The Tennessee Senate passed HB 2194 in a 25-5 vote in its Monday floor session.
“This is a very good bill,” Sen. Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City) said. “And it needs to be done.”
Legislators substituted the bill with its senate counterpart, SB 2259, before passing it. The bill eradicates steps currently required by UT policy in the termination of a faculty member, giving unilateral power to the chief academic officer or the chief executive officer.
“That, in the spirit of it, is done often in conjunction with the superiors who serve on the board of trustees,” Sen. Adam Lowe (R-Calhoun), who introduced the bill, said.
Some legislators brought up the bill’s relationship with due process.
“I don’t think you can set up a situation where the same two people make the decision in the first sentence, and review the decision, and call it due process,” Sen. Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville) said. “We should be very careful when we start legislating what due process is.”
UT faculty senate leadership sent an email to faculty on March 12 expressing concern over the bill’s effect on tenure. The bill requires tenure and non-tenure faculty to follow the same termination process.
“Tenure is not a get-out-of-jail-free card,” Lowe said. “Tenure is not a cover to go say and do anything that violates the code of conduct or an institutional brand.”
The bill is waiting to be signed by Gov. Bill Lee before becoming law.
