On March 9th, the Tennessee Legislature passed SB 938 with strong bipartisan support, and the bill will now head to the Governor’s desk. This legislation provides state government employees who foster a child with up to 6 weeks of paid parental leave, which will support healthy bonding and adjustment and ensure the child’s needs are met. Tennessee first enacted its paid parental leave policy for birth and adoptive parents back in 2023, but foster parents were initially left out.
“After three years of advocacy, we celebrate the legislature’s bipartisan passage of this bill to ensure that foster parents who work for the State have the same support as birth and adoptive parents,” said Feroza Freeland, Policy Director of the Southern Office at A Better Balance. “This policy is especially critical as our state grapples with a severe shortage of foster families, especially for children with more complex needs. Having access to paid parental leave will allow foster parents to meaningfully address a newly placed child’s specific medical, behavioral, and emotional needs while promoting healthy bonding.”
Tennessee now joins six other Southern states that cover foster parents under their paid parental leave policies for state government employees. The passage of this bill is part of a recent groundswell of expanded paid leave policies in states across the South, where lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are recognizing the importance of paid leave for all families.