---
title: HB 1234. State Employees' Assurance Department; assignment of certain group term life insurance benefits to pay for funeral services of a deceased individual who was a member of certain retirement systems; provisions
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1234
cite_as: HB 1234, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1234
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1234.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1234/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72955
date: 2026-05-12
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.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1233.md
next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1235.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 949
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1234.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1234
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-12
last_action: Effective Date 2026-07-01
sponsors:
- Darlene Taylor
- Lauren McDonald
- Danny Mathis
- Mary Ann Santos
- Patty Stinson
- Ricky Williams
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1234/2025
upstream_id: 2111513
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- state employee benefits
- life insurance
- funeral services
- retirement systems
- insurance law
---
# HB 1234. State Employees' Assurance Department; assignment of certain group term life insurance benefits to pay for funeral services of a deceased individual who was a member of certain retirement systems; provisions
## Text
House Bill 1234 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representatives Taylor of the 173rd, McDonald III of the 26th, Mathis of the 133rd, Santos
of the 117th, and Stinson of the 150th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 19 of Title 47 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the
State Employees' Assurance Department, so as to provide for the assignment of certain group
term life insurance benefits to pay for funeral services of a deceased individual who was a
member of the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia, Georgia Legislative Retirement
System, or Georgia Judicial Retirement System; to provide for a definition; to provide for
related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 19 of Title 47 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the State
Employees' Assurance Department, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as
follows:
"47-19-11.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term 'funeral services' means the observances,
services, or ceremonies held for dead human bodies and includes any service relating to the
transportation, embalming, cremation, and interment of a dead human body.
(b) Group term life insurance benefit payments due from the retired and vested inactive
members trust fund or the active members fund established by subsection (b) of Code
Section 47-19-10 to a named beneficiary shall be assignable by such named beneficiary to
a person licensed by the State Board of Funeral Service to practice embalming or funeral
directing solely in order to pay the cost of funeral services for the deceased individual who
granted such right or benefit to such named beneficiary.
(c) To make the assignment authorized by subsection (b) of this Code section, the named
beneficiary shall authorize such assignment in writing on a form to be prescribed by the
board of directors and shall attach to such form a notarized copy of the contract between
said beneficiary and the licensed funeral director or embalmer who is providing the funeral
services and a copy of the former member's death certificate.
(d) The State Employees' Assurance Department shall pay or cause to be paid any sum
assigned in accordance with this Code section in the method or manner provided for in the
contract for funeral services but only to the extent that such sums are owed to the person
who completed the assignment."
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 1234 lets the beneficiary of a deceased state employee's group term life insurance benefit assign part of that payout directly to a funeral home to cover funeral costs.
### Plain-language summary
Georgia's State Employees' Assurance Department manages group term life insurance for members of the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia, the Georgia Legislative Retirement System, and the Georgia Judicial Retirement System. Currently, when a member dies, the insurance benefit goes to the named beneficiary, who is then responsible for paying any funeral home out of pocket or through other arrangements.
This bill adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 47-19-11) letting a named beneficiary assign part of that insurance payout directly to a licensed funeral director or embalmer to cover funeral costs. To do this, the beneficiary must fill out a form set by the department's board of directors, attach a notarized copy of their contract with the funeral provider, and include a copy of the deceased member's death certificate. The department will then pay the assigned amount according to the funeral contract, but only up to what is actually owed to the funeral provider.
### What it does
- Creates a new legal option letting a life insurance beneficiary assign part of the payout straight to a funeral home instead of paying out of pocket first.
- Defines 'funeral services' to cover transportation, embalming, cremation, and burial arrangements for the deceased.
- Requires the beneficiary to submit a notarized funeral contract copy and the deceased's death certificate along with a state-prescribed assignment form.
- Limits the department's payment to funeral providers to only the amount actually owed under the funeral contract, not the full insurance benefit.
- Applies specifically to insurance funds tied to the Employees' Retirement System, Georgia Legislative Retirement System, and Georgia Judicial Retirement System.
### Who it affects
This affects beneficiaries of deceased members of Georgia's Employees' Retirement System, Legislative Retirement System, and Judicial Retirement System, along with licensed funeral directors and embalmers who could receive direct payment, and the State Employees' Assurance Department, which administers the process.
### Why it matters
Families dealing with a state employee's or retiree's death would gain a way to pay for funeral services directly from the life insurance payout, potentially avoiding upfront costs or delays while waiting for the full benefit to be processed and distributed.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds new O.C.G.A. § 47-19-11 to Chapter 19 of Title 47, covering the State Employees' Assurance Department.
- Subsection (a) defines 'funeral services' to include transportation, embalming, cremation, and interment of a deceased person's body.
- Subsection (b) allows a named beneficiary to assign group term life insurance benefits from the retired and vested inactive members trust fund or the active members fund to a licensed funeral director or embalmer.
- Subsection (c) requires a written, board-prescribed assignment form, a notarized copy of the funeral services contract, and a copy of the deceased member's death certificate.
- Subsection (d) limits the department's payment to the amount owed under the funeral contract, paid according to the contract's specified method.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Passed (2026-05-12)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-07-01 (2026-05-12)
- Sponsors: Darlene Taylor, Lauren McDonald, Danny Mathis, Mary Ann Santos, Patty Stinson, Ricky Williams
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72955
> The history, votes, and amendments (949 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1234.md?full=1