HB283: HB283 Motor vehicles; issuance of a refusal to sign citation; provide

Georgia law currently requires law enforcement agencies to have equipment that can verify electronic driver's licenses by July 1, 2027, and requires drivers who get a traffic citation to sign it acknowledging they received it and promising to appear in court. This bill changes both of those rules. First, it pushes the equipment deadline back five years, to July 1, 2032, giving police departments more time to acquire the technology needed to check digital licenses. Second, it changes citation signing from mandatory to optional (drivers 'may' sign rather than 'shall' sign). If a driver refuses to sign, the officer writes 'Refusal to Sign' on the citation and gives it to the driver, which counts as reasonable cause to believe the person will not appear for trial. The officer may then bring the person before a judge or traffic violations bureau to post a bond, instead of the current law's requirement that refusal leads to a cash bond.

• Extends the deadline for all Georgia law enforcement officers to acquire equipment capable of verifying electronic driver's licenses from July 1, 2027 to July 1, 2032.
• Changes traffic citation signing from a requirement to an option, replacing 'shall sign' with 'may sign' in Georgia's citation law (O.C.G.A. § 40-13-2.1).
• Creates a 'Refusal to Sign' citation process: if a driver refuses to sign, the officer marks the citation 'Refusal to Sign' and gives it to the driver.
• Removes the automatic cash bond consequence for refusing to sign and instead lets the officer bring the person before a judge or traffic violations bureau to arrange a bond.
• Keeps the requirement that officers tell drivers signing a citation is not an admission of guilt.

Georgia drivers who receive traffic citations, law enforcement officers who issue citations and check driver's licenses, and local police and sheriff's departments that must budget for and install electronic license verification equipment.

Drivers stopped for traffic violations would no longer be forced to sign a citation, changing how officers document refusals and how bonds get arranged. Police departments also get five more years before they must be able to scan digital driver's licenses, affecting how traffic stops are handled statewide.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 40-5-29 to move the deadline for law enforcement to acquire electronic license verification equipment from July 1, 2027 to July 1, 2032.
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 40-13-2.1 so that signing a citation becomes optional ('may sign') rather than mandatory ('shall sign').
• Section 2 requires officers to write 'Refusal to Sign' on a citation and give it to the driver if the driver declines to sign.
• Section 2 allows, but does not require, the officer to bring the person before a judicial officer or traffic violations bureau to post a bond after a refusal to sign.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-31Senate Tabled (Senate)
2. 2026-03-19Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)
3. 2026-01-12Senate Recommitted (Senate)
4. 2025-03-18Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
5. 2025-03-13Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
6. 2025-02-24Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
7. 2025-02-21House Passed/Adopted (House)
8. 2025-02-21House Third Readers (House)

• Yasmin Neal (D, HD-079)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)
• Scott Holcomb (D, HD-101)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)

1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 21, 2025

   155 yea, 6 nay (8 not voting, 11 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #63

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 31, 2026

   39 yea, 10 nay (2 not voting, 3 absent)

   Motion To Table Remaining Legislation On The Rules Calendar: Senate Vote #912

• traffic citations
• driver's licenses
• law enforcement equipment
• motor vehicle law