March 11, 2025

Georgia Legislative Update – Week 8

The General Assembly returned to the Gold Dome on Monday, March 3^rd for the busiest week of the 2025 legislative session. Crossover Day, a critical deadline for legislation to move from one chamber to the other occurred on Thursday, March 6^th. The House worked late into the evening, passing a record 75 bills and resolutions on Crossover Day. They now await consideration in the Senate. With many bills to consider, it was a week of activity and movement and crucial decision-making as we worked to ensure that we had every opportunity to advance good sound legislation to address the pressing needs of the People of Georgia.

We began the week by passing the Amended Fiscal Year (AFY) 2025 budget, fulfilling our constitutional duty with the final passage of House Bill 67. It prioritizes recovery efforts following Hurricane Helene. The storm’s widespread destruction prompted an urgent need for recovery, and this budget allocates critical funding to help rebuild affected communities. Set by a revenue estimate of $40.5 billion, including $2.7 billion in surplus funds, the budget provides a $4.4 billion increase, or 12.2%, over the original Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 budget. Notable allocations include $113 million for the Governor’s Emergency Fund to continue the state’s emergency response efforts, $50 million for debris removal and $285 million in disaster relief for farmers and timber producers. While Hurricane Helene relief is a top priority in the AFY 2025 budget, we also addressed the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) needs, it is also a key portion of this budget. HB 67 provides an infusion of $345.9 million for funding the department’s essential safety, security and technology upgrades. These upgrades are necessary to ensure the safety of both inmates and correctional staff, including $17.5 million for security technology to detect and prevent the introduction of contraband. The budget also prioritizes staffing and security, providing funds for new correctional officer positions. Additionally, $10.5 million will be allocated for new body cameras and tasers, enhancing safety for both officers and offenders. These tools will be linked to an Over Watch Logistics Unit (OWL), funded at $7.2 million, it will continuously monitor security cameras across the state, enabling a rapid response to disturbances. With a focus on immediate recovery and long-term restoration, this amended budget ensures that Georgia’s response to both Hurricane Helene and essential public safety needs is comprehensive. This funding is not only necessary but essential for rebuilding lives, homes and communities across Georgia. Governor Kemp signed the amended budget on Thursday after its final passage in the House and Senate.

A key focus in the House this week was prioritizing the state’s education system, safeguarding Georgia’s children and enhancing school safety. As a result, the House passed House Bill 268, a comprehensive measure to improve the safety, health and well-being of students and school communities across Georgia. HB 268 implements a range of initiatives to foster an environment where children can thrive without fear. The bill places an emphasis on improving the sharing of student records between schools and from state agencies. HB 268 would require schools to utilize an anonymous reporting app to give students a safe and confidential way to report concerns. Schools will be able to respond more quickly to the needs of at-risk students; it creates a mental health coordinator position in each school district, to connect students with available resources. Furthermore, HB 268 requires local schools to implement Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), suicide and youth violence prevention training, making sure students are not only protected but also equipped with the tools and resources to manage their behavior and emotions in a healthy manner. HB 268 would also create an Office of Safe Schools to provide resources and training to help schools foster safer environments, develop policies to prevent violence and, by July 1, 2026, coordinate with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) to develop a state-wide behavioral threat management process for local school systems and law enforcement agencies. These behavioral management teams (BTAM) would be trained on identifying behaviors that are known indicators of a youth at risk and possibly in need of supportive interventions or services. If a student poses a threat of harm, the BTAM team would immediately notify the superintendent, local law enforcement and the Office of School Safety. HB 268 will empower Georgia schools to be better prepared for emergencies, giving families peace of mind knowing that their children are safe at school and that effective plans are in place to protect and provide support services to Georgia’s students.

As the House prioritized public safety in schools this week, we also took up a bipartisan measure aimed at incentivizing safe, responsible firearm storage through the passage of House Bill 79, the Firearm Safe Handling and Secure Storage Tax Credit Act. This bill would introduce new provisions under Georgia law, offering taxpayers a credit of up to $300 for eligible expenses related to firearm safety training and secure storage devices. Proper firearm storage is crucial in preventing accidents, unauthorized access and theft. The tax credit program, with an annual aggregate cap of $3 million, would encourage responsible firearm ownership by providing financial incentives for individuals to participate in safety courses and invest in secure storage solutions. HB 79 would outline a clear path toward creating safer homes and communities across Georgia, reduce preventable tragedies and provide a cost-saving incentive for Georgians.

We also passed legislation to improve maternal health outcomes with House Bill 89, will enhance oversight and coordination of maternal care services. The bill would grant the Maternal Mortality Review Committee (MMRC) access to records of deceased mothers to better understand mental health’s role in maternal mortality. Mental health conditions are a leading cause of death in mothers, and by allowing the MMRC access to these records, the committee can make informed recommendations and policy decisions to improve future health outcomes for pregnant women. HB 89 would also establish the Regional Perinatal Center Advisory Committee to consider and make recommendations to the commissioner of the Department of Public Health (DPH) concerning the addition, reduction or transition of regional perinatal centers in the state. The advisory committee would be composed of between 11 and 21 members and appointed by the DPH for four-year terms. Beginning July 1, 2026, and every four years thereafter, DPH, in collaboration with the advisory committee, would review and make recommendations on the adequacy of the regional perinatal system and consider hospital and labor and delivery closures. Lastly, the bill would move deceased mothers’ autopsies under the scope of the Georgia Investigative Bureau or regular medical examiner offices, rather than perinatal facilities due to liability concerns. Currently, there are six perinatal centers across the state, and DPH has determined that they each require a review of their provided services. This committee would help ensure that we are doing everything we can to reduce maternal mortality cases in Georgia. It is critical, especially for mothers in underserved communities, to receive the care and support they need to successfully care for themselves and their babies.

The House fulfilled one of Governor Kemp’s legislative priorities this session with the passage of House Bill 112, which would provide a one-time income tax refund for taxpayers who filed returns for both the 2023 and 2024 tax years. This refund amount would be the lesser of their 2023 state income tax liability or a fixed amount determined by their filing status: $250 for single filers or married individuals filing separately, $375 for heads of household and $500 for married couples filing jointly. Taxable nonresidents and part-year residents would receive a prorated refund based on the portion of their income taxable in Georgia, as reported on their 2023 form. With an estimated total distribution of $7.6 million, the measure underscores the House’s commitment to returning taxpayers’ hard-earned money back into their pockets.

The House also unanimously passed House Bill 262, a measure to strengthen Georgia’s healthcare infrastructure, by creating a grant program to acquire and install backup generators for affected rural hospitals – acute care hospitals located in rural counties with fewer than 100 beds and located in any region where the governor declared a state of emergency after July 1, 2024. Under this legislation, the Department of Community Health, in collaboration with the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, would set grant criteria and make award decisions. These grant amounts would be determined on a case-by-case basis to best meet each hospital’s specific needs, with priority given to affected rural hospitals lacking backup generators and the means to install them. In response to vulnerabilities exposed by Hurricane Helene and other recent storms in our state, this legislation would ensure that rural healthcare facilities can continue to operate and provide uninterrupted essential medical services during power outages.

House Bill 465 also passed unanimously in the House this week and aims to protect missing individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). HB 465, the Autism Missing Person Alert System Act will add ASD to the list of conditions eligible for triggering the Mattie’s Call state-wide alert system. Established by the Georgia General Assembly in 2006, Mattie’s Call is an emergency missing alert for disabled or elderly persons, and this investigative tool can only be activated by a local law enforcement agency. By including autism spectrum disorder in the alert system, local law enforcement would be provided with vital guidance to prioritize searches in waterways and public roadways, areas where missing individuals with ASD may be more vulnerable. The unanimous passage of HB 465 reflects a strong commitment to enhancing safety and support for individuals with autism and their families.

This week, we and our colleagues actually passed two bills addressing school zone speed enforcement. The first bill was House Bill 225 it will completely remove automated school-zone speed cameras altogether, with the goal of outright banning unjust citations. The second bill House Bill 651 reforms school-zone speed enforcement by implementing greater transparency and a fairer citation process. This bill limits automated speed camera operation to a four-hour window around school starting and dismissal times and enforce a 10-mph buffer above the school-zone speed limit before a citation is issued. Proper signage, including flashing yellow lights and radar speed detectors, would also be in place to ensure drivers receive clear warnings. A key change in this bill is the redistribution of civil citation revenue, with 50% of funds going directly toward school safety measures. The remaining revenue would still support local governments, but there would be greater accountability so that citation funds are not funneled to improper uses by private companies and local governments. Under this bill, the first offense would be $75 and the second offense $125, and the bill removes the previously stated $25 administrative fee. Furthermore, the bill would remove provisions that allowed unpaid citations to affect vehicle tag renewals and reinforce a driver’s right to contest citations in court. Lastly, the bill would require the Department of Public Safety to review speed enforcement measures on state highways, with the goal of preventing unwarranted fines. The House sent both bills to the Senate for its consideration in hopes that at least one of the two bills will receive final passage to address the House’s desire to reform this practice.

Along with other members of the House your South Georgia Delegation was busy moving their legislation. Representative Joe Campbell successfully passed HB 618 a bill for consumer protection. It requires sellers of real property to make certain disclosure regarding flood damage to such real property.

Representative Darlene Taylor saw two bills passed on Crossover Day, HB 250 the Small Business Benefit Act; it, requires the Department of Labor to establish regulations and registration policies for professional employer organizations (PEO). The bill would outline a fee cap and structure for each application type. Any person administering professional employer services who violate this Code could be subject to a penalty of no more than $2,000 for each violation. Temporary help contracting firms and individuals who are not a PEO but share employees with a commonly owned corporation, trade or business related to Section 414(b) and (c) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 would be exempt from this Code section;

This week Representative Chas Cannon also had two bills favorably passed out of the House, they are HB 129 it amends state law related to bona fide conservation use property to allow property leased by a corporation, partnership, general partnership, limited partnership or corporation or a limited liability company to qualify as bona fide conservation use property if it meets the following conditions: entity would be owned by at least one natural or naturalized citizens. and the primary purpose of the property is related to production of agricultural or timber products; also, HB 244, which makes adjustments to local government audit requirements, depending on total expenditures by such local government entity. The bill would require specified county officers to cooperate with the county government in the preparation of required financial statements and audits, which would be subject to specified waivers;

The House will reconvene at the State Capitol on Monday, March 10^th for Legislative Day 29. With Crossover Day behind us, the House will now begin to considering legislation that passed in the Senate and vice versa. With Sine Die approaching on April 4^th, we encourage you to reach out with any questions or concerns about the bills currently under consideration. Please feel free to schedule a phone call or visit the State Capitol so we can discuss the issues that matter most to you and your family. You can reach Rep. Darlene Taylor may be reached at her office in the Capital Building 245-B or via email at darlene.taylor@house.ga.gov or by phone at (404) 463-2246 and Rep. Chas Canon, his office is 501-C Coverdell Legislative Office or via email at chas.cannon@house.ga.gov or by phone at: (404) 656-0177. The General Assembly returned to the Gold Dome on Monday, March 3^rd for the the busiest week of the 2025 legislative session. Crossover Day, a critical deadline for legislation to move from one chamber to the other occurred on Thursday, March 6^th. The House worked late into the evening, passing a record 75 bills and resolutions on Crossover Day. They now await consideration in the Senate. With many bills to consider, it was a week of activity and movement and crucial decision-making as we worked to ensure that we had every opportunity to advance good sound legislation to address the pressing needs of the People of Georgia.

We passed the following House bills by week 8 which will now enter the Senate for consideration. As they pass, they will be sent to the Governor. Once the Governor signs the legislation that is not vetoed, it will be enacted. Conversely, the Senate also has a list of bills that made it through Crossover Day that will go to the House for a vote and then on to the Governor.

House Bill 37, which would amend state law to require local school systems to notify new hires whether Social Security taxes would be withheld from employee’s paychecks beginning July 1, 2025. Every five years and upon separation of employment, the school system would be required to remind employees whether Social Security taxes would be withheld from the employee’s pay during employment;
House Bill 52, which would amend state law relating to homestead exemptions for qualified disabled veterans, which would allow the un-remarried surviving spouse or minor children of a disabled veteran to continue receiving the homestead exemption granted to the disabled veteran, regardless of whether the un-remarried surviving spouse or minor children relocate to any other county in the state. The bill is required to receive a 2/3 majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate and subsequently be approved by Georgia voters during the general election held in November 2026;
House Bill 54, which would authorize a licensed physician assistant to order home health care under the supervision of a licensed physician;
House Bill 56, which would expand eligibility for the Public Safety Memorial Grant to include spouses of law enforcement officers, firefighters, prison guards, emergency medical technicians or highway response operators who have died or been permanently disabled in the line of duty. The bill would increase the maximum award amount from $2,000 per academic year to $18,000 per academic year and would increase the lifetime award amount from $8,000 to $72,000. The bill would provide for the distribution of grants to the child or spouse of a public school teacher or public school employee who has been killed or permanently disabled by an act of violence in the line of duty. Eligible students attending an approved school would receive no more than $18,000 per academic year, with a maximum total award amount of $72,000;
House Bill 77, which would revise right-of-way procedures for funeral processions by requiring the operator of every vehicle not participating in a funeral procession and who are on any two-lane highway to yield the right-of-way to the procession. The bill would also require both lead and rear vehicles in the procession to display flashing hazard lights;
House Bill 87, which states all benefits policies renewed on or after January 1, 2026, would include coverage for orthotic devices and prosthetic devices that are medically necessary for the following: activities of daily living, essential job-related activities, personal hygiene-related activities and physical activities. Coverage would be provided for no more than three orthotic devices or prosthetic devices per affected limb per covered person during any three-year period. Coverage considered as habilitative or rehabilitative benefits would be comparable to coverage for other medical and surgical benefits, could be subject to the same cost-sharing requirements that apply to other medical devices and could be limited for out-of-network providers. The bill would require the commissioner to submit a report to the House Insurance Committee and the Senate Insurance and Labor Committee regarding the implementation of coverage by July 1, 2032;
House Bill 91, which would allow graduates of a foreign veterinary medicine school who would be able to submit a transcript, who have completed a residency program of two or more years and have received board certification from a veterinary medicine organization recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association, American Board of Veterinary Specialties or other American Veterinary Medical Association board-approved organizations, to be able to apply for a veterinary license in Georgia. A graduate could additionally submit an Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduates (ECFVG) certificate or its equivalent, a Program for the Assessment of Veterinary Education Equivalence (PAVE) certificate or its equivalent or any other document authorized by the State Board of Veterinary Medicine. The bill would not prohibit someone licensed in this way from lecturing or giving instructions in their certified veterinary medicine specialty;
House Bill 111, which would amend state law relating to individual income tax rates to lower the individual income tax rate effective on January 1, 2025, from 5.39 percent to 5.19 percent;
House Bill 127, which would increase the number of personal days school personnel may utilize accumulated sick leave for from three days to five days;
House Bill 129, which would amend state law related to bona fide conservation use property to allow property leased by a corporation, partnership, general partnership, limited partnership or corporation or a limited liability company to qualify as bona fide conservation use property if it meets the following conditions: entity would be owned by at least one natural or naturalized citizen and the primary purpose of the property is related to production of agricultural or timber products;
House Bill 141, which would amend state law relating to businesses or practitioners with locations in more than one jurisdiction, which would allow for affidavits of certified public accountants that would be provided in lieu of tax returns;
House Bill 144, which would amend state law relating to tax credits for medical preceptor rotations and would add licensed dentists to the eligible professions to receive a tax credit as a community-based faculty preceptor. The credit would be changed to be $1,000 for each preceptorship rotation completed by a physician or licensed dentist in a calendar year and $750 for each preceptorship rotation completed in a calendar year by an advanced practice registered nurse. The credit would not exceed an aggregate cap of $6 million per year, and the sunset date would be changed from December 31, 2026, to December 31, 2030;
House Bill 150, which would create the Combating Threats from Foreign Countries of Concern Act of 2025 – Higher Education. The bill would require the university system to submit a quarterly report to the governor and the chairs of the House and Senate Higher Education Committees detailing the funding received by the system from a foreign country of concern, a foreign entity of concern or a foreign individual of concern;
House Bill 154, which would designate ambulance services as an essential service;
House Bill 159, which would revise the outstanding bond limit for the Georgia Housing and Finance Authority from $3 billion to $6 billion;
House Bill 161, which would revise the statute that allows the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) to subpoena computers or electronic devices to include investigations of Title 16, Chapter 9, Article 8 (Identity Fraud) and O.C.G.A. 16-9-93 (Computer Crimes), 16-10-28 (Transmitting a False Public Alarm), 16-11-37 (Terroristic Threats and Acts), 16-11-39.1 (Harassing Communications) and 16-11-221 (Domestic Terrorism – Penalties). The bill would allow a court to find someone in contempt if they fail to obey these subpoenas and would restrict the subpoena from becoming public during the investigation or prosecution beyond the extent necessary for the issuance and compliance of the subpoena. This would also remove the specific references to Code sections when the GBI can provide information in furtherance of a federal, local or state criminal investigation so that it would apply to all criminal investigations;
House Bill 165, which would amend state law relating to the computation of taxable net income which would allow for an amount equal to the net disaster loss as defined by Section 304(b) of Title III of Division EE of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, P.L.116-260, as amended by Section 2 of the Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023, P.L. 118-148, which would be deducted in addition to the standard deductions provided for in this Code section;
House Bill 175, which would amend state law to require comprehensive background checks for employees of early care and education programs and Head Start programs. The bill would provide for revocation and nonissue of licenses and commissions for early care and education programs for noncompliance;
House Bill 179, which would allow the transcript of evidence and proceedings in certain felony, all misdemeanor proceedings and all civil cases to be either reported and prepared by a court reporter or, in the judge’s discretion, to be recorded with a digital recording system according to uniform court rules adopted by the Supreme Court with the advice and consent of affected trial courts. A district attorney may also use a digital recording system to record grand jury proceedings. The court reporter would complete the transcript and provide a certificate attesting to the correctness of the transcript. The recording would not be considered the record of the proceeding unless transcribed and certified;
House Bill 180, which would require candidates for the office of probate court judge in counties with a population of 90,000 or more to file a supplemental affidavit stating they would satisfy the additional qualifications specific to counties of 90,000 or more (must be 30 years of age, a member of good standing of the State Bar of Georgia and have practiced law for seven years) as currently set forth in state law;
House Bill 185, which would replace the Dietetics Practice Act with the Dietetics and Nutrition Act. The Georgia Board of Examiners of Licensed Dietitians would be renamed the Georgia Board of Examiners of Licensed Dietitian Nutritionists and Licensed Nutritionists. The board would consist of nine members appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate;
House Bill 186, which would amend state law relating to alternative ad valorem taxation of motor vehicles and title ad valorem tax fees and would eliminate the application of a state title ad valorem tax fee on a motor vehicle inherited upon the death of an immediate family member;
House Bill 197, which would implement a callback telecommunications system for peer-to-peer communications in the event a clinical peer would not be available upon first contact effort;
House Bill 200, which would amend state law and provide for the State Board of Education to establish a three-year pilot immersive writing program for eligible public elementary schools for students in grades two through five. The bill would provide for applicants to participate in the pilot program and would provide for assessment and reporting on the impacts of the pilot program. The bill would also authorize the State Board of Education to promulgate rules and regulations to implement the pilot program;
House Bill 217, which would extend the Dual Achievement pilot program sunset date to July 1, 2031. The bill would provide for the distribution of Quality Basic Education (QBE) formula earnings from the State Board of Education to the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) board based on the number of eligible students participating in the program;
House Bill 219, which would authorize both the Georgia Composite Board of Professional Counselors, Social Workers and Marriage and Family Therapists and the Georgia Board of Nursing to establish a professional health program that would monitor and provide rehabilitation services to impaired healthcare professionals. A healthcare professional who participates in this program would be required to pay the costs associated with the program. Any company or entity that contracts with one of the boards to administer the program would be immune from any civil or criminal liability incurred through its operation of the program. Both sections of the bill would be contingent upon appropriation by the General Assembly, although both boards would be permitted to accept and solicit private funding or public grants;
House Bill 224, which would authorize the Georgia Department of Transportation to construct or maintain a private road on a military base or military installation when done through agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense and when paid for by the Department of Defense;
House Bill 229, which would amend state law relating to exemptions from sales and use taxes by exempting the purchase of qualifying construction materials used in capital outlay projects for educational purposes from local sales and use taxes. Eligible capital outlay projects would be those funded using a sales tax for education purposes as authorized by the constitution of Georgia. Local school systems must have a base year value or adjusted base year value homestead exemption in effect to receive this exemption. All sales and use tax would be paid and collected as is required by Code. A school system would be able to claim the exemption by requesting a refund from the Department of Revenue. Any refund received by a school system would be held in a fund or account for capital outlay projects and would be used for education purposes as authorized by the Georgia constitution;
House Bill 235, which would amend state law, known as the Georgia Supporting Living Donor Educators Act, to require employers of school employees, teachers and postsecondary employees to provide leaves of absence for the donation of bone marrow and organs;
House Bill 238, which would require the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council to create and maintain an at-risk adult training course focusing on officer response to individuals with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia;
House Bill 244, which would make adjustments to local government audit requirements, depending on total expenditures by such local government entity. The bill would require specified county officers to cooperate with the county government in the preparation of required financial statements and audits, which would be subject to specified waivers;
House Bill 248, which would create an income tax credit of $5,000 per year for up to five years per dwelling for eligible expenses related to installation of geothermal machinery in a residential dwelling. The tax credit would not exceed $25,000 per dwelling and would be repealed on December 31, 2031. The aggregate cap for the program would be $2.5 million per year. The bill would be effective on July 1, 2025, and applicable beginning on January 1, 2026;
House Bill 250, which would require the Department of Labor to establish regulations and registration policies for professional employer organizations (PEO). The bill would outline a fee cap and structure for each application type. The initial fee for a PEO and a PEO group would not exceed $500, and the renewal fee would not exceed $250. For limited and temporary registration, the fee for a PEO could not exceed $250 and not exceed $250 per member for a PEO group. Any person administering professional employer services who violate this Code could be subject to a penalty of no more than $2,000 for each violation. Temporary help contracting firms and individuals who are not a PEO but share employees with a commonly owned corporation, trade or business related to Section 414(b) and (c) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 would be exempt from this Code section;
House Bill 255, which would create two special license plates: one would honor Southern University Alumni, with funds raised disbursed to the Atlanta Metropolitan Chapter of Southern University Alumni Federation of Georgia, Inc. and one would honor Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., with funds raised disbursed to the Delta Life Development Center;
House Bill 266, which would amend Georgia law relating to the computation of taxable net income to exclude $35,000 of income related to military retirement benefits for retired military members under 65, beginning in tax year 2027. The amount would increase $5,000 per year until reaching $65,000;
House Bill 270, which would allow a judge or clerk in the relevant court to grant and issue a summons to a sheriff, lawful constable or approved process server;
House Bill 288, which would require that a prosecuting attorney, when placing an officer on a Giglio list, to notify both the officer and the Peace Officers Standards and Training Council for review. The bill would allow for request for reconsideration of that action. The Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council would develop the policies and procedures for notification;
House Bill 290, which would provide the annual Internal Revenue Code update to Georgia Code and would revise definitions found in state law. The updates would be applicable to tax years on or after January 1, 2024, for relevant federal laws passed on or before January 1, 2025;
House Bill 291, which would create the Georgia Community Health Worker Certification Committee, which would be comprised of 11 voting members with specializations as outlined in the bill and two nonvoting members who are representatives of the Department of Public Health. The committee would approve certified community health worker training programs, and all community health workers would be required to be certified by the committee;
House Bill 296, which would clarify language in state law relating to poll workers to denote that a Georgia driver’s license must be in physical format and issued by the Department of Driver Services. The bill would clarify language in state law relating to hunting, fishing and trapping licenses to denote physical driver’s licenses being required to identify an individual. The bill would further allow licensees who are required to present their license to a law enforcement officer who possesses proper equipment to show them their electronic format-issued license. The bill would note that by July 1, 2027, all law enforcement officers would acquire equipment that can verify electronic licenses;
House Bill 297, which would amend state law relating to the definitions of motor vehicles and traffic to change the definition of multipurpose off-highway vehicle to mean any self-propelled, motorized vehicle originally intended for off-highway use and to not include any all-terrain vehicles, low-speed vehicles, passenger cars or personal transportation vehicles. Additionally, the bill would create new state law to exempt multipurpose off-highway vehicles from ad valorem taxation, beginning on January 1, 2025;
House Bill 304, which would create the Georgia Municipal Court Clerks’ Council as an institution that would be designed to improve municipal courts, assist municipal court staff and would assist in training new municipal court staff. The council would be a state agency comprised of the municipal court staff of all state municipal courts. The council would be authorized to elect officers and an executive committee;
House Bill 309, which would require that a county police force created by referendum also be abolished by referendum;
House Bill 314, which would revise the definition of an athletic injury, regarding athletic trainers, which would be a condition sustained as a result of a person’s participation in activities requiring physical strength, agility, flexibility, range of motion, speed or stamina, regardless of where or how the injury occurred. The bill would also clarify that an athletic training student could conduct certain duties while under the direct supervision of a physician or licensed athletic trainer so long as the athletic trainer or physician would be physically present in the facility where the athletic training student would be operating. Further, the bill would revise the certifying organization that allows the Georgia Board of Athletic Trainers to grant a license to the Board of Certification for the athletic trainer;
House Bill 322, which would create an additional provision for dental school teaching applicants to accomplish before submitting a teaching application to the Georgia Board of Dentistry;
House Bill 323, which would allow for Medicare policies to be issued and renewed for individuals under 65 years of age who are eligible due to disability or end stage renal disease;
House Bill 325, which would allow a member of the state organized militia who alleges stalking by another member of the organized militia to seek a protective order, and subject matter jurisdiction would be established by evidence that a nexus would exist between the alleged conduct constituting stalking and the organized militia. The military judge may grant a protective order on a temporary or permanent basis or approve a consent agreement and may punish a party’s disobedience with contempt;
House Bill 327, which would make comprehensive revisions to the law of wills, probate, administration of estates, guardianships, trusts and powers of attorney as it would pertain to fiduciary law. The bill would add a duty by the executor of an estate to notify beneficiaries of an estate with a will that the will is being probated, as well as the name and mailing address of the executor within six months after qualifying as the executor. The bill would also revise statute related to trusts by allowing trusts to be in electronic form and signed by electronic signature, as well as changing the statute of limitations for breach of trust actions to two years from the date on which a document disclosing the existence of a claim is sent to a trust beneficiary. The bill would make further revisions to trust law, including who can serve as a trust director, the governance of particular trusts and the fiduciary duties of trustees. The bill would revise provisions with respect to the determination of heirs, inheritance involving nonmarital children and assisted reproduction;
House Bill 328, which would amend Georgia law relating to tax credits for student scholarship organizations to increase the aggregate amount of tax credits allowed from $120 million to $140 million. A carry-forward provision allowing for any unused credit to be carried forward for three years would be eliminated. Any amount that has been preapproved but not contributed could be applied for and disbursed by the Department of Revenue at 95 percent of the amount otherwise allowed by this Code section;
House Bill 331, which would make it unlawful for any individual to engage in the transfer of a dog, cat or domestic rabbit in public spaces including roadsides, public right of ways, parkways, medians, public or commercial parking lots or sidewalks, parks, recreation areas, fairs, transient and seasonal flea markets or other transient markets and outdoor locations. This would not apply to people or entities that may be able to produce a valid animal shelter license, transfers at a residence or veterinary office, transfers as part of an event sanctioned by certain agricultural exhibitions or prearranged transfers that take place at law enforcement facilities. Violators could be fined no more than $100 for the first offense, $250 for the second offense and $500 for third or subsequent offenses;
House Bill 339, which would exempt ride share network services from liability for any injury to persons or damage to property committed by a ride share driver, provided that there has been no negligence or criminal misconduct by the ride share network service, the ride share network service is in compliance with the law regarding ride share drivers and the ride share network service obtains a background check for each ride share driver at least once every two years;
House Bill 340, which would amend state law to enact the Distraction-Free Education Act. The bill would require local school systems and public schools to enact policies and procedures for use of personal electronic devices at school and school-sponsored events by students in kindergarten through eighth grade by July 1, 2026. The bill would provide for permissible student use of personal electronic devices and school electronic devices and would authorize the Department of Education to provide guidance and technical assistance;
House Bill 348, which would define the term sponsor and would further clarify a sponsor’s role in supporting and funding limited purpose subsidiaries and captive insurance companies;
House Bill 351, which would pertain to solid waste management systems and the Board of Natural Resources. In the case that a solid waste management facility has been identified for future use, an applicant would submit written verification from its host local government that identifies the facility, describes its location by tax parcel identification number, states that the facility complies with local zoning if applicable and states that the facility is developed in accordance with state law. The bill would further require the host local government to notify the public at least 14 days and again at least seven days prior to a public meeting that details the new solid waste facility. Language relating to the Department of Community Affairs would be replaced with the Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division;
House Bill 358, which would define military installation for purposes of prohibiting land possession by certain foreign persons or entities as a facility owned and operated by a branch of the U.S. Armed Forces that would shelter military equipment and personnel and facilitates training and operations for those branches;
House Bill 360, which would amend state law relating to tax credits for the rehabilitation of historic structures and would allow a taxpayer preapproved by the commissioner of the Department of Revenue to claim credits in tax year 2027, 2028 or 2029 for certified structures other than historic homes to receive the credit during tax year 2026. A taxpayer would be required to obtain a certificate of occupancy for the structure by December 31, 2026, to qualify, and eligible properties would have to be located within a 10-mile radius of the Cabbagetown Historic District;
House Bill 369, which would require motor vehicles used for the sale of food or beverages that stop on roadways to be equipped with a signal arm with a yellow triangle that would contain the word “caution,” “slow” or “children” and a sign mounted on the vehicle’s rear warning of “frequent stops.” The Department of Public Safety would be authorized to adopt rules and regulations concerning this Code section and provisions would be effective beginning January 1, 2026;
House Bill 370, which would amend state law relating to ad valorem property tax bill forms and would require school districts that opt out of the statewide base year homestead exemption provided for in state law to include on the ad valorem property tax bill the amount of reserve funds held by the opted-out school district as of January 1 of that tax year and, provided the school district has not adopted a base year value homestead exemption through local legislation, language stating that the school district opted out of the statewide base year homestead exemption;
House Bill 371, which would amend state law relating to capital outlay funds generally under the Quality Basic Education Act. The bill would provide for an increase of the state’s maximum authorization of capital outlay funding from $300 million to $375 million annually;
House Bill 378, which would require state court clerks to publish and maintain information and dates regarding terms of court prominently on its public website;
House Bill 384, which would specify that for the Violation of Oath by Public Officer law, which carries an existing penalty of imprisonment of one to five years, peace officers could only be subject to prosecution under the Code section for violations of their oath. No officer would be subject to prosecution for violation of their oath of office under the Code section unless the violation is predicated on the commission of a felony. Section 2 would amend state law to create a specific oath that all officers would take after July 1, 2025. The oath would be before the chief executive officer of the agency or any authorized judicial official, and that oath would be filed in and entered into the records of that agency. Agencies could add additional language, although it would be aspirational only and of no legal effect in any criminal proceeding. This would also make any aspirational language that would be added have no legal effect in any civil or criminal proceeding;

House Bill 397, which would allow for the removal of a State Election Board member at any time the General Assembly is in session by a majority vote, or at any time the General Assembly is not in session by the president of the Senate or the speaker of the House. A State Election Board member appointed to fill a vacancy could be removed in the same manner as a member elected by the General Assembly;
House Bill 398, which would create a new article within Title 26 of state law relating to cottage food items, operators and production operations. A cottage food operator would only operate so long as they are in compliance with this article and cottage food production operations would sell directly to consumers or to retail food establishments. Violations of compliance within this article or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant to this article would be given a civil penalty of no more than $75 per violation. The Department of Agriculture would be authorized to inspect the area in a residence used by a cottage food operator in order to investigate a consumer complaint;
House Bill 399, which would require out-of-state landlords owning or operating 25 or more rental properties in the state to employ a licensed broker, that may or may not reside in this state, and at least one person located within the state for purposes of managing and responding to communications from the landlord’s tenants related to property issues;
House Bill 406, which would allow a member of the Judicial Retirement System (JRS) to retire at age 60, but the retirement allowance would be reduced by any time served as a superior court judge. Once the member reaches 65, their retirement allowance would be adjusted to reflect all their years of creditable service earned as a member of JRS. The bill is certified by the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts as a non-fiscal retirement bill;
House Bill 413, which would prohibit counties, municipalities, consolidated governments or other political subdivisions from restricting the use of mobile sawmills on agricultural land. Waste produced by sawing logs would be considered agricultural products, which may include sawdust, bark and slab materials;
House Bill 416, which would amend state law relating to enterprise zone criteria to restrict annual enterprise zone infrastructure fees assessed by local governing bodies to being assessed only on retailers that are qualifying businesses or service enterprises receiving a sale and use tax exemption for being located within a designated enterprise zone. The bill would amend state law relating to time limitations for enterprise zones to change the start of the 30-year duration of an enterprise zone authorized by state law from beginning at the completion of the redevelopment project and retiring of any revenue bonds related to the project to the first issuance of a bond with a principal amount of at least $100,000;
House Bill 425, which would create a state law that would provide for a tax credit to be utilized for the purchase and installation of an emergency power generator, a transfer switch or switches or lines or fuel tanks needed to provide power to a generator. The tax credit would only be claimed by eligible convenience stores or skilled nursing facilities. The credit would not exceed $5,000 per tax year for no more than five taxable years and would have an aggregate cap of $5 million. The credit would be provided for qualified expenditures made between July 1, 2025, and December 31, 2026, and could not be for an amount that exceeds the taxpayer’s income tax liability. The credit would need to be claimed on the taxpayer’s 2026 tax return. A convenience store would be defined as a retail establishment that sells packaged or unprepared food or grocery items and has less than 10,000 square feet of retail floor space. A single corporate entity could not claim the credit for more than five of its establishment. A skilled nursing facility would be defined as an institution that provides inpatient skilled nursing care for individuals requiring medical or nursing care or rehabilitation services. The program would stand repealed on December 31, 2031;
House Bill 426, which would provide for the nonpartisan election of probate and magistrate judges;
House Bill 429, which would create a state law to exempt motor vehicles owned before March 1, 2013, from an annual ad valorem tax. The bill would become effective on January 1, 2027;
House Bill 430, which would clarify that a non-resident who is on their state’s sex offender registry, at the time of changing residences, would be required to register on Georgia’s sex offender registry when moving into this state. Petitions for release from sex offender registration requirements would be served on the sheriff and the chief superior court judge of the county of intended residence. The local court would be required to hold a hearing on these petitions if requested by the sheriff or chief superior judge of the county of intended residence. The court would also be required to send a copy of any order releasing a person from sex offender registration requirements to the sheriff of the county of intended residence;
House Bill 432, which would introduce a Georgia turkey stamp, which residents of the state could receive at no cost. Non-residents aged 16 and older who wish to hunt turkey in Georgia would be required to obtain this stamp for $100 in addition to their hunting license;
House Bill 433, which would authorize the Department of Human Services to have access to restricted and sealed information at the Georgia Crime Information Center to verify eligibility for prospective, existing foster parents or adults in the home of such foster parents, as well as to verify eligibility for prospective and existing employees and contractors;
House Bill 439, which would revise state law regarding deductions allowed to dealers by allowing a deduction of three percent on the first $10,000 of the combined total amount of all sales and use taxes reported, rather than the first $3,000;
House Bill 443, which would establish an annual fee for reef and migratory fish endorsements to regulate both recreational and commercial off-shore fishing. The bill would specify that an annual fee of $10 for Georgia residents and a $20 fee for non-residents who participate in off-shore fishing would be required;
House Bill 445, which would amend state law relating to the annual notice of current assessment, contents, posting notice and new assessment description by requiring that the option to appeal directly to a hearing officer for tangible personal property with a fair market value of greater than $200,000 be included on the notice of assessment. The bill would amend state law, relating to county boards of equalization, duties, review of assessments and appeals by allowing a taxpayer with tangible personal property having a fair market value greater than $200,000 to appeal directly to a hearing officer. A former or current appraiser IV or chief appraiser could serve as a hearing officer for taxable personal property other than wireless property following the submission of an application, a list of counties within which the hearing officer is willing to serve and a resume to the Georgia Real Estate Commission and the Georgia Real Estate Appraisers Board. The hearing officer could not serve in the county of which they previously served as an appraiser IV or chief appraiser;
House Bill 447, which would create three new sets of criminal penalties for gift card theft, forgery and fraud. Gift card theft would be committed when either A) a person has intent to defraud and acquires or retains possession of a gift card or gift card redemption information without consent of the cardholder, card issuer or gift card seller; B) a person has intent to defraud and uses, for the purposes of obtaining money, goods, services or anything else of value, a gift card or gift card information that has been obtained in violation of subsections (b), (c) or (d) of the Code section. Gift card forgery would be committed when a person has intent to defraud and alters or tampers with a gift card or its packaging. Gift card fraud would be committed when a person has intent to defraud and devises a scheme to obtain a gift card or gift card information from a cardholder, card issuer or gift card seller by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations or promises. A person convicted of any violation of these new crimes would be imprisoned for between one and 10 years and a maximum fine of $5,000;
House Bill 449, which would create definitions for covered water system, service water, water services and water systems and would restrict covered water companies from having an increase of 15 percent or more in their rates or charges. If their rates or charges do increase by 15 percent or more from the lowest amount of such rate or charge over a period of three years, a hearing by the Public Service Commission would be in order. The commission would be further allowed to produce rules and regulations and would conduct regular assessments over covered water companies;
House Bill 451, which would amend the Quality Basic Education Act to allow local school boards to offer hunting safety instruction for students in grades six through 12. Each local board of education would also be authorized to establish curriculum for hunter safety instruction based on the hunter education courses offered by the Department of Natural Resources. The State Board of Education would adopt instructional standards no later than April 1, 2026;
House Bill 454, which would be known as The Vince Dooley Battlefield Trust Fund Act and would establish a dedicated trust fund that would support the preservation of historic battlefields in Georgia. Administered by the Department of Natural Resources, the fund would receive money from state appropriations, grants and private donations to provide matching grants for purchasing or protecting battlefield lands. Organizations applying for grants must provide matching contributions and meet specific criteria related to historical significance, proximity to other protected lands and threats to preservation;
House Bill 455, which would allow applicants to conduct bingo games at multiple locations and clarifies that these games could be played on property leased by the non-profit, tax-exempt organization and which could be used for purposes other than the operation of a bingo game. Further, the bill would allow a licensee to operate 31 bingo sessions per month and would award a maximum of $6,000 in cash or gifts of equivalent value. The maximum amount that could be paid to individuals assisting in the operation of bingo games would be increased to $150 per session;
House Bill 460, which would specify that communications between an attorney and their client that are made when a client is in a penal institution would be subject to attorney-client privilege, in response to the Supreme Court of Georgia’s decision in Burns v. State (2024). Each penal institution would be required to provide access to a nonrecording telephonic or electronic device for a client held in custody to communicate with their attorney. The contents of any wire, oral or electronic communication intercepted or any evidence derived from that interception would not be received in evidence or otherwise disclosed at trial, hearing or other proceeding in state court unless each party (at least 10 days before) has been furnished with a copy of the court order under which the interception was authorized. Any aggrieved person in any trial, hearing or proceeding could move to suppress the contents of any wire, oral or electronic communication intercepted or evidence derived therefrom on the grounds that: A) the communication was unlawfully intercepted; B) the order of authorization was insufficient on its face; or C) the interception was not made in conformity with the order of authorization or approval. The motion would be made before the trial, hearing or proceeding commences unless there was no opportunity to make the motion or the person was not aware of the grounds of the motion. If granted, the contents or any evidence derived therefrom would be in violation of the law. The judge would have discretion to make available to the individual’s counsel for inspection the portions of the intercepted communication or evidence derived therefrom, as the judge determines to be in the interests of justice;
House Bill 463, which would create a state law to allow for a local government to adopt an ordinance to allow senior citizens to claim an additional homestead exemption in exchange for volunteer work defined by the local entity. The ordinance must include the following information: the maximum dollar amount for the exemption that can be provided, not to exceed $500; the maximum number of senior citizens that can claim the exemption; the hourly rate at which the exemption can be earned, not to exceed $10 per hour; the date an application will be due for the exemption; and the types of volunteer work eligible for the exemption. A senior citizen would be defined as a person of at least 65 years of age on January 1 of the related tax year. The exemption would apply to taxable years beginning on January 1, 2027. The bill would require a favorable 2/3 vote of both the Senate and House of Representatives and a statewide referendum;
House Bill 466, which would designate the Marsh Tacky horse as the official heritage horse breed of Georgia;
House Bill 471, which would require hospitals and birthing centers to provide a water safety education video to parents or guardians on site after the delivery of an infant. The video would be developed by the Department of Community Health;
House Bill 473, which would add certain drugs to the Code sections defining Schedule I controlled substances and would define dangerous drugs;
House Bill 483, which would add a definition for ‘inspector of code enforcement,’ which would include those employed by or under contract with cities and counties who inspect buildings and businesses to ensure they are in compliance with the law. The bill would also add inspectors to the list of the enhanced penalties for simple assault, aggravated assault, simple battery, battery and aggravated battery;
House Bill 484, which would permit the publishing of the Georgia Laws to be electronic or in hardbound volumes. The Code Revision Commission would be charged with providing assistance and oversight of the digitization and electronic publication of the Georgia Laws in a permanent digital repository;
House Bill 485, which would repeal provisions of Georgia law enacted which would be contingent upon funding and remain unfunded, as well as provisions that have been found unconstitutional. Provisions where portions were found unconstitutional would be repealed and reenacted. Terminology would be amended to conform to other definitions in law;
House Bill 491, which would remove a sunset date related to hunting wildlife with an air gun. The bill would also make it unlawful to take any catfish species from state waters using a bow and arrow except under certain conditions;
House Bill 494, which would restrict individuals from operating mopeds on highways unless the moped is insured;
House Bill 506, which would require the Department of Community Health to provide Medicaid coverage for tobacco cessation treatment. Coverage would not limit one’s number of tobacco cessation attempts;
House Bill 511, which would create a state law to allow for the creation of a catastrophe savings account to be used during qualifying catastrophic events. The account would be a savings or money market account and could only be used for catastrophic weather events declared a disaster or emergency by the state’s governor. A qualifying expense would either be an insurance deductible and any expenses related to the qualifying damage to a taxpayer’s primary residence that are not covered by insurance. The contribution limits would be set at no more than $2,000 if a taxpayer’s deductible is less than $1,000; twice the taxpayer’s deductible for deductibles over $1,000, up to $25,000 or up to $250,000 if a taxpayer is self-insured. A taxpayer would be granted a deduction on contributions to the account, interest income would be exempt from tax and excluded from the taxpayer’s income when making a qualifying distribution from the account;
House Bill 513, which would provide for the use of additional funding sources related to county services jointly funded by the county and one or more municipalities. The bill would require the county to provide an annual report of the funding of such jointly funded services;
House Bill 515, which would increase the number of superior court judges in the Augusta Judicial Circuit from five to six. The additional judge would be appointed for a term beginning January 1, 2026, through December 31, 2028, with their successor elected at the 2028 nonpartisan judicial election;
House Bill 516, which would allow county and regional library boards and community service boards to conduct meetings via teleconference;
House Bill 521, which would provide for the deannexation of property owned by a county. The bill would provide that proposed annexations by application of 100 percent of affected landowners in counties that meet specified criteria would be contingent upon the adoption of a resolution by the governing authority of the impacted county;
House Bill 529, which relates to the Georgia Online Automatic Renewal Transparency Act and would allow consumers to have the option for a service contract to end after its specified period rather than being subject to an automatic renewal. The option to terminate a service contract after its specified period would be outlined in writing, which would be signed by both seller and consumer. State law would be revised to reflect service contracts of more than one year having automatic renewal enforceable if the consumer has received written or electronic acknowledgement of renewal and the consumer has provided an affirmative written or electronic response that they do not wish to terminate their contract. The service provider would also inform the consumer of an increase in any charge on automatic renewals. Certain entities would be exempt from this chapter, and further Code sections would have minor language changes to create continuity with this new section. Automatic renewal violations of provisions within the Georgia Online Automatic Renewal Transparency Act would render service contracts void;
House Bill 530, which would require all probate courts on or before January 1, 2028, to provide electronic filing of all pleadings and any other documents related to civil matters in probate court. A court’s electronic filing service provider may charge a fee not to exceed $30 per filer per case, in addition to a convenience fee for credit card and bank drafting services. A portion of the transaction fee would be retained by the probate court and remitted to the local governing authority. An attorney would be allowed unlimited access to view and download electronically filed documents, and the judge and their staff would have access to all electronically filed pleadings and documents;
House Bill 531, which would be known as the Municipal Sovereign Immunity Act and would subject municipal tort claims to the limitations on liability of the state found in The Georgia Tort Claims Act, where no claimant would recover a sum exceeding $3 million from a single occurrence, and a municipality’s aggregate liability per occurrence would not exceed $5 million. Caps on liability would not be disclosed or suggested to the jury during the trial. No award for damages would include punitive or exemplary damages or interest prior to judgment and where a judgment is obtained, the judgment would bear interest at an annual rate of seven percent. Claims would be presented to the municipality within 12 months of the occurring event;
House Bill 532, which would amend state law relating to annual grants for state-owned property and annual grants for counties with 20,000 or more acres of unimproved land owned by the Department of Natural Resources and would eliminate language that prohibited counties from receiving grant funding from both programs in any given year;
House Bill 535, which would address the Georgia Court of Appeals’ case in Kellum v. State (2023). Regarding time served calculations for a person who has been incarcerated, that person would be given full credit for each day served in confinement, since the date of the commission of the violation per state law (Granting of Credit Generally/Use in Determining Parole Eligibility), excluding time tolled per O.C.G.A. 42-8-36 (Duty of Probationer to Inform Officer of Residence/Tolling /Unpaid Moneys);
House Bill 549, which would extend the time frame for reimbursement of total training expenses by a subsequent employer of a peace officer to be sought to 36 months;
House Bill 551, which would relate to motor vehicle temporary operating permits (TOPs) and would require individuals who become a resident of Georgia to register their vehicle within 30 days of becoming a resident. Each day that the vehicle is found in violation of this would be considered a separate offense, and the individual in violation would be guilty of a misdemeanor and be fined $100. Vehicles owned, rented, leased or operated in the state would be required to be registered. The bill would make it unlawful for individuals to operate vehicles without a valid license plate or TOP and would remove existing language regarding used and new motor vehicle dealers issuing temporary operating permits. Given there is enough space, if a vehicle does not have a county name decal on its license plate, the individual in violation would be subject to a fine no greater than $25. The bill would outline the process for dealers of new or used vehicles issuing TOPs. The issuance of a TOP would be done without a fee unless certain circumstances are applicable. TOPs would be designed by the Department of Revenue and may bear the name of the dealer and its location and the permit would have an expiration date that is 45 days from point of purchase. The department would be allowed to develop and maintain an electronic TOP issuance system and would be responsible for monitoring those who violate provisions regarding TOPs. If the department decides to suspend a dealer’s access to the TOP issuance system, the dealer would have the right to a formal hearing to be held within 30 days of the department’s decision. If a dealer has been found to issue TOPs unlawfully, they would be suspended for up to 24 months and would be issued a fine of no more than $100 per offense. The bill would further revise language relating to dealership plates, dealer recordkeeping and passive entities that own motor vehicles;
House Bill 563, which would add licensed physical therapists to the list of physicians who may present an affidavit for the purpose of allowing an individual to apply for a disability parking permit;
House Bill 567, which would authorize tele-dentistry by licensed dentists, while establishing requirements and restrictions. The bill would allow for the coverage of tele-dentistry healthcare services under dental benefits plans;
House Bill 569, which would allow for electronic delivery of decisions by the Department of Labor involving unemployment insurance. The applicant would elect to use this electronic delivery or have their paperwork mailed to them. The bill would also provide a definition of issue date, which would include a provision that would allow the department, through regulations, to waive or alter the time limit provisions of when a decision becomes final as long as it would comply with due process for all interested parties;
House Bill 571, which would provide definitions related to radiologist assistants and put their licensing and regulation under the purview of the Georgia Composite Medical Board. The board would appoint an advisory committee on radiologist assistants;
House Bill 575, which would allow the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) to use electronic publication for notifications of certain public hearings. The bill states that in any instance where federal or state law is unclear as to whether a public hearing is required, GDOT would be required to hold a hearing. The bill would authorize GDOT to negotiate acquisition of common property of a condominium association or property owners’ association with the designated board for either such association. The bill would also authorize establishment of a program by the department for the clearing of rights of way and the removal of wrecked or abandoned heavy duty vehicles from the rights of way of interstate highways and limited access highways. The bill would provide for payment of costs related to the removal or relocation of public utilities through agreement between the department and the utility provider;
House Bill 577, which would amend state law to require the Department of Revenue to develop a directory for registrations of nicotine vapor products, which would be defined as products containing nicotine and vapor device designed to deliver consumable vapor that contains nicotine. The term would not include a consumable vapor product that is contained in or utilizes an open system. The registration for each brand would require information, such as the name under which the vapor product transacts, license information, principal place of business of the manufacturer and the brand name, category, flavor and description. There would be a fee of $1,000 when the manufacturer first submits a certification for a product and $250 annually per product thereafter. The commissioner would provide manufacturers that submit registrations with deficiencies an opportunity to make corrections prior to removing the product from the directory. If a product is removed from the directory, then dealers and distributors would have 30 days from the date notice is received of the removal to either sell or return for full refund the product in its inventory. After 30 days, sale of the product removed from the directory would be illegal. The bill would provide for civil penalties directed toward vapor product dealers or vapor product distributors that make available for sale any product that is not included in the directory. By January 31 of every year after the program goes into effect, the Department of Revenue would provide a report on the directory, including products included on the directory, revenue and expenditures related to the administration of the program. The bill would only be effective upon appropriation for the specific purposes set forth in the bill;
House Bill 579, which would amend state law related to professions and business and would make broad changes to the duties and responsibilities of the Office of the Secretary of State’s Professional Licensing Division and the division’s director. Section 1-1 would grant the Professional Licensing Division the ability to allow applicants to take necessary examinations before starting an application, when appropriate. The bill would require the division director to maintain a roster of names and addresses for individuals that have received a cease-and-desist letter from a professional licensing board for practicing a profession without a license. An exception would be provided for persons that fail to renew a license in a 45-day period. Section 1-2 would add the ability to grant applications for license issuance, renewal or reinstatement to the duties of the secretary of state’s Professional Licensing Division director. Section 1-3 of the bill would grant the director of Professional Licensing Division the ability to approve applications for licensing, renewal or reinstatement on behalf of professional licensing boards. The director would only approve applications if the applicant satisfies all requirements for licensure. If the director is unable to make a determination or an application is deficient, the director would forward the application to the relevant licensing board. The licensing board must approve or deny the application in a timely manner. A licensing board could still approve or deny a license before any review or determination has been made by the division director. The division could utilize other methods of confirming required educational achievements, in addition to receiving or requesting an applicant’s official transcript. Section 1-4 would codify the division director’s ability to set expiration, renewal and penalty dates with approval from the related professional licensing boards. The division director would also be instructed to set renewal dates over a two-year period in a manner that, within reason, would evenly distribute renewal dates. A license would remain renewable for up to 45 days after the expiration of licensing, provided that the license holder would meet all requirements of the license and paid all fees due. Section 1-5 would allow the governor to remove a licensing board member for cause without a hearing. Section 1-6 would limit licensing boards to promulgating rules and regulations that would solely protect the health, safety and welfare of the public. Sections 2-1 would strike provisions establishing separate standards committees for the Composite Board Professional Counselors, Social Workers and Marriage and Family Therapists and would eliminate a requirement for multiple board members to review and approve an application. Section 3-1 would set the bills effective date as July 1, 2026.
House Bill 582, which would be the Georgia Survivor Justice Act. When a defendant in a prosecution under Title 16, Chapter 5 (Crimes Against the Person) raises a justification defense under law, the defendant could offer relevant evidence that they had been subjected to acts of family violence, dating violence or child abuse that was committed by the alleged victim to establish that the defendant was justified in using force or deadly force. This evidence could include seeking law enforcement assistance, seeking services from a counselor or social worker, seeking medical attention, showing effects of battering and post-traumatic stress disorder or relevant protective orders. Section 3 would limit the exception for murder to malice murder in which a person is immune from criminal liability due to coercion and would extend it to when there is imminent death of a third party. Section 4 would revise state law to say that a person convicted of felony murder and sentenced to death or life imprisonment when the predicate felony offense was cruelty to children in the second degree would be resentenced to imprisonment of between 10 and 30 years, if that predicate offense occurred prior to July 1, 2014. Section 6 would allow a defendant to present evidence, at the time of sentencing, that they were subjected to acts of family violence, dating violence or child abuse and that those acts were a significant contributing factor to the offense that the defendant is being sentenced for. This section would allow the following evidence to be introduced: hearsay; character evidence; evidence indicating they sought assistance from law enforcement, a counselor or social worker, or medical professionals; prior statements regarding these acts; evidence of the effects of battering and posttraumatic stress disorder; evidence pertaining to the alleged perpetrator’s history of other types of these acts; expert testimony or any other evidence that the court determines is credible and has sufficient probative value. The judge could impose a different sentence if they believe that the defendant was subjected to these types of acts and that they were a significant contributing factor to the offense or if the best interests of justice and welfare of society would be served. If the judge finds that one of those elements are met and the person was convicted of a crime punishable by death or life imprisonment, then they would be sentenced to imprisonment for between one and 30 years. If that person was convicted of a felony other than one punishable by life or imprisonment or death, then they would be sentenced to imprisonment for between one and one-half the maximum period of time for which they could have been sentenced, by one-half the maximum fine to which they could have been subjected or both. Section 7 would provide for the evidentiary privilege in court proceedings for communications made in the context of victim-centered practices or victim-offender dialogues, as provided in state law, which would be created in Section 8. Section 8 would create the evidentiary privilege for communications made at any time while preparing for participating in a victim-centered practice or victim-offender dialogue. This information would not be subject to discovery in court proceedings or public inspection. Parties involved in these practices or dialogues could refuse to share their communications relating to this and prevent others in court from doing so. Facilitators of these programs would be immune from civil damages for statements, actions, omissions or decisions made in the course of these practices or dialogues unless it was grossly negligent and made with malice or made with willful disregard for the safety or property of any party to the practice or dialogue;
House Bill 583, which would increase the number of free license plates issued to disabled veterans from one to two;
House Bill 584, which would reassign licensing and oversight of drug abuse treatment and education programs, narcotic treatment programs, community living arrangements and adult residential mental health programs from the Department of Community Health (DCH) to the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD). Community service boards would be the governing bodies. Rules and regulations created and implemented by December 31, 2025, would remain in effect until revoked. All issued and provisional licenses provided by DCH on December 31, 2025, would be valid until they are revoked, renewed, surrendered or terminated. The reassignment would be effective January 1, 2026;
House Bill 586, which would amend state law relating to the application of the intangible recording tax by changing the period length in the definitions of a long-term note secured by real estate, the placement of a lien upon real estate and bonds for a title in the absence of a security deed from three years to seven years;
House Bill 593, which would provide nonpartisan elections for the probate court judge of Baker County;
House Bill 612, which would add the insurance commissioner to the Behavioral Health Coordinating Council and would establish a parity compliance review panel within the council that would be composed of six members;
House Bill 614, which would allow a county governing authority or municipal corporation to adopt ordinances prohibiting firework usage within 100 yards of commercial facilities housing equines. Similarly, the county governing authority or municipal corporation could issue special event permits that would allow the usage of fireworks within the 100-yard range;
House Bill 618, which would require a seller of real property to disclose any actual knowledge of physical flood damage, flood-related insurance claims, flood-related repairs made to the property, repetitive loss designations, flood insurance maintenance requirements, any part of property located within a floodplain and any erosion control structures affecting the property. Disclosures would be made in writing with relevant dates and any violations would be subject to civil remedies;
House Bill 627, which would clarify that aggravated assault with a firearm is included within the definition of “Class A designated felony act” in the Juvenile Code;
House Bill 630, which would revise requirements for the State Board of Used Motor Vehicle Dealers and Used Motor Vehicle Parts Dealers to be composed of 10 members. The bill would revise requirements for applicants and existing applicants. In addition, both divisions within the board would be merged to provide for more flexibility. Part II of the bill would revise who can certify licensees for applied behavior analysis to include the Qualified Applied Behavior Analysis Credentialing Board or its successor;
House Bill 635, which would revise board requirements and licensing requirements related to the State Licensing Board for Residential and Commercial General Contractors. This would remove the limitation on the number of terms that board members can serve and would allow certain members of the board to have prior experience as a public building official rather than be currently in that position. A residential light commercial contractor or commercial general contractor would have at least four years of aggregate, academic credits from college-level courses in specific fields. The board also would have the ability to revoke licenses if a licensee knowingly enters into a contractual agreement to lawfully engage in or provide the use of their license to engage in contracting or perform the functions of a contractor;
House Bill 638, which would prohibit parking or stopping in a transit vehicle lane in the City of Atlanta unless authorized by an official traffic control device, occurs during an emergency situation or is otherwise authorized by law, and it provides for enforcement by automated transit vehicle lane monitoring devices. The bill would also establish civil monetary penalties for violation differentiated by whether the violation was enforced via a law enforcement officer or an automated transit vehicle lane monitoring device with recorded images. The bill would provide for disbursement of funds collected, device and records inspections and a sunset date of January 1, 2030;
House Bill 645, which would remove the COVID-19 testing requirement for new residents and staff in long-term care facilities;
House Bill 646, which would revise minimum salaries and compensation provisions for coroners, setting the minimum pay at $17,700 and increasing based on population ranges;
House Bill 647, which would annex certain described property into the City of Mulberry;
House Bill 652, which would amend Georgia’s motor fuel tax code to clarify taxation of electricity used as a motor fuel through electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. The bill would introduce a fuel tax exemption for EV charging stations owned or operated by nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) tax exempt status, as long as they meet certain requirements;
House Bill 677, which would establish discharge procedures for a child who has received psychiatric care at a hospital or psychiatric residential treatment facility in the event the child’s legal guardian fails to resume custody of such child;
House Bill 718, which would designate the first week of April of each year as Women’s Golf Week in Georgia;

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