---
title: HB 1118. Public officers and employees; 120 hours of maternal birth leave; provide
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1118
cite_as: HB 1118, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1118
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1118.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1118/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72672
date: 2026-05-05
status: passed
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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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 977
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1118.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1118
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-05
last_action: Effective Date 2026-07-01
sponsors:
- Sandy Donatucci
- Jan Jones
- Sharon Cooper
- Mike Cheokas
- Gerald Greene
- Matt Reeves
- Brian Strickland
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1118/2025
upstream_id: 2104335
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- maternal leave
- state employees
- public school employees
- paid leave
- personnel law
---
# HB 1118. Public officers and employees; 120 hours of maternal birth leave; provide
## Text
House Bill 1118 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representatives Donatucci of the 105th, Jones of the 47th, Cooper of the 45th, Cheokas of
the 151st, Greene of the 154th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 1 of Chapter 20 of Title 45 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to general provisions relative to personnel administration, so as to provide a maternal
birth leave for certain employees; to provide for definitions; to provide for rules,
administration, and requirements; to provide for software and other related updates by the
State Accounting Office to add maternal birth leave as a new benefit leave category; to
provide for eligibility; to provide for adverse employment action; to provide for notice; to
provide for state holiday compensation during maternal birth leave; to provide for related
matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 1 of Chapter 20 of Title 45 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
general provisions relative to personnel administration, is amended by adding a new Code
section to read as follows:
"45-20-23.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Eligible employee' means an individual who experiences a life event and who:
(A) Is an individual identified in subparagraph (A), (E), (F), (G), or (L) of
paragraph (2) of Code Section 45-18-1 who is classified as full time by the applicable
state employing entity; or
(B) Is an individual identified in paragraph (4) of subsection (a) of Code
Section 20-2-880 or paragraph (3) of Code Section 20-2-910 who is classified as full
time by the applicable local education agency.
(2) 'Employing entity' means:
(A) The executive, legislative, or judicial branch of state government; or
(B) A local education agency.
(3) 'Local education agency' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code
Section 20-2-167.1.
(4) 'Maternal birth leave' means a period of paid time off from work necessary to
recuperate as a result of a qualifying life event.
(5) 'Qualifying life event' means giving birth to one or more children in a single or
multiple pregnancy.
(b) All eligible employees of an employing entity shall be eligible for 120 hours of paid
maternal birth leave for qualifying life events after six continuous months of employment
with the employing entity regardless of whether the employee is eligible for paid or unpaid
leave under federal law.
(c) If taken, maternal birth leave shall only be taken during the three-week period
immediately following the eligible employee's qualifying life event to recuperate from such
birth and shall precede the taking of any paid parental leave authorized under Code Section
45-20-17.
(d) Unused paid maternal birth leave shall have no cash value at the time of the eligible
employee's separation from employment with the employing entity.
(e) Each employing entity shall promulgate rules for the administration of paid maternal
birth leave under this Code section for eligible employees which are not in conflict with
this Code section; provided, however, that the State Personnel Board shall promulgate such
rules for any employing entity that is considered a department or agency as such terms are
synonymously defined in paragraph (6) of Code Section 45-20-2. At a minimum, such
rules of the employing entity shall address:
(1) Whether paid maternal birth leave under this Code section shall run concurrently with
any leave provided under federal law; and
(2) The documentation, if any, that an eligible employee shall be required to provide to
establish the existence of a qualifying life event.
(f) To implement paid maternal birth leave under this Code section, the State Accounting
Office shall make any and all necessary adjustments to its current and any future human
capital management software, websites, and platforms used by participating employing
entities to ensure that paid maternal birth leave appears as a new benefit leave category not
later than October 1, 2026.
(g) An eligible employee employed on an hourly basis shall be eligible for paid maternal
birth leave under this Code section if such eligible employee has worked a minimum of 700
hours over the six-month period immediately preceding the requested paid maternal birth
leave date.
(h) No employing entity shall interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of or the attempt
to exercise the provisions of this Code section by any eligible employee. No employing
entity shall discharge or in any other manner discriminate or retaliate against any eligible
employee for lawfully exercising the provisions of this Code section. Notwithstanding any
other provision of this Code section, nothing shall prevent an employing entity from taking
an adverse employment action against an eligible employee who submits a false or
fraudulent document or otherwise provides false or fraudulent information in an attempt
to obtain paid maternal birth leave under this Code section.
(i) If a paid state holiday takes place during the eligible employee's maternal birth leave,
such eligible employee shall only be compensated for the state holiday.
(j) The employing entity shall provide notice of the benefits provided under this Code
section to each eligible employee upon hiring and annually thereafter."
SECTION 2.
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.
House Bill 1118 would give eligible Georgia state and public school employees 120 hours of paid maternal birth leave after giving birth, separate from any existing federal or parental leave.
### Plain-language summary
Currently, Georgia law does not guarantee a specific paid leave benefit tied to childbirth recovery for state and public school employees. This bill adds a new section to Georgia's personnel law (O.C.G.A. § 45-20-23) creating 120 hours of paid maternal birth leave for eligible full-time state government and local education agency employees, as well as hourly employees who have worked at least 700 hours in the prior six months.
The leave must be used within three weeks after childbirth, before any paid parental leave, and does not carry cash value if unused when an employee leaves the job. Employing entities must write administration rules, and the State Accounting Office must update its payroll and benefits software by October 1, 2026 to add this leave category. The bill also bars retaliation against employees using the leave, while allowing discipline for fraudulent claims, and requires notice of the benefit at hiring and annually.
### What it does
- Creates a new paid maternal birth leave benefit of 120 hours for eligible full-time state and public school employees after six continuous months of employment.
- Extends eligibility to hourly employees who worked at least 700 hours in the six months before requesting leave.
- Requires the leave to be taken within three weeks after childbirth and used before any paid parental leave under existing law (O.C.G.A. § 45-20-17).
- Prohibits employing entities from interfering with, denying, or retaliating against employees who use this leave, while allowing discipline for fraudulent leave claims.
- Requires the State Accounting Office to update payroll and benefits software to add this leave category by October 1, 2026.
- Requires employers to notify eligible employees of the benefit when hired and every year afterward.
### Who it affects
Full-time employees of Georgia's executive, legislative, and judicial branches, and employees of local education agencies (public school districts), including certain hourly workers who meet a minimum hours requirement. The State Accounting Office and State Personnel Board also have new administrative duties under the bill.
### Why it matters
Employees who give birth would gain a guaranteed 120 hours of paid time specifically for physical recovery, on top of any separate parental leave, which could ease financial pressure during recovery. State agencies and school systems would need to update payroll systems and leave policies to comply.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds new Code Section 45-20-23 defining 'eligible employee,' 'employing entity,' 'maternal birth leave,' and 'qualifying life event' (giving birth).
- Subsection (b) grants 120 hours of paid maternal birth leave after six continuous months of employment, regardless of federal leave eligibility.
- Subsection (c) requires the leave to be used within three weeks of birth and to precede any paid parental leave under O.C.G.A. § 45-20-17.
- Subsection (d) states unused leave has no cash value upon separation from employment.
- Subsection (e) requires employing entities, or the State Personnel Board for state departments and agencies, to create administrative rules covering documentation and interaction with federal leave.
- Subsection (f) requires the State Accounting Office to update software systems to add this leave category by October 1, 2026.
- Subsection (g) extends eligibility to hourly employees who worked at least 700 hours in the prior six months.
- Subsection (h) bars retaliation against employees using the leave but permits discipline for fraudulent claims; subsection (j) requires annual notice of the benefit.
## Status
- Status: Passed (2026-05-05)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-07-01 (2026-05-05)
- Sponsors: Sandy Donatucci, Jan Jones, Sharon Cooper, Mike Cheokas, Gerald Greene, Matt Reeves, Brian Strickland
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72672
> The history, votes, and amendments (977 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1118.md?full=1