SB84: SB84 Special License Plates; specialty license plate honoring the Shepherd Center; establish

Georgia law already allows a range of specialty license plates that support various causes, agencies, and nonprofits (O.C.G.A. § 40-2-86.1). This bill adds one more option: a plate recognizing the importance of organ donation, carrying the phrase 'Organ Donors Save Lives.' Unlike some specialty plates that send money to a specific charity, the money raised from selling this plate would go into Georgia's general fund rather than to an organ donation program directly. The bill's title refers to a plate honoring the Shepherd Center, but the substitute text passed by the House Motor Vehicles Committee actually creates the organ donation plate described above. The law would take effect January 1, 2026, and because it involves a constitutional requirement on special license tags, it needs a two-thirds vote in both the Senate and House to become law.

• Adds a new specialty license plate option to Georgia's motor vehicle code (O.C.G.A. § 40-2-86.1) recognizing the importance of organ donation.
• Requires the new plate's design to include the phrase 'Organ Donors Save Lives.'
• Directs that money collected from selling this plate go into the state's general fund rather than a dedicated organ donation fund.
• Sets the law to take effect January 1, 2026.
• Requires a two-thirds majority vote in both the Senate and House of Representatives for the Act to become law, per the state constitution's rules on special license plates.

Georgia vehicle owners who choose to purchase the new organ donation specialty plate, the Georgia Department of Revenue or tag offices that issue license plates, and the state general fund, which would receive the proceeds from plate sales.

Drivers who want to support organ donation awareness would gain a new plate option, but the money raised would not be earmarked for organ donation programs specifically, since it flows into the general fund. Because of the constitutional supermajority requirement, the bill needs broad legislative support to pass.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 40-2-86.1 by adding paragraph (12), creating a specialty plate recognizing organ donation and requiring the design to include the phrase 'Organ Donors Save Lives.'
• Section 1 also specifies that proceeds from selling the plate go into the general fund, not a dedicated cause fund.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as January 1, 2026.
• Section 3 requires a two-thirds majority vote in both chambers under Article III, Section IX, Paragraph VI(n) of the Georgia Constitution for the Act to become law.
• Section 4 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-03-21House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)
2. 2025-03-21House Third Readers (House)
3. 2025-03-11House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
4. 2025-02-13House Second Readers (House)
5. 2025-02-12House First Readers (House)
6. 2025-02-11Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
7. 2025-02-11Senate Third Read (Senate)
8. 2025-02-10Senate Read Second Time (Senate)

• John Albers (R, SD-056)Primary sponsor
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)
• Max Burns (R, SD-023)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)
• Rick Townsend (R, HD-179)

1. PassedSenate voteFebruary 11, 2025

   52 yea, 0 nay (0 not voting, 4 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #38

2. PassedHouse voteMarch 21, 2025

   162 yea, 0 nay (5 not voting, 13 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #297

• license plates
• organ donation
• motor vehicles
• state general fund