---
title: HB 1091. Brantley County; nonbinding advisory referendum for the purpose of ascertaining whether the electors support a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross; provide
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1091
cite_as: HB 1091, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1091
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1091.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1091/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72597
date: 2026-02-03
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1091.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1091
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-01-29
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
  - John Corbett
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1091/2025
upstream_id: 2102347
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - Brantley County
  - highway bypass
  - Waycross
  - local referendum
  - election law
---

# HB 1091. Brantley County; nonbinding advisory referendum for the purpose of ascertaining whether the electors support a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross; provide

## Text

House Bill 1091
By: Representative Corbett of the 174th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To provide for a nonbinding advisory referendum for the purpose of ascertaining whether the
electors of Brantley County support a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross; to
provide for legislative purposes and findings; to provide for a referendum; to provide for
mandatory execution of election and judicial remedies regarding failure to comply; to
provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
(a) It is the purpose of this Act to provide for a nonbinding advisory referendum for the
purpose of ascertaining whether the electors of Brantley County support a perimeter highway
bypass around Waycross.
(b) It is found, determined, and declared that the holding of the nonbinding advisory
referendum provided for in this Act is:
(1) In all respects for the benefit of the people of Brantley County;
(2) A public purpose; and
(3) An essential governmental function for which public funds may be expended.
SECTION 2.
The election superintendent of Brantley County shall call and conduct a nonbinding advisory
referendum election as provided in this section for the purpose of submitting this question
to the electors of Brantley County to determine whether a majority of said electors support
a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross. The nonbinding advisory referendum election
shall be held on the date of the 2026 general primary, and the election superintendent shall
issue the call and conduct that election as provided by general law. The election
superintendent shall cause the date and purpose of the election to be published once a week
for two weeks immediately preceding the date thereof in the manner required by law. The
ballot shall have written or printed thereon the words:
"NONBINDING ADVISORY REFERENDUM
( ) YES Do you support a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross?"
( ) NO
All persons desiring to vote for approval of the question shall vote "Yes," and all persons
desiring to vote for rejection of the question shall vote "No." The expense of such election
shall be borne by Brantley County. It shall be the election superintendent's duty to certify
the result thereof to the Secretary of State. The provisions of this section shall be mandatory
upon the election superintendent and are not intended as directory. If the election
superintendent fails or refuses to comply with this section, any elector of Brantley County
may apply for a writ of mandamus to compel the election superintendent to perform his or
her duties under this section. If the court finds that the election superintendent has not
complied with this section, the court shall fashion appropriate relief requiring the election
superintendent to call and conduct such election on the date required by this section or on the
next date authorized for special elections provided for in Code Section 21-2-540 of
the O.C.G.A.
SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

A House bill would let Brantley County voters weigh in on a nonbinding referendum during the 2026 general primary asking whether they support building a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross.

### Plain-language summary

This bill sets up a nonbinding advisory referendum, essentially a formal public opinion poll conducted through the election system, for voters in Brantley County. The question asks whether they support building a perimeter highway bypass around the city of Waycross.

The county's election superintendent would have to schedule the vote for the same day as the 2026 general primary, advertise the referendum for two weeks beforehand, and report the results to Georgia's Secretary of State. Brantley County would pay the costs of holding the vote. Because the referendum is advisory only, the result would not force any highway project to be built or blocked; it simply measures voter sentiment. The bill also allows any Brantley County voter to sue for a court order (a writ of mandamus) if the election superintendent fails to hold the vote as required.

### What it does

- Creates a nonbinding advisory referendum in Brantley County asking voters if they support a perimeter highway bypass around Waycross.
- Schedules the referendum vote to coincide with the 2026 general primary election.
- Requires the election superintendent to publish notice of the referendum once a week for two weeks before the vote.
- Requires Brantley County to pay the costs of holding the referendum and requires the superintendent to certify results to the Secretary of State.
- Allows any Brantley County voter to seek a court order forcing the election superintendent to comply if they fail to hold the referendum as required.

### Who it affects

Registered voters in Brantley County, who would see this question on their 2026 general primary ballot; the Brantley County election superintendent, who must organize and pay for the vote; and the Georgia Secretary of State's office, which receives the certified results.

### Why it matters

The vote itself would not authorize or block a highway bypass; it only gauges public opinion. But the outcome could influence future decisions by state or local transportation officials about whether to pursue a bypass around Waycross, and Brantley County taxpayers would cover the cost of holding the election.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 states the legislature's finding that holding the referendum serves a public purpose and is an essential governmental function justifying use of public funds.
- Section 2 directs the Brantley County election superintendent to call and conduct the referendum on the date of the 2026 general primary.
- Section 2 specifies the exact ballot language voters will see, asking a yes or no question about supporting the bypass.
- Section 2 makes the county responsible for election costs and requires certification of results to the Secretary of State.
- Section 2 makes compliance mandatory and allows a court to order the superintendent to hold the election, either on the required date or the next special election date under O.C.G.A. § 21-2-540, if they fail to comply.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2026-01-29)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2026-02-03)
- Sponsors: John Corbett
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72597

> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1091.md?full=1