Week 8 Session Update: Crossover Week | Derrick McCollum for State House

Last week, the Georgia House of Representatives returned to the Gold Dome for one of the busiest times of the session—crossover week. Thursday marked Crossover Day, the deadline for bills to pass from one chamber to the other. The House worked late into the evening, passing a record 75 bills and resolutions, all now awaiting Senate review. It was an intense, fast-paced week filled with critical decisions that will impact our state and the people of the 30th House District.

Funding Disaster Recovery and Public Safety in the Budget

A key accomplishment last week was the final passage of House Bill 67, the Amended Fiscal Year (AFY) 2025 budget. This budget prioritizes recovery efforts following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene. With a total revenue estimate of $40.5 billion—including $2.7 billion in surplus funds—the amended budget increases spending by $4.4 billion (12.2%) over the original Fiscal Year 2025 budget.

Key budget highlights include:

$113 million for the Governor’s Emergency Fund to support continued disaster response
$50 million for debris removal
$285 million in relief for farmers and timber producers affected by the storm

Beyond storm recovery, public safety remains a top priority. The budget provides $345.9 million to the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC), including:

$215 million for critical safety, security, and technology upgrades
$50.9 million to hire more correctional officers
$10.5 million for new body cameras and tasers
$7.2 million for an Over Watch Logistics Unit (OWL) to monitor security cameras statewide

Governor Kemp signed the amended budget on Thursday, reinforcing Georgia’s commitment to rebuilding communities and strengthening public safety.

Strengthening School Safety with HB 268

Protecting our children and ensuring a safe learning environment is always a top priority. The House passed House Bill 268, a comprehensive school safety measure designed to improve student well-being and security.

Key provisions of HB 268:

Enhances the sharing of student records between schools and state agencies
Requires an anonymous reporting app for students to confidentially report concerns
Creates mental health coordinator positions in every school district
Establishes a statewide behavioral threat assessment system
Increases penalties for terroristic threats
Requires schools to implement Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)

Additionally, the bill creates an Office of Safe Schools to provide training and resources for school districts. By 2026, this office will coordinate with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities to establish a statewide behavioral threat management process. These measures will help identify potential risks before they escalate, ensuring a proactive approach to student safety.

Criminal Justice Reform: HB 123 Ends Death Penalty for the Intellectually Disabled

The House unanimously passed House Bill 123, an important reform in Georgia’s criminal justice system. Under current law, individuals with intellectual disabilities can still face the death penalty if convicted of a capital crime. HB 123 changes that.

Key changes under HB 123:

Allows defendants to file a pretrial notice of intellectual disability
Lowers the burden of proof from “beyond a reasonable doubt” to a “preponderance of evidence”
Ensures that if a defendant is found intellectually disabled, the death penalty cannot be applied

This bill promotes fairness in our justice system while preventing wrongful sentencing of vulnerable individuals.

Supporting Rural Hospitals with HB 262

Access to healthcare, especially in rural Georgia, is critical. The House passed House Bill 262, which establishes a grant program for rural hospitals to purchase and install backup generators. This measure is especially important in the wake of Hurricane Helene and other natural disasters that have exposed weaknesses in our healthcare infrastructure.

Key details of HB 262:

Applies to rural hospitals with fewer than 100 beds
Targets areas where the governor has declared a state of emergency since July 1, 2024
Prioritizes funding for hospitals without existing backup generators

By securing power for essential medical services, this bill helps protect Georgia’s most vulnerable communities.

Autism Missing Person Alert System: HB 465

The House also passed House Bill 465, expanding the Mattie’s Call alert system to include individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Mattie’s Call, established in 2006, is a statewide alert for missing disabled or elderly individuals.

HB 465:

Adds autism spectrum disorder as a qualifying condition for Mattie’s Call
Helps law enforcement prioritize searches in high-risk areas like waterways and roadways
Provides officers with specialized training to handle missing person cases involving individuals with ASD

This bill will improve response times and increase the chances of quickly and safely locating missing individuals with autism.

Other Legislation that Made it through Crossover Week

The bills that passed out of the House last week include:

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 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 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 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 154, which would designate ambulance services as an essential service;
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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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;
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 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 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. 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;
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 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;
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 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;
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 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 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;
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 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 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 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 583, which would increase the number of free license plates issued to disabled veterans from one to two;
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 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 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 Resolution 32, which would amend the Georgia Constitution to increase the maximum acreage allowable as bona fide conservation use property from 2,000 to 4,000 acres;

What’s Next?

With crossover week behind us, the House will now focus on reviewing Senate-passed bills, while the Senate considers House-approved legislation. With Sine Die, the final day of the session, quickly approaching on April 4th, there is still much work to be done.

I encourage you to reach out with any questions or concerns about pending legislation. Whether by phone, email, or a visit to the State Capitol, I want to hear from you. Your feedback is invaluable as we continue working to make Georgia a better place to live, work, and raise a family.

As always, thank you for allowing me to serve as your representative.