HB 1254: Professions and businesses; move regulation of various professions from individual boards to Secretary of State

Georgia currently regulates several professions through their own boards: the State Board of Cemeterians, the Georgia Auctioneers Commission, the State Board of Registration for Professional Geologists, and the State Board of Hearing Aid Dealers and Dispensers. This bill eliminates most of those boards and shifts their licensing, discipline, and rulemaking powers to the Secretary of State's office. For cemeteries, it repeals the Georgia Cemeterians Board Act, creates a five-member Cemeterians Advisory Group to advise the Secretary of State, and requires cemetery owners to have a written business continuity and succession plan. For auctioneers, it dissolves the Georgia Auctioneers Commission effective July 1, 2026, moves licensing to the Secretary of State, and keeps the existing recovery fund running under the Secretary's administration until its balance drops below $10,000. For geologists, it abolishes the geologist licensing board and has the Secretary of State issue registrations instead. For hearing aids, it folds hearing aid dispenser regulation into the existing speech-language pathology and audiology board, which is renamed and expanded to include two hearing aid dispenser members, effective July 1, 2026.

• Eliminates the State Board of Cemeterians and repeals the Georgia Cemeterians Board Act, transferring cemetery owner registration and discipline duties to the Secretary of State.
• Creates a five-member Cemeterians Advisory Group appointed by the Secretary of State to advise on fees, discipline, and cemetery regulation matters.
• Requires every registered cemetery owner to adopt a written business continuity and succession plan covering records backup, communication, and continuity of operations.
• Dissolves the Georgia Auctioneers Commission effective July 1, 2026 and moves auctioneer licensing, discipline, and the education/recovery fund to the Secretary of State.
• Abolishes the State Board of Registration for Professional Geologists and has the Secretary of State issue, discipline, and renew geologist registrations instead.
• Repeals the separate hearing aid dealer and dispenser board and instead expands the speech-language pathology and audiology board (renamed) to license and regulate prescription hearing aid dispensers starting July 1, 2026.

Cemetery owners, preneed dealers, and funeral-related businesses; licensed and aspiring auctioneers; registered professional geologists and firms that hire them, including state and local governments contracting for geological work; hearing aid dispensers and audiologists; and consumers who buy burial rights, use auction services, or purchase prescription hearing aids.

People in these four professions would apply for licenses, renewals, and file complaints with the Secretary of State's office instead of separate boards, changing who reviews applications and enforces rules. Cemetery owners face a new continuity-planning requirement, and hearing aid dispensers gain formal state licensure for the first time under a reorganized board.

• Section 1-3 creates the Cemeterians Advisory Group within the Secretary of State's office, with four cemetery owner members and one consumer member serving four-year terms.
• Section 1-5 adds Code Section 10-14-4.1 requiring cemetery owners to maintain a business continuity and succession plan covering records, communication, relocation, and staffing during disruptions.
• Section 1-13 repeals Chapter 8B of Title 43, the Georgia Cemeterians Board Act, eliminating the State Board of Cemeterians.
• Part II (Section 2-1) rewrites Title 43 Chapter 6 so the Secretary of State licenses auctioneers, dissolves the Georgia Auctioneers Commission on July 1, 2026, and caps recovery fund payouts at $10,000 per transaction and $20,000 per licensee.
• Part III (Section 3-1) rewrites Title 43 Chapter 19 so the Secretary of State registers professional geologists, sets education and experience requirements, and allows civil penalties up to $10,000 per violation.
• Part IV repeals Chapter 20 (hearing aid dealers and dispensers) and instead adds Article 3 to Chapter 44, letting the renamed State Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology, and Hearing Aid Dispensing license dispensers starting July 1, 2026.
• Section 4-4 expands that board from eight to ten members, adding two licensed hearing aid dispensers, effective July 1, 2026.
• Section 5-1 removes a provision allowing the counselors, social workers, and marriage and family therapists board to delegate its powers to a standards committee.

1. 2026-05-11Effective Date 2026-07-01
2. 2026-05-11Act 473
3. 2026-05-11House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-10House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-27Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-03-27Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2026-03-27Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
8. 2026-03-27Senate Tabled (Senate)

• Matt Reeves (R, HD-099)Primary sponsor
• James Hatchett (R, HD-155)
• Will Wade (R, HD-009)
• Brian Prince (D, HD-132)
• Devan Seabaugh (R, HD-034)
• Matthew Gambill (R, HD-015)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 6, 2026

   163 yea, 3 nay (2 not voting, 9 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #679

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   26 yea, 22 nay (3 not voting, 3 absent)

   Motion To Table Remaining Legislation On The Rules Calendar: Senate Vote #835

3. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   49 yea, 0 nay (0 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #851

• professional licensing
• cemetery regulation
• auctioneers
• geologist registration
• hearing aid dispensers