SR432: SR432 Senate Higher Education in Prison Study Committee; create

Georgia currently houses more than 47,000 people in state prisons at a cost of $1.32 billion in 2024, with a recidivism rate of at least 30 percent. This resolution notes that federal Pell Grant changes in 2023 opened new funding for prison education and that studies link postsecondary education in prison to a 43 percent drop in repeat offenses. To look into this further, the resolution creates a five-member Senate Higher Education in Prison Study Committee, appointed by the President of the Senate, with two cochairs from different parties. The committee will study current postsecondary and transition programs in Georgia prisons, review data on successful models elsewhere, and may recommend legislation. Members get standard legislative allowances for up to five meeting days, paid from Senate funds. The committee must file any report before it is abolished on December 1, 2026.

• Creates the Senate Higher Education in Prison Study Committee made up of five senators appointed by the President of the Senate.
• Directs the committee to study Georgia's current postsecondary education and transition programs offered to incarcerated people.
• Requires the committee to review recent national data on prison education models and their outcomes.
• Allows the committee to recommend legislation based on its findings before filing a report with the Secretary of the Senate.
• Sets legislative allowances under O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8 for committee members, capped at five days unless more are authorized, funded through the Senate's budget.
• Abolishes the committee automatically on December 1, 2026.

The resolution mainly affects members of the Georgia Senate appointed to the study committee, the Department of Corrections and prison education providers such as the Georgia Coalition for Higher Education in Prison, and, indirectly, incarcerated Georgians who might gain access to expanded postsecondary programs.

If the committee's work leads to future legislation, it could shape whether more incarcerated Georgians get access to college or technical training, potentially affecting recidivism rates, workforce development, and state prison spending, though this resolution itself only creates a study process rather than any new program.

• Paragraph (1) creates the Senate Higher Education in Prison Study Committee.
• Paragraph (2) sets committee membership at five senators with two cochairs from different parties, one possibly representing a district with a private nonprofit prison education program.
• Paragraph (3) directs the committee to study postsecondary and transition offerings and review successful models nationwide, and to recommend legislation if needed.
• Paragraph (5) ties member allowances to O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8 and caps paid days at five unless additional days are authorized, funded by Senate appropriations.
• Paragraph (6) requires any adopted findings or recommendations to be filed as a report with the Secretary of the Senate before the committee's abolishment date.
• Paragraph (7) abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

1. 2026-03-31Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
2. 2026-03-31Senate Third Read (Senate)
3. 2026-03-23Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
4. 2026-03-20Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)
5. 2025-03-21Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
6. 2025-03-20Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Sally Harrell (D, SD-040)Primary sponsor
• Billy Hickman (R, SD-004)
• Max Burns (R, SD-023)

1. PassedSenate voteMarch 31, 2026

   48 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 3 absent)

   Consent Calendar For Senate Study Committees: Senate Vote #875

• prison education
• criminal justice reform
• recidivism
• higher education
• legislative study committees