Legislative days are better with dogs, even if they are the oversized mascot variety. Tuesday’s tail-wagger was CALi, the “spokespuppy” for Bright from the Start: Georgia’s Department of Early Care and Learning, who scampered through the State Capitol in celebration of Georgia Pre-K Day. Lawmakers and lobbyists alike were delighted to take photos with the playful pooch before getting down to serious business in the chambers and committee rooms. Among that business was HB 68, the FY 2026 State Budget, which passed the House by a 171-4 vote. More on the committee work that continued through the afternoon in this #GoldDomeReport.
In this Report:
- Floor Action
- Committee Notes
- New Legislation
- What’s Next
Floor Action
The House took up the following measures on Legislative Day 30:
- HB 68 - General appropriations; State Fiscal Year July 1, 2025 - June 30, 2026 (Substitute)(App-Burns-159th) - PASSED 171-4
The Senate took up the following measures on Legislative Day 30:
- HB 287 - Environmental Protection Division; Environmental Advisory Council; update reference date to standards, rules, and regulations (NR&E-24th) Rhodes-124th - PASSED 50-0
- HR 97 - Property; conveyance of certain state owned property; authorize (Substitute) (SI&P-15th) Greene-154th - ADOPTED 49-0
- HR 98 - Property; granting of nonexclusive easements; authorize (Substitute) (SI&P-15th) Greene-154th - ADOPTED 48-0
Committee Notes
Senate Insurance and Labor Committee
Chairman Larry Walker III (R-Perry) and the Insurance and Labor Committee took up these measures today:
- HB 422, authored by Representative Derrick McCollum (R-Chestnut Mountain), received only a hearing today. It seeks to amend Chapter 18 of Title 45. This legislation proposes that individuals in the State Health Benefit Plan have two options for purchasing a high-deductible health plan with a health savings account (HSA). A similar proposal by Senator Jason Esteves (D-Atlanta), SB 267, also was discussed this afternoon. The Department of Community Health (DCH) has requested changes to HB 422 as there is a contract in place for the health savings accounts to handle deductions. DCH administers the benefit while the Department of Administrative Services administers the flexible benefit. Teachers participate in the State Health Benefit Plan but the administration for those participating is administered by their local school districts. There are 10 school systems utilizing the option for the HSA but those with that benefit are using that post-tax and not pre-tax, which would allow for greater savings. Brandy Sylvan, the director of government relations for the Department of Community Health, and Louis Amis, the executive director for the State Health Benefit Plan, explained the Department of Community Health’s administrative concerns and explained that changes were requested (with no substitute at today’s meeting). Representative McCollum asked for two vendors to provide the high-deductible health plans and HSAs (United Healthcare is the current vendor of the high-deductible health plan). McCollum’s reasoning for the two vendors is that United Healthcare and the hospitals in North Georgia could not reach an agreement on participation/reimbursements.
- HB 182, authored by Representative Eddie Lumsden (R-Armuchee), is a Department of Insurance bill to address group life insurance policies in O.C.G.A. 33-25-5. It seeks to clarify exclusions to those policies. This proposal seeks to clarify that no insurer can exclude or restrict liability for death while the insured is on active duty service. Only 5% of Georgia’s military actually see “active duty” and would be extremely hard to “reserve” against such if there was no exclusion. HB 182 received a DO PASS recommendation with an amendment made to conform this bill with that in Senator Ed Harbison’s (D-Columbus) bill (SB 109). The language would now read:
No policy of group life insurance shall be delivered or issued for delivery in this state if it contains a provision which excludes or restricts liability for death occurring while the insured is a service member of the regular or reserve component of the armed forces of the United States and such death is not a result, directly or indirectly, of war, declared or undeclared, or any act or hazard of such war.
- HB 410, authored by Representative Buddy DeLoach (R-Townsend), is another bill requested by the Department of Insurance with changes in Title 33. This is described as a cleanup initiative but it does do these things: addresses foreign insurance companies (those chartered in states other than Georgia but are licensed) to eliminate the deposit required here if their home state requires; addresses written notice requirements in triplicate; eliminates separate licenses for branch offices; and establishes a two-year license renewal for insurers (they will be licensed from the date they were originally licensed). No changes or discussion were made and the legislation received a DO PASS recommendation, moving it forward to the Senate Rules Committee.
This Thursday’s meeting of the Insurance and Labor Committee will have three bills on the agenda. The following Tuesday, March 18, there will be no meeting due to a conflicting Appropriations meeting, and the meeting on March 20 will have a lengthy agenda.
House Public and Community Health Committee
Chairman Sharon Cooper (R-Marrietta) gaveled the committee to order at 3:20 p.m. The main order of business was a presentation by the Georgia Trauma Network Commission on its functions and initiatives. South Georgia Medical Center in Valdosta explained its success in improving trauma services in South Georgia. The committee also took up one bill.
- SB 162, by Senator Chuck Hufstetler (R-Rome), instructs the Georgia Composite Board of Medical Examiners to institute a new data system by January 1, 2026 to accelerate its processing of licensure applications for physicians, physician assistants, and nurse protocol agreements. Its goal is 30-day processing. Other responsiveness standards are contained in the bill. The data system is similar to the one being installed in other professional licensing boards in the Office of the Secretary of State. The bill received a DO PASS recommendation from the committee.
Senate Higher Education Committee
Chairman Max Burns (R-Sylvania) convened his committee Tuesday afternoon to consider two House bills.
- HB 38, by Representative Chuck Martin (R-Alpharetta), amends the need-based financial aid program in Georgia by revising the definition of an "eligible student." The new definition includes low-income students or those who have a financial aid gap, meet academic or other standards set by the commission, are eligible for scholarships or grants under a specific code section, have completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), and have completed a certain percentage of credit requirements toward their program of study. Specifically, students in four-year programs must have completed 70% of their credit requirements, while those in two-year programs must have completed 45%. Additionally, the legislation extends the automatic repeal date of the subpart from June 30, 2025, to June 30, 2029. The committee voted DO PASS, sending the bill on to the Senate Rules Committee.
- HB 172, by Rep. David Huddleston (R-Roopville), is a student loan forgiveness program for large animal veterinarians, to address the severe shortage of food animal veterinarians. The legislation allows the board to purchase loans for students or former students who have completed a veterinary medical degree and are practicing food animal medicine. The bill increases the maximum loan purchase amount from $80,000 to $90,000 per person and adjusts the service requirement to rural counties with populations of 50,000 or less, based on the 2020 census or future censuses. Additionally, the loan purchase rate is increased from $20,000 to $22,500 for every 12 months of service. The contract term for loan forgiveness is set at four consecutive years, and applicants are not required to reapply after entering into a contract, although annual certification of compliance may be required. The board retains the authority to cancel contracts if deemed necessary, ensuring that the program's integrity is maintained. The committee voted DO PASS, and the bill will move on to the Senate Rules Committee.
Senate Regulated Industries and Utilities
Senator Bill Cowsert (R-Athens) called his committee to order on Tuesday afternoon to hear four House bills.
- HB 34, authored by Representative Dale Washburn (R-Macon), relates to professional licensing boards and would establish a continuing education tracking solution to monitor compliance of licenses with applicable continuing education requirements. The benefits of the bill, per the author, are enhanced efficiency, improved compliance, cost savings, and public protection. Gabe Sterling, with the Secretary of State’s Office (SOS), expressed support and answered some technical questions from committee members. Senator Greg Dolezal (R-Cumming) asked why the legislation is needed if the SOS’s office already can do this. Some boards already do it, like the Real Estate Commission and Board of Nursing, but this legislation would make it consistent across the board regardless of who is in the office of SOS. This bill passed the House and passed out of this committee last year but did not make it to the Senate floor. It received a DO PASS recommendation again on Tuesday.
- HB 51, by Rep. James Burchett (R-Waycross), amends O.C.G.A. § 50-23-4, relating to the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority, to include natural gas facilities (storage, distribution lines, etc.). Note that this is identical to SB 13, which also passed through this committee and passed on the Senate floor. HB 51 received a DO PASS recommendation.
- HB 219, by Representative Ron Stephens (R-Savannah), seeks to establish a professional health program to provide for monitoring and rehabilitation of impaired healthcare professionals. This would provide a treatment regimen for such nurses to temporarily surrender their licenses and then enter a program. The licensee can reinstate their license upon successful completion of the program. This is the same procedure provided for doctors, dentists, and pharmacists. The bill passed the House last year but did not make it to the Senate floor. The committee voted DO PASS.
- HB 416, by Representative Chuck Efstration (R-Mulberry), relates to enterprise zones, revising the class of retailers from which fees may be collected. Specifically, the legislation allows for the designation of an area as an enterprise zone if it is part of an urban redevelopment area and contains a redevelopment project with a minimum capital investment of $400 million in a chronically underdeveloped area. Upon designation, such areas qualify for exemptions from sales and use taxes within the project boundaries. The legislation permits local governing bodies to assess and collect annual infrastructure fees from qualifying businesses or service enterprises that benefit from these tax exemptions with the fees potentially being used as security for revenue bonds for development or infrastructure within the zone. The bill explicitly excludes projects related to casino gambling from these provisions. Additionally, the legislation extends the existence of enterprise zones designated under these criteria to 30 years from the issuance of revenue bonds exceeding $100,000. It also allows municipal and county governments to modify or terminate tax and fee exemptions and abatements through agreements with qualifying businesses. Property tax incentives for qualified businesses in enterprise zones will remain effective for the full 10-year period, regardless of the zone's termination. Representative Efstration noted that the purpose of this bill is to uphold the original intent and fix unexpected issues of the legislation he carried in 2017 to establish this program. The effort was begun specifically for the redevelopment of The Gulch in Atlanta, but the provisions apply to any site in Georgia that meets the criteria.
Robert Highsmith spoke to the bill, on behalf of the developers of Centennial Yards (formerly known as the Gulch). There had been 12 previous failed efforts to redevelop because the cost to bring the grading up to street level was prohibitive. No tax revenue was being generated for the state, as the site had been owned by a railroad utility. Representative Efstration’s legislation for the deal administration created enterprise zones and the associated financing mechanisms, including 30-year bonds. Unfortunately, there was litigation, and the project was delayed, so the bonds were only issued roughly one year ago. Total outstanding bonds are $358m, and the total investment in the project is expected to reach $5 billion once it’s fully developed. The committee voted DO PASS.
New Legislation
The following new legislation of interest has been introduced:
