Any measure that successfully makes it through both chambers by the time the legislature gavels out for the year will be sent to Governor Kemp’s desk for his consideration. The governor and his team then have a 40-day bill review period to determine which bills he will sign into law and which bills he will veto.
Fiscal Year 2026 Budget
The Senate passed the Fiscal Year 2026 budget 48 to 7 on Friday. It now goes back to the House, and, in the almost-certain event the House insists on its version the budget when the legislature convenes Monday, the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker will appoint a six-member conference committee for the House and Senate to come to a consensus on the version of the budget that will be sent to Governor Kemp’s desk.
Tort Reform
Senate Bill 69 would require these third-party financiers to register with the Department of Banking and Finance and clearly lays out what they can and cannot do. The legislation also sets penalties if the provisions of the bill are violated by financiers. Subcommittee Chairman Rob Leverett (R-Elberton) presented a substitute version of the bill, and the substitute was approved by the Rules Subcommittee, and then the full Rules Committee later in the week. The House passed the measure 98 to 69 on Thursday. The Senate took the bill back up on Friday afternoon and voted unanimously to approve the bill as amended, so it will require another vote in the House before it could be sent to Governor Kemp’s desk.
Social Issues
On Tuesday the House Education Committee considered Senate Bill 1, the ‘Fair and Safe Athletic Opportunities Act’ by Senator Greg Dolezal (R-Cumming). The committee substitute version of the bill that was passed incorporated language from Representative Josh Bonner’s (R-Fayetteville) House Bill 267, the ‘Riley Gaines Act of 2025,’ including the bill’s title. Addressing transgender individuals competing in sports is a top legislative priority for both Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones and Speaker Jon Burns. The measure seeks to regulate participation in school and college sports based on biological sex and would prohibit self-identification of sex for sports participation. The bill would mandate that sports teams are designated as male, female, or co-ed, and would prohibit males from participating on female teams and females from participating on male teams. It would also require multiple-occupancy restrooms, changing areas, and sleeping quarters to be designated for only males or females. The legislation also establishes privates causes of action, which would allow students to sue school systems if the provisions of the proposed legislation are not followed. The legislation was passed by the House Education Committee and must next be selected by the Rules Committee to receive a vote on the House floor.
On Wednesday the House Public and Community Health Committee took up Senate Bill 30 by Senator Ben Watson (R-Savannah). The version of the bill that was passed by the Senate would prohibit the prescription and administration of puberty-blocking medications for minors related to gender dysphoria. A committee substitute version of the bill that was introduced on Wednesday would allow the prescription and administration of puberty blockers for minors if the minor is diagnosed with gender dysphoria by two behavioral health professionals, the minor’s parents or guardians provide written consent, and the minor undergoes quarterly psychological counseling throughout the treatment. The bill would allow minors being treated with puberty blockers before July 1, 2025 to continue treatment without the requirements included in the bill. The measure would also allow a parent or guardian to bring civil action against a physician if the provisions of the bill are violated. The bill specifies that a physician who prescribes or administers puberty-blocking medication in accordance with the requirements cannot be subject to civil liability. After a lengthy hearing, the committee substitute version of the bill was passed. It must be selected by the House Rules Committee to make it to the floor for a vote.
Senate Bill 39 by Senator Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia) would specifically prohibit the coverage of expenses associated with gender-affirming care under the State Health Benefit Plan or with the use of any state funds. The measure was approved by the House Health Committee on Tuesday by one vote. On Thursday, the bill was recommitted to the House Committee. It is now scheduled for another hearing on Monday.
In Thursday’s Senate Education Committee meeting, Representative Brent Cox’s (R-Dawsonville) House Bill 127 was stripped and replaced with language from Senator Marty Harbin’s (R-Tyrone) Senate Bill 120. The original House bill would have increased the number of leave days that teachers and other school personnel may take for personal or professional reasons from three days to five days. The language that was added from Senate Bill 120 would prohibit public schools, local education agencies, public colleges and universities, and the Technical College System of Georgia from promoting, supporting, or maintaining any programs or activities that advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion. The bill must next be selected by the Senate Rules Committee to receive a vote on the floor.
Gun Legislation
Immigration
School Safety
The version of the bill that passed out of committee would also:
Protections for IVF
Truck Weights
The measure was approved 55 to 1 by the Senate this week and next heads to Governor Kemp’s desk for his consideration.
Chronic Absenteeism
Cell Phones in Schools
This weekly Legislative Update report is courtesy of the Regional Business Coalition of Metropolitan Atlanta (RBC), an organization of over a dozen of the largest and most active Chambers of Commerce throughout the metro Atlanta region. RBC member chambers represent over 15,000 member companies who employ millions of metro Atlanta residents. The RBC’s primary goal is to represent the interests of RBC Chamber members on regional public policy issues impacting our transportation, water and air quality and to advocate for solutions that improve metro Atlanta’s quality of life and economic vitality.
DeKalb Chamber of Commerce
Frankie Atwater President & CEO
Legislators convened Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday this week for Legislative Days 35 through 37, and Wednesday served as a committee work day. Lawmakers are almost out of time to get their bills across the finish line for the 2025 Legislative Session. House and Senate members will be back in session next week Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the final three days of the session—Sine Die is set for next Friday, April 4.
The legislature came one step closer to crossing off its only constitutionally required action item for the session this week with the Senate’s passage of its Fiscal Year 2026 budget recommendations. On Thursday morning the Senate Appropriations Committee convened to consider the Senate’s version of the budget, House Bill 68. The measure was approved by the committee and then considered on the Senate floor on Friday. In his presentation of the budget, Appropriations Committee Chairman Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia) walked through highlights from each section of the nearly $38 billion budget and pointed out differences between the House’s and the Senate’s recommendations. Highlights include:
The Senate budget also included a list of the top 11 tax credits and exemptions. Chairman Tillery encouraged his colleagues to take a look at these numbers to consider the future viability of eliminating the state income tax entirely.
After passing Governor Kemp’s sweeping tort reform legislation, Senate Bill 68, last week, this week the House turned its attention to the other legal reform measure that is still pending. On Tuesday the House Subcommittee on Lawsuit reform met to consider Senate Bill 69, the ‘Georgia Courts Access and Consumer Protection Act.’ President Pro Tempore John Kennedy (R-Macon) presented the bill that focuses on third-party litigation funding, which is a contingency arrangement between a non-party financier and a party, or potential party, to a lawsuit in exchange for a property interest in the judgement of the case. He noted there are currently no consumer protections for these types of agreements. He also explained that there is clear evidence of foreign involvement in our country’s legal system through the use of third-party litigation funding.
On Wednesday morning the House Judiciary Committee convened for another meeting on Senate Bill 36, the ‘Georgia Religious Freedom Restoration Act,’ or ‘RFRA,’ by Senator Ed Setzler (R-Acworth). The legislation would restrict state and local governments from burdening a person’s exercise of religion, even if the burden results from a rule of general applicability. The bill includes language from the federal RFRA law that does not currently apply at the state or local levels. An amendment approved by the committee during a lengthy hearing last week would provide local governments with notice that a person intends to file a lawsuit. During this week’s hearing, committee members voted to remove ante litem notice and approved the measure with the same language that passed out of the Senate. Next the bill must be selected by the House Rules Committee to receive a vote on the floor.
On Friday morning the Senate Finance Committee took up House Bill 79 by Representative Mark Newton (R-Augusta), the ‘Firearm Safe Handling and Secure Storage Tax Credit Act.’ The legislation would allow a taxpayer to claim a tax credit of up to $300 for eligible expenses related to firearm safe handling instructional courses and firearm secure storage devices. The committee substitute version of the bill would remove the tax credit for firearm safe storage devices, but would retain the proposed tax credit for safe handling instructional courses. The substitute also included language from Senate Bill 47, by Senator Jason Anavitarte (R-Dallas), which would allow a 4-day tax exemption on the sale of firearms, gun safes, ammo, and other accessories. Senator Anavitarte’s original bill proposed an 11-day tax exemption period. An amendment by Senator Greg Dolezal (R-Cumming) in committee removed the provision that the tax credit could only be used by an individual one time so that an individual could receive the $300 tax credit for a firearm safe handling course up to once per year. The substitute version of the bill was approved by the Finance Committee. It must next be selected by the Senate Rules Committee to receive a floor vote.
On Wednesday the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee passed Senate Bill 21 by Senator Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia). The measure, which received a hearing in the House committee several weeks ago, would waive sovereign and governmental immunity for local governments, officials, and employees if they violate the state’s prohibition on sanctuary cities. It would also require a custodial authority, which includes sheriffs, wardens, chiefs of police, and others, to honor immigration detainer requests issued by the Department of Homeland Security. Next the measure must be selected by the Rules Committee to receive a vote on the House floor.
On Monday the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on House Bill 268, chaired by Senator Bill Cowsert (R-Athens), convened to consider the House’s comprehensive school safety legislation, which is sponsored by Representative Holt Persinger (R-Winder). A committee substitute version of the bill was introduced in Thursday’s Judiciary Committee meeting that removed several provisions from the original version of the House bill and incorporated language from Senator Jason Anavitarte’s (R-Dallas) Senate Bill 17, ‘Ricky and Alyssa’s Law.’ Senator Anavitarte’s language that was added would require mobile panic alert systems in all Georgia public schools and would require accurate mapping of school facilities that can be shared with law enforcement for improved emergency response.
The committee substitute version of House Bill 268 passed out of the Judiciary Committee unanimously. It must next be selected by the Senate Rules Committee to receive a floor vote next week.
This week House Bill 428 received final legislative approval after the Senate approved the measure 53 to 1 and the House agreed to the Senate version on Friday. The legislation, sponsored by Representative Lehman Franklin (R-Statesboro), would codify protections for in vitro fertilization (IVF) in Georgia. The legislation is a priority for Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) and for Representative Franklin, whose wife is expecting their first child as a result IVF. The measure is now on its way to Governor Kemp’s desk for his consideration.
On Thursday the Senate took up House Bill 164 by Representative Steven Meeks (R-Screven). The legislation would remove the sunset from House Bill 189 (2023), which allowed large trucks carrying agricultural and forestry products to weigh up to 88,000 pounds outside of the metro Atlanta nonattainment area. House Bill 164 also explicitly gives local law enforcement officers the authority to enforce truck weight limits on county roads and on bridges within county or municipal systems. It would also require local law enforcement officers to be properly trained in commercial motor vehicle weight laws.
On Tuesday the House passed Senate Bill 123 by President Pro Tempore John Kennedy (R-Macon) 160 to 1. The bill, aimed at addressing chronic absenteeism in schools across the state, would establish a localized approach, working with families, administrators, and those identified as chronically absent when reviewing individual cases. The bill would require local boards of education to implement policies for identifying and intervening with chronically absent students, ensuring a focus on the root causes of their absences. The measure would require school climate committees to develop a comprehensive framework for improving student attendance. It would also establish localized attendance review teams to determine the most effective strategies for reducing absenteeism. The Department of Education would be required to submit a report to the General Assembly, detailing county-by-county compliance with the bill's requirements, including student attendance rates and discipline data. The measure now heads to Governor Kemp’s desk for his consideration.
On Tuesday the Senate approved House Bill 340 by Representative Scott Hilton (R-Peachtree Corners) 54 to 2. The ‘Distraction Free Education Act” would prohibit students from kindergarten through eighth grade from accessing personal electronic devices during the school day. Local school systems would be required to develop and implement policies to address electronic device storage, emergency communication protocols, and consequences for violations. Next the bill heads to Governor Kemp’s desk for his consideration.