HB 131: Self-service storage facilities; revise advertisement requirements before an owner can enforce an owner's lien

Under current Georgia law, self-storage facility owners who want to enforce a lien on a tenant's belongings for unpaid rent have had to publish a public sale notice once a week for two consecutive weeks in the legal organ (a designated legal newspaper) of the county where the facility sits. House Bill 131 changes that advertising requirement. The bill still requires publication in the county legal organ, but drops the two-week, once-a-week schedule and instead lets owners advertise in any other commercially reasonable manner, as long as the stored property is not a motor vehicle, motorcycle, trailer, watercraft, or recreational vehicle. Those vehicle categories still require the legal organ publication. The bill also removes a reference tying the required 15-day waiting period before a sale to "the first" publication, since there is no longer a required repeated publication schedule. The changes take effect July 1, 2025, and apply to lien enforcement actions started on or after that date.

• Removes the requirement that a public sale advertisement run once a week for two consecutive weeks in the county's legal organ (its official legal newspaper).
• Allows storage facility owners to advertise a sale in any commercially reasonable manner, rather than only in the legal organ, for property other than motor vehicles, motorcycles, trailers, watercraft, or recreational vehicles.
• Keeps the legal organ publication requirement in place specifically for sales involving motor vehicles, motorcycles, trailers, watercraft, or recreational vehicles.
• Removes language tying the required 15-day pre-sale waiting period to "the first" publication, since repeated weekly publication is no longer mandatory.
• Sets an effective date of July 1, 2025, applying only to lien enforcement actions started on or after that date.

Self-service storage facility owners and operators in Georgia, who must follow the revised advertising rules before selling a tenant's stored property; and storage tenants (occupants), whose belongings can be sold if they fall behind on rent and the owner follows the notice and sale process.

Storage facility owners would have more flexibility and likely lower cost in advertising a lien sale, since they could use other commercially reasonable methods instead of paying for two weeks of newspaper notices, except when the stored item is a vehicle, trailer, or watercraft, which still requires the legal organ notice.

• Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 10-4-213(a), the required rental agreement language governing lien enforcement without going to court.
• The revised text drops the 'once a week, for two consecutive weeks' publication schedule and instead requires publication in the legal organ, unless the property is a motor vehicle, motorcycle, trailer, watercraft, or recreational vehicle, in which case any other commercially reasonable advertising method may be used.
• The advertisement and sale are still considered commercially reasonable only if at least three independent bidders attend.
• The public sale must still occur no sooner than 15 days after publication, but the bill removes the phrase tying that deadline to 'the first' publication.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2025, applying to lien enforcement actions initiated on or after that date.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-07-01Effective Date
2. 2025-05-12Act 125
3. 2025-05-12House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-10House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-04-04House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub (House)
6. 2025-04-02Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
7. 2025-04-02Senate Third Read (Senate)
8. 2025-04-02Senate Taken from Table (Senate)

• Matt Reeves (R, HD-99)Primary sponsor
• Stan Gunter (R, HD-8)
• Rob Leverett (R, HD-123)
• Mary Margaret Oliver (D, HD-84)
• Scott Holcomb (D, HD-101)
• Mitchell Scoggins (R, HD-14)
• Brian Strickland (R, SD-42)

1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 26, 2025

   166 yea, 0 nay (2 not voting, 12 excused)

   PASSAGE: House Vote #92

2. PassedSenate voteApril 2, 2025

   54 yea, 0 nay (0 not voting, 2 excused)

   PASSAGE BY SUBSTITUTE: Senate Vote #428

3. PassedHouse voteApril 4, 2025

   163 yea, 1 nay (8 not voting, 8 excused)

   Agree to Senate Substitute: House Vote #406

• self-storage laws
• landlord-tenant rules
• property liens
• consumer protection
• legal notices