House Bill 2140, also known as Senate Bill 2265, amends various sections of the Tennessee Code Annotated related to criminal offenses involving theft. A significant addition is the establishment of a mandatory minimum sentence of thirty days of incarceration for defendants who use or possess firearms, firearm ammunition, firearm-related devices, or anti-theft devices during the commission of theft offenses. The bill also expands the definition of theft-related offenses by including the use of masks or facial coverings to conceal identity and the use of motor vehicles with improper license plates as aggravating factors.

Additionally, the bill creates a registry within the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation for individuals convicted of specific theft-related offenses, including those under Section 39-14-113 and Section 39-14-146. This registry will be accessible only to law enforcement agencies and will include personal information such as the individual's name, date of birth, and details of the offenses. The bill mandates that court clerks provide this information to the Bureau within 45 days of a conviction and outlines procedures for removing individuals from the registry after ten years or upon expunction of the offense. The act is set to take effect on July 1, 2026, and will apply to offenses committed on or after that date.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 39-14-113(d), 39-14-113, 39-14-113(c)(1), 39-14-113(c)