Georgia CommonsHB 1098: Georgia Investment Act; enact
Last action February 3, 2026 · House Second Readers
A Georgia House bill would create a new Georgia Investment Act Pilot Fund inside the OneGeorgia Authority to send state money to counties with high poverty or unemployment, plus a legislative oversight commission to watch how it's spent.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Introduced version, the latest LegiScan holds.
In plain language
The OneGeorgia Authority currently helps fund economic development mostly in rural counties, and the bill's sponsors say more than 4.3 million Georgians live in counties that get little or no access to that money because they are urban or suburban. House Bill 1098 creates a new Georgia Investment Act Pilot Fund, held in the state treasury, funded by state appropriations, grants, gifts, and other public or private money, to pay for economic development in underdeveloped communities regardless of whether they are rural or not. Counties become eligible if they meet at least three of five criteria: below-average median household income, above-average unemployment, poverty above a state threshold, certified infrastructure or service gaps, or a documented history of economic dislocation. The bill also creates a 14-member Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on Georgia United Investment, made up mostly of metro-Atlanta county officials and legislative appointees, to monitor the fund. The Authority must report spending annually to state budget offices and publish a public report on awards and outcomes.
What the bill does
- Creates the Georgia Investment Act Pilot Fund in the state treasury, funded by state appropriations, grants, gifts, and other public or private contributions dedicated to economic development.
- Sets a five-factor eligibility test for counties (income, unemployment, poverty, infrastructure gaps, history of underinvestment) and makes any county meeting three of the five eligible, regardless of rural or nonrural status.
- Requires the OneGeorgia Authority to give the Office of Planning and Budget and legislative budget offices an annual accounting of fund spending by January 1 each year.
- Requires the Authority to publish an annual public report on county applications, awards, project categories, and job and housing outcomes.
- Creates a 14-member Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on Georgia United Investment, mostly metro-Atlanta county officials plus legislative appointees, to monitor the fund's administration.
- Sets commission member terms at four years, requires appointments within 90 days of the law taking effect, and allows reimbursement of expenses but no salary.
Who it affects
Counties currently excluded or only partly eligible for OneGeorgia Authority funding, especially urban and suburban counties, would gain access to a new funding stream. County commissioners and development authority officials in Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Fulton, Gwinnett, and Rockdale counties would serve on the oversight commission, along with legislative appointees.
Why it matters
Communities with high poverty or unemployment that currently cannot tap OneGeorgia Authority money could apply for state-backed economic development funding for job creation, infrastructure, and housing. The new oversight commission and annual public reporting would let legislators and residents track how the money is awarded and spent.
Key provisions
- Section 1 names the law the Georgia Investment Act.
- Section 2 lays out legislative findings, citing OneGeorgia Authority eligibility gaps affecting over 4.3 million Georgians in excluded or conditionally eligible counties.
- New Code Section 50-34-21 creates the Georgia Investment Act Pilot Fund in the state treasury, invested the same way as other state funds, with interest credited back to the fund.
- Section 50-34-21(c) sets the five eligibility criteria and requires a county to meet at least three to qualify for disbursements.
- Section 50-34-21(d) and (e) require an annual accounting to state budget offices by January 1 and a public annual report on applications, awards, and outcomes.
- New Code Section 50-34-22 creates the 14-member Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on Georgia United Investment, listing specific county officials and legislative appointees.
- Section 50-34-22(d) sets four-year terms for appointed members and a 90-day deadline for initial appointments after the law's effective date.
- Section 4 repeals conflicting laws.
From the bill
“Any county meeting three or more of the criteria as provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be deemed eligible to receive money from the fund, regardless of such county's designation as rural or nonrural.”
“There is established the Joint Legislative Oversight Commission on Georgia United Investment, which is created to monitor the administration of the Georgia Investment Act Pilot Fund.”
Status timeline
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Viola Davis (D, HD-087)
- Sandra Scott (D, HD-076)
- Kim Schofield (D, HD-063)
Topics
- economic development funding
- OneGeorgia Authority
- rural and urban investment
- legislative oversight
- county funding eligibility