Legislation Assigned to the House Governmental Affairs Committee (53)
Use the drop down to the left to select the next 25 bills to display.

Date of Last Recorded Action: 5/7/2024

HB 0022 NeutralElections - Authorize Voters to Cast Ballot in any Local Precinct Roger Bruce
1/25/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
2017/01/27-Report Elections General County Government Todd Edwards
This legislation allows the election superintendent to authorize voters to vote in any precinct in the county.  The election superintendent must ensure that there are safeguards to protect against voters voting in more than once, there are enough ballots of each style available at each precinct to accommodate voters using a different precinct, there is sufficient DRE voting equipment at each precinct, and there are sufficient poll workers available at each precinct.
HB 0042 InactiveElections - Superintendent Authorized to Correct Minor Ballot Mistake Eddie Lumsden
2/23/2017 Effective Date Governmental Affairs Ethics -
2017/01/13-Report 2017/02/17-Report Elections General County Government Todd Edwards

This legislation allows the election superintendent to correct mistakes or omissions in the printing of official ballots or the programming of the display of the official ballot on the DRE voting equipment for local government candidates.  Currently, said correction must be required by the superior court following an application by an elector.   
HB 0133 NeutralWrite-in Candidates - Change Petition Requirements John Pezold
1/30/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Elections General County Government Todd Edwards
This legislation amends the requirements for nominating a candidate by petition.  Current law requires the petition to be signed by 1 percent of total registered voters eligible to vote in the last election.  This bill requires the petition to be signed by at least 2 percent of the total number of votes cast in the last election.  
HB 0164 NeutralElections - Only Those Elected to Office Listed as "Incumbents" Betty Price
1/31/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/03-Report Elections General County Government Todd Edwards
This legislation seeks to specify that only current officers who were elected to their offices may be designated as "incumbents" on the ballot.  Current officers who were appointed to fill a vacancy would not be considered an "incumbent" on the ballot.
HB 0167 EvaluatingElections - Georgia Timely Process Act Patty Bentley
1/31/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/03-Report Elections General County Government Mandate Todd Edwards
This legislation requires county voter registration officials to process all applications for voter registration within 45 days of the initial receipt.   
HB 0177 OpposeMandate - Counties Must Provide Multi-Lingual Services Pedro Marin
2/1/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/10 - Report General County Government Health and Human Services Immigration Mandate
Todd Edwards
This legislation requires counties and cities to provide equal access to public services to individuals with limited English proficiency, including providing in house staff interpreters, bilingual staff or interpreter programs if contact with individuals with limited English proficiency regularly occurs.  Documents must be translated into any language spoken by at least three percent of the population of the area served by the county. ACCG has no position on whether counties do this, but opposes having the state mandate it upon us.  
HB 0180 EvaluatingElections - Counties Must Beef Up Polling Locations for Convenience David Dreyer
2/1/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Elections General County Government Mandate Todd Edwards
This legislation requires counties to have at least one advance voting location for each 150,000 electors in the county.  It requires that no elector have to go more than 25 miles to a polling place using the most direct rout of travel from the elector's residence.  Any precincts with polling places requiring more than 25 miles of travel would be required to divide or have the polling place relocated.  HB 180 prohibits changing a polling place within 90 days of an election or primary except in the case of emergency or unavoidable event.  It also allows voters to change their addresses and vote on election or primary days.
HB 0189 NeutralContract Cancellation Act Sheila Nelson
3/29/2018 Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute Governmental Affairs State and Local Governmental Operations -
2017/03/06 - Report General County Government Mandate Procurement Todd Edwards
This legislation requires service contracts with counties that are entered into or renewed on or after July 1, 2017, to include: (1) specific performance and cost parameters; (2) a provision that allows the county to terminate the contract if the other party does not meet the performance criteria or if projected annual costs exceed the cost established in the contract; (3) a provision that the county may cancel the contract at any time of the other party fails to comply with applicable local, state, and federal laws and regulations.  The other party to the contract must submit quarterly reports to the board of commissioners showing compliance with the performance criteria and the actual costs that the county is required to pay.   
HB 0194 NeutralCounties Must Consider Schools when Rezoning Todd Jones
3/30/2017 House Withdrawn, Recommitted Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/03-Report 2017/02/24 - Report General County Government Land Use/Zoning Mandate
Todd Edwards
This legislation requires counties and cities to consider the impact that a proposed zoning action has on local school systems and their potential overcrowding - if the local school system provides the county with information and data on such impact after the county request it.  ACCG worked to further amend the bill to require school boards to consider the impact on city or county infrastructure, particularly roads and traffic, when siting new schoolhouses.    
HB 0216 EvaluatingPurchasing - Counties Mandated to Give Georgia Companies Preference Debbie Buckner
2/7/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Econ. Dev. & Transportation General County Government Mandate Procurement Todd Edwards
This legislation enacts the Georgia Jobs Matter Act, which requires counties and cities to give preference to Georgia businesses.  All bids submitted to counties and cities will be required to include an employment impact statement addressing the number of jobs expected to be created or retained in the state by the bidder if the bid is awarded to the bidder; the number of jobs expected to be created or retained in the state by any subcontractors used by the bidder if the contract is awarded to the bidder; and a guarantee that the bidder will not move any jobs created or retained in Georgia to another state during the duration of the contract.
HB 0235 NeutralSpeed Limit Posting in Urban or Residential Districts Spencer Frye
2/7/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/03-Report Econ. Dev. & Transportation Kathleen Bowen Law Enforcement Mandate
Public Safety and Courts Roads Traffic Enforcement
This legislation decreases the lowest speed limit that counties can establish on roads in an urban or residential district from 25 to 20 miles per hour.
HB 0244 SupportNew Cities - Taxation for Unfunded County Pension Liabilities Mary Oliver
2/8/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/10 - Report Annexation/Municipalization Auditing/Budget General County Government Larry Ramsey
Property Tax Retirement Revenue & Finance
This bill establishes a process by which a county within which a new city is formed may levy a tax within the newly incorporated city to cover that area's pro-rata share of the county's unfunded pension liability.
HB 0257 SupportLocal Government Authority Finance Reports Jan Tankersley
7/1/2018 Effective Date Governmental Affairs State and Local Governmental Operations -
2017/02/10 - Report 2017/02/17-Report 2017/02/24 - Report 2017/03/17 - Report 2018/02/02 Report
Auditing/Budget Econ. Dev. & Transportation Economic Development Financing General County Government
Hospital Authority Revenue & Finance Todd Edwards Tourism
This legislation combines the two annual reports (registry and financial reports) that local government authorities and local independent authorities must file annually with the Department of Community Affairs.  Local authorities may not incur debt or credit obligations until they submit the report, though failure to do so will not impact any outstanding debt.          
HB 0268 NeutralElections - Numerous Changes Barry Fleming
7/1/2017 Effective Date Governmental Affairs Ethics -
2017/02/10 - Report 2017/02/17-Report 2017/02/24 - Report 2017/03/06 - Report 2017/03/17 - Report
Elections General County Government Law Enforcement Public Safety and Courts Todd Edwards
This legislation makes several changes to the elections laws, including the deadlines for election superintendents to complete their certification course; repeal of the nomination petition requirement; dates for filing the notice of candidacy; revisions to third-party filings for candidacy; removing references to municipal election registrars; the evidence of citizenship for voting purposes; requirements for personal identification on voter registration forms; provisions for changing a voter's address; polling places outside a voter's precinct; correcting printed and electronic ballots; application for an absentee ballot; oath of application absentee ballot; and the conduct of campaign activities in the vicinity to polling places.  For the Senate's summary of the bill, please click here.    
HB 0351 NeutralElections - Allow District Attorneys, Coroners and Constitutional Officers to Run Non-Partisan Allen Peake
2/16/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Clerk of Court Coroners/Medical Examiners District Attorneys General County Government Public Safety and Courts
Sheriff Tax Commissioner Todd Edwards
This legislation would allow the General Assembly, through local legislation, to make elections for sheriffs, coroners, tax commissioners and superior court clerks nonpartisan.
HB 0362 OpposeLame Duck - Change Commissioners' Term in Office Andrew Welch
3/30/2017 House Withdrawn, Recommitted Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/17-Report 2017/02/24 - Report Elections General County Government Todd Edwards
Training

All county commissioners elected on or after January 1, 2017, must take office on the Monday following their election so long as it is at least five days following the certification of election results.  If a petition to contest the election is filed, then the newly-elected commissioner takes office on the Monday following a judgment rendered, or the withdrawal or dismissal of the petition.  The officeholder shall be sworn in at the next county commission meeting - which shall be held no later than two weeks following their term of office.  For a full summary of this legislation, please click here.    
HB 0451 NegotiatingExceptions to County Road Restrictions James Epps
3/30/2017 House Withdrawn, Recommitted Governmental Affairs --
2017/02/24 - Report Econ. Dev. & Transportation General County Government Kathleen Bowen Law Enforcement
Preemption Public Safety and Courts Roads Traffic Enforcement
This legislation requires counties and cities to allow vehicles weighing over 36,000 pounds or longer than 30 feet to use any county and city roads if the vehicle is making a delivery on the road, using the road as the route to make a delivery or pick up, providing service on the road, or if avoiding the road would cause the driver to go more than ten miles out of the most direct route. This legislation allows counties and cities to adopt a local ordinance that would make the driver justify the presence of their vehicle on a restricted road.  
HB 0489 NeutralGeorgia Procurement Registry - Require Posting Tom McCall
7/1/2018 Effective Date Governmental Affairs Economic Development and Tourism -
2018/02/16 Report 2018/03/16 Report 2018/03/2 Report Compensation General County Government
Mandate Procurement Public Works Todd Edwards

This bill requires cities and counties, if they are soliciting a bid or proposal opportunity for goods and services valued at $10,000 or more, or public works contracts for over $100,000, to post the advertisement on the Georgia Procurement Registry at no cost to the local government.  It is then optional for the local government to advertise the bid or proposal opportunity in the legal organ or their website.  Action: the above notices must be posted on the Georgia Procurement Registry.         

      
HB 0493 NeutralOpen Records - Counties Must Also Record Public Comment Valencia Stovall
3/23/2018 Senate Read Second Time Governmental Affairs Government Oversight -
2018/02/02 Report 2018/03/2 Report General County Government Mandate Open Records/Meetings Act
Todd Edwards
This legislation requires that cities, counties and school boards that post videos of their meetings online to include the public comment section, if any, of their meetings on said posted video, except when a technical difficulty results in less than the entire meeting be recorded or available for public viewing.  That video must be maintained on the web site according to the records retention policy of the local governing authority.       
HB 0520 EvaluatingElections - Absentee Ballot Requests to be Mailed Indefinitely Craig Gordon
3/3/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Elections General County Government Todd Edwards
This legislation allows voters requesting an absentee ballot to request having an annual absentee request form sent to them annually, indefinitely.   
HB 0530 EvaluatingAnnexation - Change Procedures for Local Act Karla Drenner
3/6/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Annexation/Municipalization General County Government Local Legislation Todd Edwards
This legislation sets additional requirements for the procedure of municipal annexation (comprised of more than 50 percent residential properties) by local act.  Before the bill is introduced, the city has to adopt a resolution agreeing to the annexation; hold two public hearings; notify each household and each business in the area of the proposed annexation; and a petition must be signed by at least 50 percent of the property owners, 50 percent of the business owners, and 50 percent of the registered voters in the area proposed to be annexed.     
HB 0617 NeutralAtlanta, City of; Fulton County; provide for referendum with respect to school system corporate limits Patricia Gardner
3/24/2017 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Annexation/Municipalization General County Government
HB 0618 NeutralSkidaway Island, City of; incorporate Jesse Petrea
5/7/2018 Effective Date Governmental Affairs State and Local Governmental Operations -
Annexation/Municipalization General County Government Local Legislation
HB 0626 NeutralSharon Springs, City of; incorporate Todd Jones
3/12/2018 Effective Date Governmental Affairs State and Local Governmental Operations -
Annexation/Municipalization General County Government Local Legislation
HB 0632 NeutralMunicipal Elections - Shorten Advance Voting Period for Cities Under 1,000 in Population Dave Belton
1/8/2018 House Second Readers Governmental Affairs --
Elections General County Government Todd Edwards
This legislation shortens the advance voting period for municipal elections in cities with populations of 1,000 or less.  If said municipality adopts an ordinance and voters pass a referendum, the advance voting period would be reduced (for both general elections and runoffs) to the second Monday before the election to the following Friday.  This new advance voting period would not apply if the municipal election is held in conjunction with any county, state or federal election.    
Green background on status indicates a bill has been acted on the last recorded legislative day.



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