(a) The board of trustees is authorized to:

(1) Take all steps necessary for the creation of a private nonprofit corporation under the Tennessee Nonprofit Corporation Act, compiled in title 48, chapters 51-68, for the purpose of operating the University of Tennessee Memorial Research Center and Hospital. Except as provided in subdivision (b)(2), the corporation shall have all the rights and powers of a nonprofit corporation under the Tennessee Nonprofit Corporation Act. The corporation shall not be an agency, department or political subdivision of the state. The charter of the nonprofit corporation shall include that its purpose is to operate the University of Tennessee Memorial Research Center and Hospital in a manner that will fulfill the hospital's mission statement of dedication to its continuation as the premier center to offer medical care to the underserved population of the thirteen-county area served by the hospital. The corporation shall not be subject to any law affecting only governmental or public entities;

(2) Enter into contracts with the corporation created under this section for goods, services and facilities in support of the programs of the university; and

(3) With prior approval of the attorney general and reporter and with prior approval of the state building commission in consultation with the majority and minority leaders of both houses of the general assembly, transfer to a corporation created under this section any or all assets used in or related to operation of the University of Tennessee Memorial Research Center and Hospital on such terms and conditions as the trustees deem in the best interest of the university and state; provided, however, that the trustees shall take action to provide for continued support of the education and research missions of the university in the health sciences, including, but not limited to, access to facilities that will offer clinical experience for students in the health sciences.

(b)

(1) Debts or other obligations of a corporation created under this section shall be payable only from assets of the corporation and shall not be debts or obligations of the state. Neither the university nor the state shall have any legal or other obligation to finance the deficits of, or provide financial support to, the corporation. Effective on the date of transfer of operation of the hospital to a corporation created under this section, neither the state nor the university shall have any legal, financial or other responsibility or liability for the operation of the hospital or the corporation.

(2) In addition to any other law governing the conveyance of assets from a not-for-profit corporation to another entity or a dissolution of assets of a not-for-profit hospital, any subsequent conveyance by any private nonprofit corporation that has acquired all or part of the assets originally owned by the University of Tennessee Memorial Research Center and Hospital shall only be authorized with prior approval of the attorney general and reporter, with prior approval of the state building commission and with prior approval of the general assembly. It is the intent of the general assembly that any such subsequent conveyance by the private nonprofit corporation shall provide for the repayment of the sums of three million dollars ($3,000,000) to the state of Tennessee, two million dollars ($2,000,000) to Knox County and two million dollars ($2,000,000) to the City of Knoxville.

(c)

(1) Prior to entering into any contracts authorized pursuant to subdivision (a)(2) with the corporation created under this section, the board of trustees shall hold at least four (4) public hearings in the area served by the University of Tennessee Memorial Research Center and Hospital to explain the contents and conditions of each contract. The four (4) public hearings must be held at least thirty (30) days prior to entering into the contracts. Two (2) weeks' notice shall be given prior to each public hearing. The notice shall be:

(A) Published in one (1) or more newspapers of general circulation in the area served by the hospital;

(B) Posted in the emergency room and the hospital admissions area; and

(C) Posted in one or more public places in the area served by the hospital.

(2) At least one (1) of the public hearings must be held in Knox County.

(3) If any of the contracts are materially revised following the public hearings, the revised contract or contracts shall be published in the same newspapers in which the notices of the public hearings were published at least one (1) week prior to being signed by the board.

(4) Any contract entered into in violation of this subsection (c) shall be null and void.