--- title: HB 114. Motor vehicles; federal regulations regarding safe operation of commercial motor vehicle and carriers; update reference date collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb114 cite_as: HB 114, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb114 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb114.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb114/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69467 date: 2025-05-08 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb113.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb115.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 945 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb114.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 114 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-08 last_action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 sponsors: - Lauren McDonald - Clint Crowe - Bill Hitchens - Eddie Lumsden - Carter Barrett - Randy Robertson text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB114/2025 upstream_id: 1929066 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - commercial trucking - motor carrier safety - hazardous materials transport - Department of Public Safety --- # HB 114. Motor vehicles; federal regulations regarding safe operation of commercial motor vehicle and carriers; update reference date ## Text 25 LC 39 4443/AP House Bill 114 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representatives McDonald III of the 26 th, Crowe of the 118 th, Hitchens of the 161 st, Lumsden of the 12th, and Barrett of the 24th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Code Section 40-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to safe1 operations of motor carriers, commercial motor vehicles, and drivers and safe transportation2 of hazardous materials, so as to update the reference date to federal regulations regarding the3 safe operation of motor carriers and commercial motor vehicles; to revise a definition; to4 provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:6 SECTION 1.7 Code Section 40-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to safe operations8 of motor carriers, commercial motor vehicles, and drivers and s afe transportation of9 hazardous materials, is amended by revising subsection (a) as follows:10 "(a) As used in this Code section, the term:11 (1) 'Commissioner' means the commissioner of public safety.12 (2) 'Department' means the Department of Public Safety.13 (3) 'Present regulations' means the regulations promulgated under 49 C.F.R. in force and14 effect on January 1, 2024 2025."15 H. B. 114 - 1 - 25 LC 39 4443/AP SECTION 2.16 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.17 H. B. 114 - 2 - ## 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 114 updates a reference in Georgia law so that state rules for commercial trucking safety point to the federal safety regulations in effect on January 1, 2025, instead of January 1, 2024. ### Plain-language summary Georgia law incorporates federal safety rules for motor carriers, commercial motor vehicles, and hazardous materials transport by referencing a specific date's version of the federal regulations (49 C.F.R.). Under current law, that reference date is January 1, 2024. This bill changes the definition of 'present regulations' in O.C.G.A. § 40-1-8 so the reference date becomes January 1, 2025. The practical effect is that Georgia's Department of Public Safety and commercial vehicle operators would follow the most recent year's version of the federal safety standards rather than the prior year's version. The bill makes no other substantive changes to the safety requirements themselves, and it repeals any conflicting laws. ### What it does - Changes the definition of 'present regulations' in Georgia's motor carrier safety law (O.C.G.A. § 40-1-8) from the federal rules in effect January 1, 2024 to those in effect January 1, 2025. - Keeps the existing definitions of 'Commissioner' (commissioner of public safety) and 'Department' (Department of Public Safety) unchanged. - Repeals any existing state laws that conflict with this updated reference date. ### Who it affects Commercial motor carriers, truck and bus drivers, companies that transport hazardous materials, and the Georgia Department of Public Safety, which enforces state compliance with the referenced federal safety standards. ### Why it matters Because Georgia law ties compliance to a specific year's federal regulations, this update means trucking companies and drivers operating in Georgia would be held to the newest set of federal safety standards rather than an outdated one, keeping state law aligned with current federal rules. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises subsection (a) of O.C.G.A. § 40-1-8 to change the 'present regulations' reference date from January 1, 2024 to January 1, 2025. - Section 2 repeals all laws and parts of laws in conflict with the Act. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-08) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 (2025-05-08) - Sponsors: Lauren McDonald, Clint Crowe, Bill Hitchens, Eddie Lumsden, Carter Barrett, Randy Robertson - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69467 > The history, votes, and amendments (945 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb114.md?full=1