FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 16, 2026
CONTACT
Breana Staten, tnmedia@edtrust.org
Hamp Price, media@tnimmigrant.org
Nashville, Tenn. – Today, the Tennessee House of Representatives passed HB 793, which would require schools to collect and report information about students’ citizenship, immigration status, or lawful presence. Under the amended bill, schools would be required to report that data to the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE), including how many students provided documentation, what type of documentation was submitted, and the reasons others did not provide it. TDOE then submits an annual report to immigration authorities and several state agencies.
The Senate version of the bill, SB 836, which passed last year, goes even further. The Senate version of the bill requires schools to collect the immigration status of every student, but allows the school districts to decide whether they want to charge tuition to undocumented students or deny them enrollment.
Now the House and Senate will likely enter a conference committee to reconcile the two versions of the legislation. The final version approved by both chambers will be sent to Governor Bill Lee, who will decide whether to sign the bill into law, let it quietly pass into law without his signature, or veto it.
The Supreme Court has been clear: schools cannot request documentation that could be used to deny enrollment to undocumented students. HB 793/SB 836 does exactly that, quietly inviting a legal challenge to Plyler, a longstanding legal precedent that guarantees all children living in the United States access to free public education regardless of immigration status.
Below are statements from steering committee leaders of the Education for All-Tennessee campaign:
“Today’s vote injects fear into school communities across Tennessee by creating data trails that target students based on immigration status and quietly undermining Plyler v. Doe, the Supreme Court precedent that guarantees every child in this country access to free public education,” said Alexza Barajas Clark, Executive Director at EdTrust-Tennessee. “Every dollar spent on compliance for this legislation will be a dollar not spent in the classroom, and every hour an educator spends on analyzing immigration paperwork is an hour not spent supporting students who need them most.”
“Our public schools exist to make sure that every child, regardless of background, has access to a quality education,” said Austin Sauerbrei, Executive Director of Statewide Organizing for Community eMpowerment (SOCM). “At a moment when we could be building new schools, we are seeing school closures in rural communities. When we could be investing in teacher retention, we are adding new expectations to over-worked educators and school staff. When we could be expanding programming for students with learning disabilities, we are cutting existing programs. HB-793 is another example of a complete misalignment of priorities that adds new burdens to our local schools at the cost of children’s well being.”
“Teachers wear more hats than ever before, but one we should never wear is that of an immigration officer,” said TEA President Tanya T. Coats. “The only paperwork teachers want from their students is their homework.”
“We send our children off to school each day knowing that their right to an education—their freedom to learn—is protected and secure because the law has long made it clear that public education belongs to all of us. But the lawmakers who voted to pass this legislation took an extraordinarily cruel step in destroying that freedom for kids across the nation,” said Lisa Sherman Luna, Executive Director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition. “Every child in Tennessee should have the opportunity to reach their full potential in safe, well-funded public schools without the fear they will end up on a list, targeted for immigration enforcement. We’re prepared to continue to fight for that opportunity from the halls of the Capitol to the halls of the courts.”
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About Education for All-Tennessee
The Education for All-Tennessee coalition believes everyone in the U.S. should have the freedom to thrive – to be safe in our communities, to care and provide for our families, and to contribute to our country in our own unique ways. Parents work hard to give their children an opportunity for a better future, and a chance to provide for themselves. The foundation of that opportunity is access to education.
Created in 2025, Education for All-Tennessee continues to build a broad, deep, and powerful movement to defend the right to public education for every child, regardless of immigration status.
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