HB369: HB369 Motor vehicles; sale of food or beverages; provide vehicle equipment standards

This bill changes how certain Georgia counties elect their local officials. It applies specifically to what the bill calls a 'consolidated law enforcement county,' defined as any county where the elected office of coroner has been abolished. In those counties, most elected county offices, such as county commissioners, tax commissioners, clerks of superior court, and solicitor-generals, would move from partisan elections (with party primaries) to nonpartisan elections held alongside the general primary in even-numbered years. The office of sheriff and county governing authorities created under local constitutional amendments are excluded from this change. The bill also makes district attorneys nonpartisan in judicial circuits made up entirely of one consolidated law enforcement county, with those elections held during the November general election and candidates qualifying with the Secretary of State the same way judges do. Any existing local law requiring partisan elections for these offices would be repealed. The changes take effect January 1, 2028.

• Creates a new legal category called a 'consolidated law enforcement county,' defined as a county that has abolished its elected coroner position.
• Requires most elected county offices in those counties, such as commissioners, tax commissioners, and clerks of superior court, to be filled through nonpartisan elections instead of partisan ones.
• Exempts the office of county sheriff and governing authorities set up under local constitutional amendments from the nonpartisan election requirement.
• Requires district attorneys in judicial circuits made up of a single consolidated law enforcement county to be elected in nonpartisan November elections without party nomination.
• Repeals any existing local laws that require partisan elections for the affected county offices in these counties.
• Sets the effective date of the changes as January 1, 2028.

County officeholders and candidates such as commissioners, tax commissioners, clerks of superior court, and solicitor-generals in counties that have abolished the coroner's office; district attorneys and candidates in affected single-county judicial circuits; and voters in those counties who currently vote in partisan primaries for these offices.

Voters in counties that have abolished the coroner's office would no longer choose these county officials through party primaries, instead voting in nonpartisan elections held with the general primary. Candidates for these offices and for certain district attorney seats would no longer run under a party label.

• Section 1 revises the candidate qualifying window in O.C.G.A. § 21-2-132 for nonpartisan county judicial, school board, and consolidated government offices.
• Section 2 adds new O.C.G.A. § 21-2-140, defining 'consolidated law enforcement county' as one where the elected coroner office has been abolished.
• Section 2 requires nonpartisan elections for county offices in these counties, held with the general primary in even-numbered years, except for sheriff and locally authorized governing authorities.
• Section 2 also makes district attorney races nonpartisan in judicial circuits made up solely of one consolidated law enforcement county, held during the November election with qualifying rules matching those for judges.
• Section 2 repeals conflicting local laws that currently require partisan elections for these county offices.
• Section 3 sets the effective date as January 1, 2028.
• Section 4 repeals all other laws in conflict with the Act.

1. 2026-05-12Effective Date 2028-01-01
2. 2026-05-12Act 710
3. 2026-05-12House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-27House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub (House)
6. 2026-03-25Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
7. 2026-03-25Senate Third Read (Senate)
8. 2026-03-25Senate Engrossed (Senate)

• Dexter Sharper (D, HD-177)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• John LaHood (R, HD-175)
• Sylvia Baker (D, HD-064)
• Terry Cummings (D, HD-039)
• Eric Bell (D, HD-075)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 4, 2025

   156 yea, 14 nay (5 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #187

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 25, 2026

   32 yea, 19 nay (2 not voting, 1 absent)

   Motion To Engross: Hb 328, Hb 369, Hb 519, Hb 1112: Senate Vote #800

3. PassedSenate voteMarch 25, 2026

   32 yea, 21 nay (0 not voting, 1 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #803

4. PassedHouse voteMarch 27, 2026

   93 yea, 64 nay (3 not voting, 16 absent)

   Agree To Senate Substitute: House Vote #790

• election rules
• county government
• nonpartisan elections
• district attorneys
• coroner's office