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House · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session

HB 1408: Veterinarians; authorize licensed veterinary technicians to administer antirabies vaccinations to animals

Last action July 1, 2026 · Effective Date

Georgia House Bill 1408 would let licensed veterinary technicians give rabies vaccinations to animals as long as a licensed veterinarian is directly supervising them, updating state law that currently limits that task to veterinarians.

Read the full bill text

These buttons carry the bill's own text, not the summaries below. Copy for LLM, View as markdown, and Send to AI use the Markdown version: the text as filed, then the summaries under a heading that names them as ours. View raw is the text alone.

The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Enrolled version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.

In plain language

Under current Georgia law, only a licensed veterinarian can administer the rabies vaccine that the state requires for dogs and cats. This bill changes that by allowing a licensed veterinary technician to give the antirabies vaccination as long as a licensed veterinarian is directly supervising the technician's work. The bill amends both the rabies control law (O.C.G.A. Title 31, Chapter 19) and the veterinary practice law (O.C.G.A. Title 43, Chapter 50) to add this new authority, update the definition of 'inoculation against rabies,' and clarify that the veterinary technician's role does not count as unlicensed practice of veterinary medicine. It also updates the county dog-fee collection rules so that fee can be collected whether the veterinarian administers the vaccine directly or supervises a technician doing so. A new Code section, 43-50-54.1, spells out this authority for veterinary technicians.

What the bill does

  • Allows a licensed veterinary technician working under a licensed veterinarian's direct supervision to give a required antirabies vaccination to an animal.
  • Rewrites the definition of 'inoculation against rabies' in O.C.G.A. § 31-19-5 to include vaccinations given by a supervised veterinary technician, not just a veterinarian.
  • Updates O.C.G.A. § 31-19-7 so the county's per-dog vaccination fee can be collected whether the veterinarian gives the vaccine personally or supervises a technician who gives it.
  • Adds a new Code section, 43-50-54.1, creating the specific legal authority for veterinary technicians to administer antirabies vaccines under supervision.
  • Revises the legal definitions of 'practice veterinary medicine' and 'practice veterinary technology' in O.C.G.A. § 43-50-3 so a technician's supervised vaccination is not treated as unlicensed practice of veterinary medicine.

Who it affects

Licensed veterinarians and licensed veterinary technicians in Georgia, county boards of health that regulate rabies vaccination clinics, county governments that collect per-dog vaccination fees, and pet owners whose dogs and cats need rabies shots.

Why it matters

If enacted, veterinary clinics could use trained technicians, not just veterinarians, to give required rabies shots as long as a veterinarian is directly supervising. This could change staffing and workflow at vet offices and county-sponsored rabies clinics without changing the vaccination requirement itself for pet owners.

Key provisions

  • Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 31-19-5 so 'inoculation against rabies' covers vaccines given by a licensed veterinarian or a licensed veterinary technician under new Code Section 43-50-54.1.
  • Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 31-19-7 so the county's per-dog fee (up to 50 cents) can be collected by a veterinarian who administers or directly supervises administration of the vaccine.
  • Section 3 revises the definitions of 'practice veterinary medicine' and 'practice veterinary technology' in O.C.G.A. § 43-50-3 to carve out supervised technician vaccinations and add them to technicians' allowed duties.
  • Section 4 creates new Code Section 43-50-54.1, explicitly authorizing a supervised veterinary technician to administer a state-required antirabies vaccination.
  • Section 5 repeals any conflicting laws.

From the bill

“A licensed veterinary technician working under a licensed veterinarian's direct supervision, as defined by the board pursuant to Code Section 43-50-54, may administer an antirabies vaccination to any animal that the state requires to be vaccinated.”

This new Code section creates the core legal authority the bill establishes.

Discussed in meetings (13)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

  1. House Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Committee, February 25, 2026

    From 0:19:40 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 1408 would allow licensed veterinary technicians, under the direct supervision of a licensed veterinarian, to administer required rabies vaccinations to animals. The sponsor said current law allows only veterinarians to give those shots and described the proposal as a public health measure, citing the expense and pain of treatment after potential rabies exposure. The sponsor reported support from the Georgia Veterinary Medical Association, Georgia Department of Agriculture and Georgia Department of Public Health. Members asked no questions. The committee approved the bill by voice vote, with no opposition heard.

  2. House Rules Committee, March 2, 2026

    From 0:23:14 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 1408 would allow veterinary technicians working under a veterinarian's supervision to administer rabies vaccinations to animals. No questions or decision followed.

  3. House Rules Committee, March 4, 2026

    From 1:55:43 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee placed HB 1408 on the day's floor calendar under modified rules without opposition. Its provisions were not discussed.

  4. House floor session, March 4, 2026 (legislative day 27, AM)

    From 1:36:49 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 1796

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 1408 would allow licensed veterinary technicians to administer rabies vaccinations under a veterinarian's direct supervision. The sponsor described rabies exposure as stressful and the resulting shots as painful. The chair mentioned aerial vaccination efforts for wildlife in neighboring states. No members asked substantive questions. The House passed the bill, 170 to 0.

  5. Senate Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee, March 11, 2026

    From 0:18:05 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the bill would allow Georgia-licensed veterinary technicians to administer rabies vaccinations under a veterinarian’s direction. The sponsor reported support from the Department of Agriculture, the state veterinarian and the veterinary association, and said the University of Georgia veterinary school was understood to be supportive. One committee member asked whether anyone had raised concerns. The sponsor said no objections had been received and compared the proposal to nurses or technicians giving people injections rather than requiring a doctor to do so. Another member expressed support for the state’s veterinarians and moved to approve the bill. The committee approved it unanimously.

  6. Senate Rules Committee, March 16, 2026

    From 0:09:16 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 1408 would allow licensed veterinary technicians to administer rabies vaccines under a veterinarian's direction. A committee member described a clinic facing a tax issue over giving vaccinations away and asked whether that practice was common. The sponsor did not know about that issue but said current Georgia law allows only veterinarians to administer the vaccine. No vote followed.

  7. Senate Rules Committee, March 18, 2026

    From 0:14:08 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 1408 would allow veterinary technicians to administer rabies vaccinations, which the sponsor said only veterinarians could legally administer in Georgia. In response to a committee member's question about supervision, the sponsor said a veterinarian would have to be on site when a technician gives the vaccine. The committee later unanimously included the bill in its ten-measure floor calendar.

  8. Senate floor session, March 19, 2026 (legislative day 34)

    From 4:31:24 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (Senate Third Read)

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the bill would allow licensed veterinary technicians to administer rabies vaccines under a veterinarian's supervision. The clerk described the requirement as direct supervision. The sponsor said veterinary and state agriculture and public health organizations were consulted. A member asked about veterinarian shortages and whether easier access to vaccination would protect residents. The sponsor agreed there was a shortage, pointed to veterinary technician training at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and emphasized supervised vaccination. Another member asked whether rabies affects older people more than younger people; the sponsor said that was not believed to be true. The Senate passed the bill 50-0.

Status timeline

  1. 2026-07-01Effective Date
  2. 2026-05-11Act 455
  3. 2026-05-11House Date Signed by Governor (House)
  4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
  5. 2026-03-19Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
  6. 2026-03-19Senate Third Read (Senate)
  7. 2026-03-16Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
  8. 2026-03-12Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
Show full history (15 actions)
  1. 2026-03-06Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
  2. 2026-03-04House Passed/Adopted (House)
  3. 2026-03-04House Third Readers (House)
  4. 2026-02-25House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
  5. 2026-02-25House Second Readers (House)
  6. 2026-02-24House First Readers (House)
  7. 2026-02-20House Hopper (House)

Sponsors

  • Beth Camp (R, HD-135)Primary sponsor
  • Leesa Hagan (R, HD-156)
  • Sharon Cooper (R, HD-45)
  • Brent Cox (R, HD-28)
  • Rick Jasperse (R, HD-11)
  • Robert Dickey (R, HD-134)
  • Carden Summers (R, SD-13)

Votes

  1. PassedHouse voteMarch 4, 2026

    170 yea, 0 nay (6 not voting, 1 excused)

    PASSAGE: House Vote #603

  2. PassedSenate voteMarch 19, 2026

    50 yea, 0 nay (0 not voting, 4 excused)

    PASSAGE: Senate Vote #756

Topics

  • veterinary medicine
  • rabies vaccination
  • animal health regulation
  • occupational licensing
  • pet owners

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Answers come from this document. Not legal advice.

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HB1408: Veterinarians; authorize licensed veterinary technicians to administer antirabies vaccinations to animals | Georgia Commons