HB116: HB116 Public Safety, Department of; Motor Carrier Compliance Division to Commercial Vehicle Enforcement; change name

Georgia law currently sets up a division inside the Department of Public Safety called the Motor Carrier Compliance Division, which enforces trucking and commercial vehicle rules. This bill changes that division's name throughout the Official Code of Georgia Annotated to Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, and renames its internal enforcement section as well. The bill also updates related code sections covering jurisdiction, weight inspector positions, the use of drug detection dogs, and the license plates issued to the division's vehicles, replacing every reference to the old name with the new one. It adds language confirming that officers in the renamed division must be trained, sworn, and certified as law enforcement officers. The changes are mostly a rename and conforming update rather than a change in the division's underlying powers or duties.

• Renames the Motor Carrier Compliance Division of the Department of Public Safety to Commercial Vehicle Enforcement in Georgia law (O.C.G.A. Title 35 and Title 40).
• Requires that law enforcement officers within the renamed division be trained, sworn, and certified as law enforcement officers.
• Updates the code sections on jurisdiction, duties, and drug-detection dog use to reflect the division's new name.
• Updates the law governing weight inspector positions at fixed truck scales to refer to Commercial Vehicle Enforcement instead of the old division name.
• Updates the license plate statute for Department of Public Safety vehicles so it refers to Commercial Vehicle Enforcement rather than the Motor Carrier Compliance Division.

The Department of Public Safety, its Commercial Vehicle Enforcement officers and weight inspectors, and the trucking and commercial carrier industry that interacts with this division are affected, since the bill changes the division's name and confirms officer certification requirements.

For truckers, commercial carriers, and the public, the division that inspects and enforces commercial vehicle weight, safety, and licensing rules will operate under a new name, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, with a clearer statutory requirement that its officers be trained, sworn, and certified peace officers.

• Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 35-2-100 to rename the division and its enforcement section and states officers must be trained, sworn, and certified as law enforcement officers.
• Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 35-2-101 to update jurisdiction, duties, and drug-detection dog provisions to use the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement name.
• Section 3 revises O.C.G.A. § 35-2-102 to rename the division within the weight inspector statute, keeping weight inspectors' authority to enforce noncriminal weight and load rules at fixed scales facilities.
• Section 4 revises O.C.G.A. § 40-1-52 to rename the division as established under Title 40 and describes the Regulatory Compliance Section's duties.
• Section 5 revises O.C.G.A. § 40-2-82 to update the license plate statute for vehicles operated by the renamed Commercial Vehicle Enforcement division.
• Section 6 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2025-05-08Effective Date 2025-07-01
2. 2025-05-08Act 67
3. 2025-05-08House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-07House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-03-31Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2025-03-31Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2025-03-21Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
8. 2025-03-20Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)

• Lauren McDonald (R, HD-026)Primary sponsor
• Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)
• Carter Barrett (R, HD-024)
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)

1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 20, 2025

   162 yea, 5 nay (6 not voting, 7 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #54

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 31, 2025

   51 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 2 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #342

• commercial vehicle enforcement
• trucking regulation
• Department of Public Safety
• law enforcement certification