Life, liberty, and property are safe again now that the Georgia legislature has adjourned Sine Die as of 1:00 am on April 3rd. However, the Peach state isn’t out of the woods yet. A few notable legislative initiatives died on the vine Thursday evening, including an elections fix that would ensure the state’s current method of counting votes would continue to be legal, which has prompted rumors of a special session. We’ll keep you updated if a special session is called.  

Qualifications-Based Selection  

QBS failed to pass the finish line this year. At 11:00 pm Thursday evening, we were told our bill would not come up for a vote in the House. While deeply disappointing to all involved, we will continue to build upon the momentum we have started to pass comprehensive QBS reform.  

PELS Board Funding  

The retained revenue cleanup bill for the PELS Board which would clarify that board can keep incidental revenue like any other board also failed to pass. After a 7:30 pm last-ditch maneuver to save the proposal and add a Clerks’ Authority housekeeping proposal to legislation, it was not called up for a vote in the House.  

However, not all is lost. The legislature’s final budget recommendation funded an investigator and a Human Resources fee for the Secretary of State’s office. The Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors Board ended up with an additional $209,000 in for Fiscal Year 2027.   

Land Disturbance Permitting Reform – Final Passage! 

SB 447 by Sen. Clint Dixon (R-Mulberry) was one of the last proposals to pass the Senate early Friday morning. The bill contains various land disturbance permit process clean-ups, including placing a 14-day “shot clock” on any additional comment review period if the initial permit application was deemed incomplete or found to violate local, state, or federal law or code. It also includes a 5-day period for a local government to determine if a received application is complete, before the initial 45-day comment period begins. The bill also has an odd provision which exempts Paulding and all 5 of its adjacent neighbors, including Cobb County, from the provisions of the legislation. The Paulding County delegation fought for this provision in every iteration of this proposal. However, aside from a blanket exemption from private plan review, inspection, and permitting reform, it is unclear why this provision exists.  

Transportation  

House Bill 297, championed by Senator Jason Anavitarte (R-Dallas), passed on Sine Die. The proposal abolishes the Georgia Regional Transportation Agency (GRTA) and restructures the Atlanta Transit Link Authority (the ATL) and consolidates the assets into the Georgia Transportation Efficiency Authority (GTEA). The legislation also contains a sunset extension to MARTA’s sales tax.  

The Transit SPLOST eight-year moratorium on failed referenda also passed after a series of maneuvers to get the legislation across the finish line. In the end, the proposal ended up on no fewer than three bills but eventually passed on House Bill 328. The bill restricts counties that failed to pass a Transit SPLOST from hosting another referendum for eight years.  

Tax Reform  

Another proposal which took a circuitous path to passage was one of the House’s top priorities, which was property tax relief. The proposal eventually passed on Senate Bill 33. The bill added an optional 1% LHOST (Local Homestead Option Sales Tax) and a mandatory FLOST (Floating Local Option Sales Tax), without a revenue cap on local governments which was part of the hallmark proposal by the House. The purpose of these new taxes is to reduce millage rates and eventually phase out or greatly reduce property taxes for homeowners.  

The income tax revision proposal, House Bill 463, is also now eligible for the Governor’s signature. The bill reduces Georgia’s flat personal income tax from 4.99% (the original goal of the incremental income tax reduction) to 3.99% by 2028. The bill also increases the standard deduction to $30,000 for joint filers and $15,000 for individuals. Additional increases to the standard deduction are also tied to certain revenue growth metrics that would eventually increase those deductions to $18,000 for individuals and $36,000 for joint filers. Dependent deductions also increase to $5,000 this year, then incrementally increase to $6,000.  

Other Proposals  

Despite being an incredibly hot topic this session, no proposals involving data centers passed. Further, while numerous study committees were introduced, no study committees on the House side passed. The House is instead opting for Blue Ribbon study committees that will be appointed in the interim. 

The Road Ahead  

As a potential special session looms and a May 13th deadline for legislation to be signed by the Governor approaches, we will keep you informed on the happenings of the Georgia Legislature. For now, we bid adieu to the 2025-2026 Biennial Legislative Session and to you, our weekly readers.  

LEGISLATION ACEC GEORGIA IS FOLLOWING:  

Heading to the Governor’s Desk: 

LAND DISTRUBANCE PERMIT REFORM  

SB 447 by Senator Clint Dixon (R-Mulberry): aims to tighten the timeframe for comments by a local government on a pending application and requires specific citation of the local, state, and federal law that the application violates. The proposal would require local issuing authorities to publish criteria for approval of permits, states that a completed application for any permit must be denied or approved within 45 days, and that a comment period may only last 14 days. The bill also includes a five-day window for the issuing authority to assess completeness before the initial shot clock begins.  

Status: Assigned to Senate State and Local Governmental Affairs Committee; received a hearing on 2/9; passed SLGO; passed the Senate 46-4; passed the House Natural Resources & the Environment Committee; pending in House Rules Committee 

Position: Support 

SHORT LINE RAILROAD TAX CREDIT EXEMPTION  

HB 1070 by Representative Leesa Hagan (R-Lyons): would increase the tax credit for Class III railroad maintenance expenditures from $3,500 to $5,000 and would move the sunset from December 30, 2026 to December 30, 2031. 

Status: Passed House Ways & Means Committee; passed the House 167-2; passed the Senate Finance Committee; passed the Senate 44 to 3; House agreed to the Senate amendment 

Position: Monitor 

GDOT HOUSEKEEPING 

HB 1277 by Representative Matt Barton (R-Calhoun): would raise the environmental evaluation threshold exemption from $100 million to $200 million for road and airport projects. The bill also creates a mechanism for inflation adjustments for the threshold, which would be capped at the CPI annual inflation rate. Additionally, the bill repeals the threshold that limits design-build projects to only 50% of the total number of construction projects in a fiscal year and creates new guidelines for GDOT to sell remnant right-of-way property upon completion of a project.  

Status: Passed House Transportation Committee; passed the House 149-16; passed the Senate Transportation Committee; passed the Senate 51-1; House agreed to the Senate amendment 

Position: Support 

PRECLEARANCE FOR LICENSURE  

SB 207 by Senator Brian Strickland (R-McDonough): would provide a preclearance process for the licensing of individuals with criminal records who apply for a professional license in the state.  

Status: Passed the Senate Judiciary Committee; passed the Senate 55-0. Passed House Judiciary Committee; Passed the House 170-0; The House and Senate volleyed this proposal back and forth, but both chambers agreed to the final version.  

Position: SUPPORT   

LEGISLATION THAT DID NOT PASS  

Local Government   

HB 531 by Representative Matt Reeves (R-Duluth): proposes to extend the period for plaintiffs to provide notice (ante litem notice) of an intent to sue a city from six months to twelve months. The legislation also has a provision to limit the liability for cities to $3 million per person and $5 million per occurrence. Read more about the cities’ liability appeal here. 

Status: Passed House Judiciary Committee; Passed the House 161-13; Passed the Senate Judiciary Committee; Recommitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee; did not make final passage 

Position: Monitor  

SB 51 by Senator Ed Setzler (R-Acworth): this legislation would require qualifications-based selection for the procurement of A/E services for local government projects where the professional services cost is estimated to be $75,000 or more, or if the project cost is estimated to be $1 million or more. This is not a prohibition on cost being a factor, this simply shifts the consideration of cost to a second stage of negotiation after the firms have been ranked, rather than cost being an initial evaluation.  This language is also included in HB 377.  

Status: Passed Senate State and Local Governmental Affairs Committee unanimously; passed the Senate 54-1; passed the House Governmental Affairs Committee; recommitted to the House Governmental Affairs Committee; passed the House Governmental Affairs committee again on 2/18; did not make final passage 

Position: SUPPORT  

SB 151 by Senator Brandon Beach (R-Alpharetta): proposes the creation of a “Joint Development Authority of North Fulton Municipalities”. A committee of seven directors would be created with one representative each from Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Milton, Mountain Park, Roswell, and Sandy Springs, with a seventh member appointed by the committee.   

Status: Passed out of Senate State and Local Governmental Affairs Committee; passed the Senate 32-23. Passed the House Intragovernmental Coordination Committee. The House passed this with a substitute, however the substitute did not receive a final agree on the Senate side in 2025 or in 2026  

Position: Monitor  

SB 437 by Senator Clint Dixon (R-Mulberry): would clarify that virtual inspections of dwellings are allowed by law, would reduce the timeframe for local governments to determine if an application is complete from 30 days to 15 days, and would streamline the private plan review and inspection process. This bill was amended to apply only to single family residences under 3 stories.  

Status: Assigned to Senate State and Local Governmental Affairs Committee; passed SLGO on 2/9; passed the Senate 52-1; assigned to House Governmental Affairs; Committee; did not make final passage 

Position: Monitor 

Industry & Professions  

SB 28 by Senator Greg Dolezal (R-Forsyth County): this legislation aims to reduce red tape and reconfigure how the regulatory environment operates in Georgia by allowing the legislature to take a more active role in regulatory activities.   

Status: Passed the Senate Economic Development & Tourism Committee; passed the Senate 31-23. Passed Senate Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight Committee; recommitted to Senate Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight Committee; did not make final passage 

Position: Monitor  

Transportation   

HR 1527 by Representative Lauren McDonald (R-Cumming): creates a study committee on utility relocation for highway and roadway projects.  

Status: Assigned to Special Rules Committee 

Position: Support  

HR 1748 by Representative Rob Clifton (R-Evans): creates a study committee on Local Government Professional Contracting  

Status: Assigned to Special Rules Committee 

Position: Support 

Water & the Environment  

HB 1063 by Representative Brad Thomas (R-Holly Springs): would codify many of the provisions adopted by the PSC to prevent the recuperation of costs for data center construction on retail consumers.  

Status: Assigned and passed out of Special Committee on Resource Management; passed the House 159-5; Assigned to the Senate Regulated Industries & Utilities Committee; did not make final passage 

Position: Monitor 

SB 410 by Senator Matt Brass (R-Newnan): would prohibit electric utilities from recuperating the costs of data centers from residential and retail customers. It would also prohibit new certificates of exemption from sales and use tax from being issued upon the signature of the Governor.  

Status: Passed Senate Finance Committee; passed Senate 32-21; awaiting committee assignment on the House side; did not make final passage 

Position: Under Consideration