HB544: HB544 Jimmy Carter Award for Civic Engagement; establish

Georgia law already requires public schools to tell eligible students about their right to register to vote and to give them a chance to register at school each April. This bill adds a new recognition program to that existing law (O.C.G.A. § 20-2-310). It creates the Jimmy Carter Award for Civic Engagement, with two levels: a gold award for schools where 100 percent of eligible students are registered to vote, and a silver award for schools where at least 85 percent are registered. The Georgia Department of Education would be responsible for developing the policies and procedures used to identify and recognize qualifying schools. The bill does not create any funding, penalty, or mandatory action beyond this recognition program.

• Creates the Jimmy Carter Award for Civic Engagement to recognize public schools with high student voter registration rates.
• Sets a gold-level threshold of 100 percent of eligible students registered to vote and a silver-level threshold of 85 percent.
• Directs the Department of Education to develop policies and procedures for identifying and recognizing qualifying schools.
• Keeps in place the existing requirement that schools inform eligible students of their right to register to vote and give them a registration opportunity each April.

Public schools and their administrators, eligible student voters in Georgia's public schools, and the Georgia Department of Education, which would design the award's rules and decide which schools qualify.

Schools that get a high share of eligible students registered to vote would receive formal state recognition, which could encourage schools to promote voter registration drives among students more actively, though the bill creates no funding or penalties tied to the award.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 20-2-310(b) to add the Jimmy Carter Award for Civic Engagement alongside existing student voter registration notice requirements.
• The gold level award requires 100 percent of a school's eligible students to be registered to vote.
• The silver level award requires at least 85 percent of a school's eligible students to be registered to vote.
• The Department of Education is tasked with creating the policies and procedures used to recognize qualifying schools.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws, a standard technical provision.

1. 2025-02-24House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-02-21House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-02-20House Hopper (House)

• Bryce Berry (D, HD-056)Primary sponsor
• Tanya Miller (D, HD-062)
• Samuel Park (D, HD-107)
• Carolyn Hugley (D, HD-141)
• Spencer Frye (D, HD-122)
• Saira Draper (D, HD-090)

• voter registration
• public schools
• civic education
• student rights