HB484: HB484 General Assembly; digitization and electronic publication of Georgia Laws; provide

Georgia law currently directs the Office of Legislative Counsel to compile and publish the Georgia Laws, the official collection of Acts and resolutions passed each year, in hardbound volumes suitable for permanent record-keeping. This bill amends that law (O.C.G.A. § 28-4-3) so those Acts and resolutions can instead be published electronically, or still in hardbound or print form, and updates related language about special sessions to match. The bill also adds a new duty for the Georgia Code Revision Commission (O.C.G.A. § 28-9-3), the body that oversees the state's official code. The Commission would now help oversee digitizing the Georgia Laws and creating a permanent digital repository of session laws, with a single point of public access to local and general Acts and resolutions. The Secretary of State keeps responsibility for distributing the Georgia Laws as already required under existing law.

• Changes the law so the Georgia Laws (the state's official record of Acts and resolutions) can be published electronically instead of requiring hardbound printed volumes.
• Updates the rule for special legislative sessions so those Acts and resolutions can be published electronically or in print alongside the next regular session's laws.
• Adds a new duty for the Georgia Code Revision Commission to assist with and oversee digitizing the Georgia Laws.
• Directs creation of a permanent digital repository of Georgia's session laws with single-point public access to local and general Acts and resolutions.
• Keeps the Secretary of State responsible for distributing the Georgia Laws as already set out in current law.

The Office of Legislative Counsel, which compiles and publishes the Georgia Laws; the Georgia Code Revision Commission, which gains new oversight duties; the Secretary of State's office, which distributes the laws; and members of the public, researchers, and lawyers who look up Georgia's official session laws.

If enacted, Georgians and legal researchers could access the state's official session laws through a single digital repository rather than relying only on printed volumes, potentially making the historical and current record of Georgia's Acts and resolutions easier and faster to find.

• Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 28-4-3(e) to allow the Georgia Laws to be published electronically or in hardbound volumes suitable for permanent retention, rather than requiring hardbound publication.
• Section 1 also updates the special-session provision so those Acts and resolutions can be published electronically or in print together with the next regular session's laws.
• Section 2 adds a new paragraph (17.1) to O.C.G.A. § 28-9-3 giving the Code Revision Commission authority to assist and oversee digitization and electronic publication of the Georgia Laws.
• Section 2 directs that this digitization effort create a permanent digital repository of Georgia's session laws with single-point public access.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-04-30Effective Date 2025-07-01
2. 2025-04-30Act 22
3. 2025-04-30House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-07House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-03-27Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2025-03-27Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2025-03-25Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
8. 2025-03-21Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)

• Bill Yearta (R, HD-152)Primary sponsor
• Chuck Efstration (R, HD-104)
• Mitchell Scoggins (R, HD-014)
• Victor Anderson (R, HD-010)
• Rob Leverett (R, HD-123)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 6, 2025

   173 yea, 0 nay (2 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #206

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2025

   52 yea, 2 nay (0 not voting, 2 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #304

• public records
• government transparency
• Georgia Code Revision Commission
• legislative records
• digital archives