ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.