Tennessee
Tennessee splits corrections training. The Tennessee Corrections Institute (TCI) sets jail standards and trains local jail officers, and the Department of Correction (TDOC) trains its own prison and probation and parole officers. Since 2023 the State has counted law enforcement experience toward probation and parole officer eligibility, required population cuts at contract prisons with high death rates, let jailers refuse injured arrestees, required body cameras at Trousdale Turner, and, from July 1, 2026, given TCI power to set and revoke corrections officer certification.
- Sources checked
- Part of
- Corrections Ledger
At a glance
- Certifying body
- Split. Local jail and workhouse officers are trained and certified through the Tennessee Corrections Institute (TCI) and its Board of Control. Since July 1, 2026, TCI has express power to “establish certification requirements for corrections officers” and to certify local correctional training academies (T.C.A. 41-4-140(a)(6), (7), added by 2026 Pub. Ch. 609). TDOC trains state prison correctional officers and probation and parole officers at the Tennessee Correction Academy; no outside certifying board for them was found. The POST Commission certifies law enforcement officers, not corrections officers; see the Tennessee Officer Ledger page.
- Statute
- T.C.A. 41-4-140 (TCI jail standards and inspections); T.C.A. title 41, chapter 7 (TCI and its Board of Control, including 41-7-106 on board powers); T.C.A. 40-28-604 (probation and parole officer eligibility). TCI rules: Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 1400-01, Minimum Standards for Local Correctional Facilities. The State’s free online code is hosted by a commercial publisher, so statute text on this page comes from enrolled bills and amendments on the Legislature’s site.
- Minimum standards
- Jail staff: a criminal history check of every new facility employee before the employee assumes duties, “to identify if there are criminal convictions that have a specific relationship to job performance,” and orientation training before duty that covers use of force, suicide prevention, and sexual misconduct, among other topics (Rule 1400-01-.06(2), (4)). TCI says its Board of Control may grant pre-employment waivers to local correctional officers (T.C.A. 41-7-106(f)). State prison officers: no statutory minimum age or education standard could be checked on an official host. Probation and parole officers: a bachelor’s degree or four years of qualifying full-time professional experience, which since 2023 includes law enforcement experience (T.C.A. 40-28-604).
- Basic training
- Jail officers: the rule requires a basic program of at least 40 hours, provided or approved by TCI, in the first year of employment (Rule 1400-01-.06(8)). TCI’s training page describes its current Correctional Officer TCI Basic as a 48-hour course (16 hours online, 32 in the classroom since 2022), due within 12 months of hire; Rule 1400-01-.06(10) leaves training hours to the Board of Control, which may explain the difference. State prison officers: TDOC’s Basic Correctional Officer Training is a six-week pre-service program, two weeks at the hiring facility and four at the Tennessee Correction Academy in Tullahoma. Probation and parole officers: six-week Basic Probation/Parole Officer Training at the Academy (TDOC Academy programs).
- In-service training
- Jail officers: 40 hours a year, at least 16 of them provided or approved by TCI; the other 24 may be given by the facility if TCI approves and monitors the content (Rule 1400-01-.06(9)). TCI describes its 16-hour annual in-service as required “to maintain certification.” Staff authorized to use firearms or less-lethal weapons need basic and ongoing training on those weapons (1400-01-.06(11)). TDOC in-service hours for state officers were not found on an official host.
- Decertification
- No statute or rule set grounds or a process for revoking an individual corrections officer’s certification before July 1, 2026. 2026 Pub. Ch. 609 authorizes the TCI Board of Control to set requirements for “corrections officer certification, continued certification, and revocation of certification” (new T.C.A. 41-7-106(j)); no implementing rule was found. No public decertification list for corrections officers was found. TCI certification under the existing rules attaches mainly to facilities.
- Jail standards
- TCI must “establish minimum standards for local jails, lock-ups, workhouses and detention facilities” and inspect each facility every year, and its Board of Control certifies facilities (T.C.A. 41-4-140; TCI). Since July 1, 2026, a facility cannot be decertified if the local government submits, within 90 days of the annual inspection, a plan of action for fixed-ratio deficiencies, staffing emergencies, capital projects, or deficiencies that do not involve life safety, subject to time limits (41-4-140(d), rewritten by 2026 Pub. Ch. 609).
- Probation and parole officers
- TDOC Community Supervision runs adult probation and parole. Officers need a bachelor’s degree or four years of qualifying full-time professional experience, including law enforcement experience (T.C.A. 40-28-604), and take the six-week academy course. No outside certification for them was found. Since July 1, 2024, a probation officer must set required meetings at times and places that reasonably accommodate the probationer’s work schedule and may use a real-time video portal with TDOC approval (40-35-303(q)).
- Restrictive housing
- No statute limiting solitary confinement or restrictive housing was found in 2023 to 2026 bills indexed under corrections subjects. TDOC governs segregation by policy (Policies 404.10, 404.11, and 506.16), and TCI Rule 1400-01-.03 defines segregation and disciplinary segregation for jails. The full Code could not be searched on an official host.
- Corrections use of force
- No corrections-specific use-of-force statute was found. For jails, TCI rules require a written use-of-force policy (Rule 1400-01-.06(3)(k)) and use-of-force orientation before duty (1400-01-.06(4)(c)), and limit restraints: “Restraint devices shall never be applied as punishment,” and four- or five-point restraints are for extreme instances with advance approval of the administrator (1400-01-.07(21), (22)). Officers at Trousdale Turner Correctional Center must wear body cameras (see changes). No statute restricting restraint of pregnant prisoners was found in the 2023 to 2026 bill indexes.
Changes, 2023 to 2026
TCI may certify and revoke corrections officers and certify local academies
Adds to TCI’s duties in T.C.A. 41-4-140(a): “(6) Establish certification requirements for corrections officers; and (7) Inspect and certify local correctional training academies associated with local jails, lock-ups, and workhouses.” New 41-7-106(j) to (l) let the Board of Control set uniform training standards for corrections recruits and officers, “including requirements for corrections officer certification, continued certification, and revocation of certification,” certify local academies, and issue or revoke special certifications. The act rewrites 41-4-140(d): plans of action are now due within 90 days of the initial annual inspection and may cover staffing emergencies, capital projects, and deficiencies not involving life safety as well as fixed-ratio deficiencies, with a 5-year cap unless the board approves more unanimously. TCI’s director and full-time employees may carry handguns on duty (39-17-1315). SB 1589 passed as introduced.
For corrections staff: Jail officer certification is becoming a credential TCI can revoke; the grounds and process will come in TCI rules that had not been found as of October 20, 2026.
Jailers may refuse or delay booking of injured arrestees
New T.C.A. 41-4-145: a sheriff, jail administrator, or deputy jailer “may refuse or delay acceptance into the jail” an arrestee who has not received medical treatment for obvious serious physical injuries or emergency conditions. The jailer must document the factual basis. The arresting agency must get medical care first and give the jail the medical release. Jailers may accept an arrestee who refuses medical attention and are immune from civil and criminal liability for doing so. The act makes a conforming change to 8-8-201(c).
For corrections staff: Booking officers who turn away an injured arrestee should document the injury and the reason, and require the medical release before accepting the arrestee.
Body cameras for correctional officers at Trousdale Turner
New T.C.A. 41-51-401 to -403 apply to a contractor-run state prison on public property in a metropolitan county of 11,600 to 11,616 people, which describes Trousdale Turner Correctional Center. “Each correctional officer at a correctional facility shall utilize a body camera at all times when the officer is on duty at the facility and is in contact with or may reasonably anticipate contact or interaction with an inmate.” The covered staff include correctional officers, sergeants, lieutenants, captains, correctional counselors, and unit managers on security posts. The contractor pays for cameras and storage. TDOC must review recordings of suspected unlawful or abusive incidents no later than 5 business days after any investigation, send them to the district attorney within 48 hours of review, and keep recordings that must be sent or may be requested for at least one year; other footage may be deleted no earlier than 7 days after review. TDOC reports quarterly, and recordings are confidential under 10-7-504.
For corrections staff: Officers at Trousdale Turner must keep cameras recording during any inmate contact; footage of suspected abuse goes to the district attorney.
Sheriffs must join 287(g); TCI to set a rule for detainees held for ICE transfer
Each POST-certified sheriff must enter a federal 287(g) agreement (jail enforcement, warrant service officer, task force, or tribal task force model) by January 1, 2027; a violation may result in the State withholding state funds allotted to the sheriff’s office (T.C.A. 7-68-105(b)(1)(C)). New T.C.A. 41-7-106(j) requires the TCI Board of Control to adopt by rule a policy for temporary custody of detainees to be transferred to ICE within 48 hours, excluding weekends and holidays, after lawful sheriff custody ends. The policy must “authorize the exclusion of detainees” so held “from the inmate population computation” for “facility capacity limits and inmate ratios,” and sheriffs must keep verifiable documentation of the scheduled transfer for TCI inspections. 2026 Pub. Ch. 609 also added a subsection (j) to 41-7-106, so one of the two will need renumbering.
For corrections staff: Any detainee left out of capacity and staffing-ratio counts needs documentation of the scheduled ICE transfer; watch for TCI’s rule.
Public safety employees get access to their records and mental health screening results
A public safety employer that requires a mental health evaluation must, in the words of the Legislature’s summary, give the employee or applicant “reasonable access to the employee’s or prospective employee’s full employment record, including the results of any mental health evaluation or screening.” A denied applicant may submit an alternative evaluation at the applicant’s expense; Senate Amendment 1 made the employer’s reevaluation optional (“may” instead of “shall”). Records given to the employee remain subject to the confidentiality rules of title 10, chapter 7, part 5 (new subsection (e)). Senate Amendment 1 limits the private suit for declaratory or injunctive relief to violations of the record-access requirement in subsection (b); a prevailing employee recovers court costs and attorney fees. The definition of “public safety position” names law enforcement officers, firefighters, EMS, and private security licensees. It does not name corrections officers, who are covered only if the position’s primary focus is protection of persons or property, crime prevention, or the enforcement of laws and apprehension of criminals.
For corrections staff: If a psychological screening disqualifies you, ask for the results; whether the act reaches jail and prison officers is not settled by its text.
Population cuts at contract prisons with double the state death rate
A new section in T.C.A. title 41, chapter 24 covers privately contracted facilities, and county-contracted facilities holding state inmates through a contractor. If the inmate death rate at such a facility, as reported in TDOC’s annual statistical abstract, is twice that of an equivalent state-operated facility, TDOC must reduce the facility’s population by 10% within 90 days of issuing that report. The reduction continues until TDOC determines the conditions are corrected.
For corrections staff: Staff at contract prisons should expect transfers out within 90 days of an annual statistical abstract that shows a doubled death rate.
Probation officers must schedule around probationers’ work; video reporting allowed
New T.C.A. 40-35-303(q): “A probation officer shall set any required meetings at times and locations that reasonably accommodate the work schedule of the probationer.” With TDOC approval, the officer may use a real-time voice and video portal in place of an in-person meeting. TDOC must adopt rules on technology standards and on eligibility, considering offense severity, criminal history, supervision level, and past supervision.
For corrections staff: Probation officers should document how meeting times accommodate a probationer’s work and follow TDOC’s video-reporting eligibility rules.
TCI Board of Control continued to 2029
Sunset extension. In the Legislature’s summary, the act “extends the board of control of the Tennessee corrections institute to June 30, 2029,” moving the board from T.C.A. 4-29-245 to 4-29-250.
For corrections staff: The body that sets jail standards and runs jail officer training continues through June 30, 2029.
Deputy jailers treated as law enforcement officers for crime enhancements
Adds T.C.A. 39-11-106(a)(24)(B): “‘Law enforcement officer’ includes a sheriff, sheriff’s deputy, and, only for purposes of the enhancement of a crime, a deputy jailer.” It also adds deputy jailers to the list in 39-13-116(d)(1)(B). Deputy jailers do not become POST-certified officers under this act.
For corrections staff: Crimes against deputy jailers can carry the same enhancements as crimes against police; the act gives jailers no arrest powers or POST status.
Law enforcement experience counts toward probation and parole officer eligibility
Rewrites T.C.A. 40-28-604. A probation and parole officer still needs a bachelor’s degree or four years of qualifying full-time professional experience, and the act adds: “As used in this section, ‘qualifying full-time professional experience’ includes law enforcement experience.” Senate Amendment 1 struck the introduced bill’s inclusion of armed forces service.
For corrections staff: Former police officers without a degree can qualify for TDOC probation and parole officer jobs on four years of law enforcement experience; military service alone does not count under this act.
Enacted, not yet in force, pending, and bills that did not pass
- TCI rules under Pub. Ch. 609 and Pub. Ch. 1015: the statutory authority has been in force since July 1, 2026 and May 26, 2026. No proposed or adopted rule on corrections officer certification, revocation, academy certification, or ICE detainee custody could be checked, because the Secretary of State’s rules site refused requests (HTTP 403) on October 20, 2026. SB 1589
- 287(g) deadline (January 1, 2027): each POST-certified sheriff must have a 287(g) agreement by then under Pub. Ch. 1015, whose provisions terminate February 1, 2029. HA1032
- Trousdale Turner body cameras (repealed July 1, 2027): T.C.A. 41-51-401 to -403 are repealed by their own terms on July 1, 2027. HA1149
These bills were not enacted: HB 1462 / SB 1199 (113th GA; use-of-force policies for law enforcement agencies; HB 1462 taken off notice in subcommittee, SB 1199 deferred in Senate Judiciary on January 23, 2024) and HB 287 / SB 108 (114th GA; a 5-business-day deadline, down from 10, for TDOC to report in-custody deaths to legislators; HB 287 withdrawn, SB 108 referred to committee). A full sweep for failed corrections bills was not made.
For acts that take effect “upon becoming a law,” this page uses the date the Governor signed. The Legislature’s bill pages list the date the bill was sent to the Governor in their “Effective date(s)” field, which is earlier.
Checked and unchanged
- TCI rule chapter 1400-01: the copy checked is TCI’s posted “January 2018 (Revised)” version. Amendments from 2023 to 2026 could not be checked because the Secretary of State’s rules site returned HTTP 403 on October 20, 2026.
- Not verified: TDOC correctional officer hiring minimums (age, education) and in-service hours; neither was found on an official host.
- Not counted: 2026 Pub. Ch. 1052 (HB 571 / SB 468, the “Riley Gaines Women’s Safety and Protection Act,” effective July 1, 2026 per the Legislature). Its summary says correctional facilities must designate multi-occupancy restrooms, changing rooms, and sleeping quarters by sex, but the enacted amendment text was not compared.
- Restraint of pregnant prisoners: no statute was found in the 2023 to 2026 bill indexes, and whether an older statute exists could not be confirmed without official access to the full Code.
Bills in the legislature
Bills in the current session whose title concerns corrections officers, jails, probation and parole, and conditions of confinement, found automatically in LegiScan's copy of the legislature's records and refreshed daily (last on October 21, 2026). This list is not reviewed by an editor and is not a summary of the bills; each links to the legislature's own page, which controls. Bills that become law are added to the dated entries above once checked.
- Introduced
SB0971: As introduced, exempts a prisoner of a county workhouse or jail who is released from custody on work release from wearing an electronic monitoring device if the prisoner was convicted of a non-violent crime and the sh…
Last action February 12, 2025: Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate State and Local Government Committee. 114th General Assembly.
- Enacted
HB1839: As enacted, prohibits the department from removing a state inmate from a local jail facility for the purpose of relocating the inmate to a state facility if the inmate is participating in a work release or re-entry pr…
Last action May 5, 2026: Comp. became Pub. Ch. 841. 114th General Assembly.
- Enacted
SB1914: As enacted, prohibits the department from removing a state inmate from a local jail facility for the purpose of relocating the inmate to a state facility if the inmate is participating in a work release or re-entry pr…
Last action May 5, 2026: Effective date(s) 04/27/2026. 114th General Assembly.
- Introduced
HB2373: As introduced, creates a supplemental pay incentive program for local correctional officers who receive 40 hours or more of in-service training per calendar year. - Amends TCA Title 38, Chapter 8, Part 1 and Title 41.
Last action April 15, 2026: Taken off notice for cal in s/c Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee of Finance, Ways, and Means Committee. 114th General Assembly.
- Introduced
SB2587: As introduced, creates a supplemental pay incentive program for local correctional officers who receive 40 hours or more of in-service training per calendar year. - Amends TCA Title 38, Chapter 8, Part 1 and Title 41.
Last action April 20, 2026: Placed on Senate Finance, Ways, and Means Committee calendar for 4/21/2026. 114th General Assembly.
- Enacted
SR0298: A RESOLUTION to honor and congratulate Officer Jim Dandy upon being named Haywood County Correctional Officer of the Year.
Last action February 27, 2026: Enrolled and ready for signatures. 114th General Assembly.
- Enacted
SR0335: A RESOLUTION to honor and congratulate Officer Thomas Wills upon being named Haywood County Correctional Officer of the Year.
Last action March 19, 2026: Enrolled and ready for signatures. 114th General Assembly.
The law, section by section
No official copy of the section list could be read on October 21, 2026.
Statutes left out: T.C.A. 41-4-140, Title 41 chapter 7, 40-28-604, and 40-35-303. Tennessee's only free online code is hosted by a commercial publisher, not an official government source. Rules left out: Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. ch. 1400-01 (Minimum Standards for Local Correctional Facilities). On 2026-10-21 both the Secretary of State's rules site (publications.tnsosfiles.com/rules/1400/1400.htm) and the Tennessee Corrections Institute's copy of the standards on tn.gov returned 403 Forbidden to automated requests.
USCLI's source monitor re-reads the 24 official sources cited on this page around the clock; 1 answered unchanged at their latest check. The oldest of those checks was on October 21, 2026. 1 refuse automated checks and are checked by hand.
Last updated October 21, 2026Source: United States Council for Law & InvestigationCite as: United States Council for Law & Investigation, “Tennessee corrections law: Corrections Ledger,” uscli.org/corrections-tracker/tennessee (last updated October 21, 2026). Text licensed CC BY 4.0.