HB736: HB736 Education; policies prohibiting bullying and cyberbullying; add and revise definitions

Georgia law already requires local school boards to adopt policies against bullying and cyberbullying (O.C.G.A. § 20-2-751.4). This bill revises that law by broadening the definition of bullying to include conduct that interferes with a student's ability to participate in school services, activities, or privileges, not just academic performance. It adds new defined terms, including 'gender identity,' 'physical or cognitive disability,' 'progressive discipline,' and 'sexual orientation,' and moves the existing definition of 'extracurricular activities' to a cross reference. The bill also updates deadlines for the Department of Education to publish a model bullying policy and lists of anti-bullying training providers and counseling services, now due by January 1, 2026, with local boards required to adopt their own updated policies by July 1, 2026. It adds a new requirement for an appeal process for students involved in bullying investigations and a procedure to create individualized safety support plans for targeted students.

• Broadens the legal definition of 'bullying' to include conduct that substantially interferes with a student's ability to participate in or benefit from school services, activities, or privileges.
• Adds new defined terms to the anti-bullying law, including 'gender identity,' 'physical or cognitive disability,' 'progressive discipline,' and 'sexual orientation.'
• Sets a July 1, 2026 deadline for local school boards to adopt updated bullying prevention policies and a January 1, 2026 deadline for the Department of Education to post a model policy.
• Requires the Department of Education's model policy to include a new appeal process for students accused of bullying or students who are targets of bullying who disagree with an investigation's outcome.
• Requires local policies to include a procedure for creating a student safety support plan describing measures a school will take to protect students who have been targeted by bullying.
• Keeps existing rules requiring schools to notify parents, maintain bullying records for at least four years, and report aggregate bullying incidents to the Department of Education.

Public school students and their parents or guardians, local boards of education and school administrators who must update policies, teachers and staff who receive anti-bullying training, and the Georgia Department of Education, which must publish model policies and provider lists.

Because the bullying definition and required policies would be broader and more detailed, schools would need to update codes of conduct, investigation procedures, and appeal processes. Students facing bullying, including cyberbullying, could gain new protections like individualized safety plans and a formal appeal right.

• Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 20-2-751.4(a) to add or revise definitions, including a broadened definition of 'bullying' covering interference with school services, activities, or privileges.
• Section 1 requires local boards of education to adopt updated bullying prevention policies no later than July 1, 2026, matching the current alternative-school assignment rule for a student's third bullying offense.
• Section 1 requires the Department of Education to post a model bullying policy by January 1, 2026, that now must include an appeal process and a student safety support plan procedure.
• Section 1 keeps the existing requirement that noncompliant school systems become ineligible for certain state funding under O.C.G.A. §§ 20-2-161 and 20-2-260.
• Section 1 preserves the requirement that schools document and retain bullying reports for at least four years and annually report aggregate incident data to the Department of Education.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-03-11House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-03-10House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-03-06House Hopper (House)

• Sheila Jones (D, HD-060)Primary sponsor

• school bullying
• cyberbullying
• student safety
• education policy
• school discipline