ALEC Policy Champions Bring REINS-Style Reform to the Volunteer State

ALEC is proud to recognize Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson and Rep. Clark Boyd as ALEC Policy Champions for championing the Regulatory Freedom Act of 2026 in their respective chambers. Gov. Bill Lee signed HB 1913 on May 19^th. Tennessee becomes the 11^th state, including South Dakota earlier this year, that has enacted REINS-style laws.

HB 1913 is a REINS-style law that requires legislative approval of major agency rules before they can take effect. The Regulatory Freedom Act requires state agencies to submit proposed rules with a projected negative fiscal impact exceeding $1 million over a five years to receive approval from the legislature before going into effect. In addition, it enables either chair of the Joint Government Operations Committee to refer rules with an estimated negative fiscal impact exceeding $750,000 to the legislative director of the Fiscal Review Committee for independent review.

Earlier this year, U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn celebrated the bill by saying, “It ought to be difficult to add onerous, expensive regulations to the books and easier to remove outdated ones. The Regulatory Freedom Act takes a tremendous step towards that goal and will accelerate the good work our state’s pro-business legislature and Governor Bill Lee have done to that end.”

Like HB 1913, the Targeted Legislative Review Act, one of the ALEC Essential Policy Solutions for 2026, returns rulemaking authority to state legislators by requiring that major rules are approved by elected representatives, not unelected bureaucrats, before taking effect.

Congratulations to Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson and Rep. Clark Boyd for ensuring that the most significant rules shaping the lives of Tennesseans and their businesses go through the people’s representatives first!