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Senate committee approves advisory board bill after senators describe safety concerns in state prisons
Summary
Senate Bill 2531 would create a Families of Incarcerated Individuals Advisory Board to give relatives a formal channel for safety, communication and reentry policy feedback. Sponsor cited 35 deaths in state prisons since January and said families report gang violence and extortion; the committee advanced the bill.
Senator Hatcher told the committee SB2531 would establish a Families of Incarcerated Individuals Advisory Board to provide families with a structured way to report safety concerns, improve communications and inform reentry policy. She said the measure would restore trust and create public accountability for corrections operations.
Hatcher told senators "Tennessee prisons have alarmingly high death rates" and said, "since January, we have had 35 deaths in the prisons at this time." Senator Jackson and others described recurring reports from relatives about extortion, gang violence and unsafe conditions and urged passage. The committee adopted the amendment that makes the bill and voted unanimously to advance SB2531 to the calendar.
