Amends TCA Title 37.

This bill expands the present law definition of "severe child abuse" to include knowingly or with negligence allowing a child to be within a structure where a Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance is present and accessible to the child. Under present law, various other behaviors constitute severe child abuse (such as the knowing exposure of a child to or the knowing failure to protect a child from abuse or neglect that is likely to cause serious bodily injury or death and the knowing use of force on a child that is likely to cause serious bodily injury or death; and knowingly allowing a child to be present within a structure where the act of creating methamphetamine is occurring). A finding of "severe child abuse" is applicable in various present law provisions, and, accordingly, the inclusion of the behavior described in this bill will be a grounds for the findings/actions under those present law provisions, which include the following: (1) The requirement that a court determine whether parents or either parent or another person who had custody of a child committed severe child abuse, if a petition alleged a child is dependent and neglected or if the court finds so regardless of the grounds alleged in a petition; (2) The prohibition on returning a child who has been found to be a victim of severe child abuse to the custody or residence of any person who engaged in or knowingly failed to protect the child from the brutality or abuse; (3) The creation of the Tennessee second look commission to review cases involving a second or subsequent incident of severe child abuse in order to provide recommendations and findings to the general assembly regarding such cases; (4) The initiation of termination of parental or guardianship rights based upon the parent or guardian having committed, or having been sentenced to more than two years imprisonment for, severe child abuse; (5) The requirement that a county director of the department of children's services immediately notify and consult with the district attorney general if a case appears to involve severe child abuse and the attorney general to take such action deemed appropriate; (6) The requirement that local law enforcement officers and district attorney generals having jurisdiction assist the department if the department determines it is likely that a case may result in criminal proceedings or that a child protective services worker may be at risk of harm while investigating reports of harm alleging facts, that if proven, would constitute severe child abuse; (7) The discretion of the Tennessee second look commission to request that certain individuals or departments, such as the child advocacy center directors, make recommendations and identify where gaps and deficiencies may exist in the various system involved in protecting children from severe child abuse; (8) The requirement that members of the Tennessee second look commission be certain individuals, including two law enforcement officers appointed by the governor with experience investigating severe child abuse; (9) The definition of "aggravated circumstances" which includes severe child abuse, for the purposes of adoption provisions; (10) The requirement that reasonable efforts be made to preserve and reunify families. In such provision, such reasonable efforts are not required when the parent has subjected the child, the sibling of the child, or any child residing in the home to aggravated circumstances as defined in item (9) above; (11) The requirement that the state board of education automatically revoke the license of a licensed teacher or administrator without the right to a hearing upon being identified by the department as having committed severe child abuse; (12) The prohibition of the department of education, the state board, local boards of education, and LEAs hiring or retaining any individual the department has found to have committed severe child abuse and the procedure regarding due process rights of any employee who has been found to have committed severe child abuse; (13) The requirement that, if the department initiates an investigation of severe child abuse, the department must notify the appropriate local law enforcement agency immediately upon assignment of such case to a department child protective services worker; and (14) Certain privileges not being a ground for excluding evidence regarding harm or the cause of harm to a child in any dependency and neglect proceeding or a criminal prosecution for severe child abuse. ON MAY 4, 2021, THE SENATE ADOPTED AMENDMENT #1, AND PASSED SENATE BILL 1530, AS AMENDED. AMENDMENT #1 revises the expanded definition of "severe child abuse" proposed by this bill to instead be: knowingly allowing a child to be within a structure where any of the following controlled substances are present and accessible to the child: a Schedule I controlled substance; cocaine; methamphetamine; or fentanyl.