HB756: HB756 Chatham Area Transit Authority; abolish current memberships; provide new board

Chatham Area Transit, the public bus system serving Savannah and Chatham County, is governed by an authority board created by a 1986 state law and later amended in 2012. This bill rewrites that law's membership rules. It ends every current board member's term on June 30, 2025 and abolishes those seats entirely. Starting July 1, 2025, a new board of up to 11 members takes over, with seats appointed by the Chatham County Board of Commissioners, the Savannah Board of Aldermen, Port Wentworth, Garden City, the Savannah-Georgia Convention Center Authority, and the Chatham County legislative delegation. The bill sets residency requirements, term lengths of two or four years (or terms tied to elected office for government appointees), rules for filling vacancies, conflict-of-interest limits, quorum rules, and meeting procedures. The new board becomes the legal successor to the old authority. The law takes effect June 30, 2025.

• Ends the terms of all current Chatham Area Transit Authority board members and abolishes those seats as of June 30, 2025.
• Creates a new board of up to 11 members starting July 1, 2025, with seats appointed by Chatham County, Savannah, Port Wentworth, Garden City, the Savannah-Georgia Convention Center Authority, and the Chatham County legislative delegation.
• Sets staggered terms of two or four years for most appointed members, while government-official members serve terms tied to their elected office.
• Requires most board members to live in Chatham County, with certain seats requiring residency in a specific city or having a disability.
• Bars board members from voting on matters where they have a financial interest and denies compensation beyond expense reimbursement.
• Makes the new board the legal successor to the old authority for all purposes.

Current and future members of the Chatham Area Transit Authority board, the Chatham County Board of Commissioners, the Savannah Board of Aldermen, the Port Wentworth and Garden City city councils, the Savannah-Georgia Convention Center Authority, the Chatham County legislative delegation, and riders of the Chatham Area Transit bus system.

Riders and taxpayers in Chatham County would see the entire governing board of their public transit agency replaced within a single day, changing who controls transit policy, budgets, and appointments, with new rules determining which local governments and groups get a voice on the board.

• Section 1 revises Section 2.2 of the 1986 Act creating the authority, vacating all current board members' offices and abolishing those seats as of June 30, 2025.
• Section 1 establishes a new 11-member board effective July 1, 2025, listing which local government or organization appoints each seat.
• Section 1 sets two-year terms for members appointed by the Convention Center Authority and legislative delegation seats, four-year terms for two disability- and residency-designated seats, and terms tied to elected office for county and city appointees.
• Section 1 limits reappointment for members who have served two consecutive full terms until two years have passed after leaving the board.
• Section 1 lists grounds for forfeiting a board seat, including felony conviction or missing four consecutive meetings, and describes how vacancies are filled.
• Section 1 sets quorum, conflict-of-interest, compensation, and meeting rules, including that meetings follow Robert's Rules of Order and records are open to public inspection.
• Section 2 makes the Act effective June 30, 2025.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-05-14Effective Date 2025-06-30
2. 2025-05-14Act 323
3. 2025-05-14House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-10House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-04-02Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2025-04-02Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
7. 2025-03-31Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
8. 2025-03-31House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)

• Edna Jackson (D, HD-165)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Jesse Petrea (R, HD-166)
• Carl Gilliard (D, HD-162)
• Anne Westbrook (D, HD-163)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 31, 2025

   167 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 10 absent)

   Supplemental Local Calendar : House Vote #361

2. PassedSenate voteApril 2, 2025

   55 yea, 1 nay

   Supplemental Local Consent Calendar: Senate Vote #400

• public transit
• Chatham County government
• Savannah local government
• transportation authority
• local boards and commissions