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 to include the use of masks or facial coverings to conceal identity and the use of vehicles with improper license plates to facilitate such offenses. Additionally, the bill increases the minimum sentence for certain theft violations from ninety days to one hundred eighty days.

Furthermore, the bill creates a registry within the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation for individuals convicted of specific theft-related offenses, which will be accessible only to law enforcement agencies. This registry will include personal information such as names, dates of birth, and details of the offenses. The bill mandates that court clerks provide this information to the Bureau within forty-five 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)