HB481: HB481 Elections; dates on which special elections to present questions to the voters can be held; revise provisions

Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-540) already limits the calendar dates on which a special election to put a question to voters, like a local sales tax referendum, can be held. This bill rewrites subsection (b) and part of subsection (c) of that law. Subsection (b) still requires at least 29 days between calling a special election and holding it, and still requires most question-only special elections tied to a statewide primary or general election to be called at least 90 days ahead, but the bill adds state-wide special primaries and state-wide special elections to the list of statewide contests that trigger this 90-day rule. The bill also restructures the list of allowed election dates in subsection (c)(2), spelling out separate lists for odd-numbered and even-numbered years. One date option, a third Tuesday in March election tied to certain sales tax questions, is limited so it can only be used before July 1, 2024, a date that has already passed by the time this bill would take effect. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it or lets it become law without signing.

• Adds state-wide special primaries and state-wide special elections to the list of statewide contests that require a special ballot-question election to be called at least 90 days in advance.
• Reorganizes the allowed dates for odd-numbered-year special elections on ballot questions into a numbered list covering the March date, the November date, and dates tied to a statewide special primary or election.
• Reorganizes the allowed dates for even-numbered-year special elections on ballot questions, listing the presidential preference primary date, the March date, the general primary date, and the November date.
• Keeps a March date option for certain local sales and use tax questions only usable before July 1, 2024, effectively removing it as a future option once the bill takes effect.
• Leaves the existing 29 day minimum notice period for calling any special primary or special election unchanged.

County and municipal governments, school boards, and other local bodies that want to hold a special election asking voters to approve something like a sales tax, county election officials who schedule these elections, and voters in jurisdictions considering local ballot questions.

The specific calendar dates available for a special election on a local ballot question affect how quickly a county or city can ask voters to approve something like a new sales tax, and how that election lines up with other statewide contests, which can influence turnout and election costs.

• Section 1 amends subsection (b) of O.C.G.A. § 21-2-540 to add state-wide special primaries and state-wide special elections to the statewide contests that trigger the 90-day advance call requirement for ballot-question elections.
• Section 1 restructures paragraph (2) of subsection (c) into separate, numbered lists of allowed dates for odd-numbered years and even-numbered years.
• The odd-year list allows the third Tuesday in March, the Tuesday after the first Monday in November, or the date of a state-wide special primary or election, with the 90-day call rule waived for that last option.
• The even-year list allows the presidential preference primary date, the general primary date, the Tuesday after the first Monday in November, and a March date restricted to sales and use tax questions held before July 1, 2024.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as the date the Governor signs the bill or it otherwise becomes law without a signature.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-02-20House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-19House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-18House Hopper (House)

• Trey Kelley (R, HD-016)Primary sponsor
• Rob Leverett (R, HD-123)
• Steven Sainz (R, HD-180)
• Tyler Smith (R, HD-018)
• Saira Draper (D, HD-090)

• election dates
• special elections
• ballot referendums
• local sales tax elections
• election law