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Health Facilities Commission notes PC 557 change to written-explanation requirement for CON decisions
Summary
Meeting minutes record that Public Chapter 557 removed the requirement that every Health Facilities Commission decision include a written factual and legal explanation (TCA § 68-11-1616); the record states written explanations remain required for denials and that approvals may be handled by a simple motion for applications filed on/after Oct. 1, 2021.
The meeting record for Sept. 25, 2024 notes a statutory change affecting how the Health Facilities Commission documents Certificate of Need (CON) decisions. Public Chapter 557 eliminated the obligation in Tennessee Code Annotated § 68-11-1616 that each HFC decision include a written factual and legal explanation.
Under the change described in the minutes, for applications filed on or after the effective date of the relevant portions of PC 557 (listed in the minutes as Oct. 1, 2021), a simple motion to approve an application is sufficient. By contrast, a motion to deny an application must include a written explanation of the factual and legal basis for the denial and which statutory criteria were not met.
The minutes present this as a change in the commission’s documentation practice; the entry does not record debate or a vote by the commission on the interpretation, and it does not attribute the explanation to a specific speaker. The minutes note only the statutory citation (TCA § 68-11-1616) and Public Chapter 557 as the relevant authority. Members and staff may rely on the minutes and the commission’s legal staff for guidance on how to apply the changed documentation rules in future proceedings.
