---
title: HB 1410. Georgia Student Vision and Literacy Readiness Act; enact
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1410
cite_as: HB 1410, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1410
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1410.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1410/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73463
date: 2026-02-25
status: introduced
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.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1410.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1410
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-02-20
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
  - Terry Cummings
  - Kim Schofield
  - Viola Davis
  - Sandra Scott
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1410/2025
upstream_id: 2121428
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - school vision screening
  - student health
  - literacy readiness
  - Department of Public Health
  - education funding
---

# HB 1410. Georgia Student Vision and Literacy Readiness Act; enact

## Text

House Bill 1410
By: Representatives Cummings of the 39th, Schofield of the 63rd, Davis of the 87th, and Scott
of the 76th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 2 of Title 20 and Chapter 2A of Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to elementary and secondary education and the Department of Public
Health, respectively, so as to modernize vision screening and literacy readiness requirements
for elementary and secondary school students; to provide for regular vision screenings by
certain personnel; to provide for parent notification; to provide for a parent or legal guardian
to opt out of vision screening at school; to provide for referrals; to provide for data sharing
between the State Board of Education and the Department of Public Health; to provide for
annual reports; to provide for privacy protections; to create the Georgia Vision Access Fund;
to provide for standards for vision screenings; to provide for certifications; to provide for
rules and regulations; to provide for related matters; to provide for a short title; to provide
for legislative findings and intent; to provide for an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws;
and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Georgia Student Vision and Literacy
Readiness Act."
SECTION 2.
(a) The General Assembly finds that:
(1) Vision is essential to learning and literacy, and more than 80 percent of classroom
instruction depends upon visual processing;
(2) Children with undiagnosed or uncorrected vision problems are more likely to struggle
with reading proficiency by third grade, directly affecting educational attainment;
(3) Traditional vision acuity testing using wall charts and occluders are labor intensive and
time consuming and often fail to detect several conditions that interfere with reading and
comprehension, including astigmatism, farsightedness, eye teaming and focusing issues,
amblyopia, certain serious eye disease, and loss of peripheral vision;
(4) Modern vision screenings using advanced digital technology and instrument based
devices such as photoscreeners and autorefractors provide faster and more accurate
detection; and
(5) Integrating reliable vision data with literacy intervention initiatives will strengthen
Georgia's state-wide reading proficiency goals.
(b) It is therefore the intent of the General Assembly to:
(1) Establish periodic, evidence based vision screening for all K-12 students using
advanced digital technology or instrument based devices;
(2) Ensure timely referral, comprehensive examination, and closure of all failed
screenings;
(3) Integrate vision health outcomes into literacy readiness indicators; and
(4) Support equitable access to eye care through state and federal funds.
SECTION 3.
Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to elementary and
secondary education, is amended in Part 3 of Article 16, relating to health of students, by
revising Code Section 20-2-770, relating to rules and regulations for nutritional screening
and eye, ear, and dental examinations of students, as follows:
"20-2-770.
<ins>(a)</ins> The Department of Public Health is authorized and directed, in cooperation with the
State Board of Education, to promulgate rules and regulations to provide for a nutritional
screening and eye, ear, and dental examinations <ins>or screenings</ins> for each student entering the
first grade in the public schools of this state and at such other times as such rules and
regulations shall provide. Such rules and regulations shall provide procedures for local
boards of health to provide for such examinations <del>and</del> <ins>or</ins> screenings and for the issuance
of a certificate to the parent or parents of children entering the first grade indicating that
such examinations <del>and</del> <ins>or</ins> screenings have been made, and such certificates shall be turned
in to the school officials at the time of enrollment. Such rules and regulations shall further
provide that the examinations <del>and</del> <ins>or</ins> screenings required in this Code section may be made
by private practitioners and authorize the certification provided for in this Code section by
such private practitioners.
<ins>(b) No later than August 1, 2027, each local school system and public school shall ensure
that every student enrolled in kindergarten through grade 12 in such school system or
school receives a vision screening upon initial enrollment and at each of the following
levels: kindergarten and grades one, three, five, seven, and ten. Local school systems and
public schools may conduct additional vision screenings as resources permit.
(c) The Form 3300 Certificate of Vision, Hearing, Dental, and Nutrition Screening shall
be required at initial enrollment in a school and shall include notation of compliance with
requirements for vision screenings provided for in Code Section 31-2A-21.
(d) Vision screenings may be performed by a school nurse, trained school health
personnel, contracted healthcare professional, licensed optometrist, licensed
ophthalmologist, Department of Public Health employee, a contractor certified by the
Department of Public Health pursuant to Code Section 31-2A-21, or a trained volunteer.
</ins>
<ins>(e) The parent or legal guardian of a student subject to a scheduled vision screening at a
school shall be notified at least five school days prior to such screening being conducted
at such school and given the opportunity to opt the student out of such screening.
(f) The parent or legal guardian of a student who fails to meet vision screening thresholds
shall be notified of the results of such screening within ten school days of such screening.
Such notification shall include a referral for a comprehensive eye examination by a
licensed optometrist or ophthalmologist and information regarding financial assistance
available under the Georgia Vision Access Fund as provided for in Code Section 31-2A-21.
(g) A school shall make reasonable efforts consistent with federal and state privacy laws
to verify completion of a comprehensive eye examination and shall close referrals within
sixty school days of the referral.
(h) Each local school system and public school shall annually report to the State Board of
Education the number of vision screenings conducted, the number of students failing to
meet vision screening thresholds, the number of completed comprehensive eye
examinations, and such additional data as may be required under subsection (i) of this Code
section.
(i) The State Board of Education and the Department of Public Health shall jointly develop
a secure, de-identified data-sharing protocol linking aggregated vision screening outcomes
with state-wide literacy performance indicators to inform early reading interventions and
resource allocation. The Department of Public Health shall publish summaries of such
information for the state and each local school system and public school in a de-identified
format consistent with federal and state privacy laws."
</ins> SECTION 4.
Chapter 2A of Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the Department
of Public Health, is amended in Article 1, relating to general provisions, by adding a new
Code section to read as follows:
<ins>"31-2A-21.
(a) There is created the Georgia Vision Access Fund as a separate fund in the state
treasury, to be administered by the Department of Public Health for the purpose of:
(1) Procuring and maintaining advanced digital technology and instrument based devices
for the vision screenings provided for in Code Section 20-2-770;
(2) Training personnel for conducting such screenings;
(3) Covering the cost of comprehensive eye examinations, eyeglasses, or related vision
care for uninsured or underinsured students as a result of such screenings; and
(4) Covering the cost of travel vouchers, weekend events, and on-site dispensing
partnerships to deliver services or glasses as a result of such screenings.
(b) The Georgia Vision Access Fund may receive state appropriations, grants, gifts, and
donations.
(c) The Department of Public Health, in consultation with the State Board of Education,
shall adopt modernized, evidence based vision screening standards, taking into
consideration established federal and state guidelines. Such standards shall be reviewed
and updated at least every five years. Such standards shall:
(1) Prioritize the use of advanced digital technology or instrument based devices capable
of automated, objective vision screening;
(2) Permit the use of traditional vision acuity testing using wall charts and occluders
when advanced digital technology or instrument based devices are unavailable or
inappropriate; and
(3) Define vision screening thresholds, re-screening procedures, device specifications,
and training requirements for personnel conducting vision screening.
(d) The Department of Public Health is authorized to certify contractors to conduct vision
screenings in schools, provided that such certification shall be free and available online.
Such contractors may include but not be limited to local health departments, telehealth
providers, mobile screening units, and nonprofit partners.
</ins>
<ins>(e) The Department of Public Health shall promulgate any rules and regulations necessary
to implement the provisions of this Code section."
</ins> SECTION 5.
This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon becoming law
without such approval.
SECTION 6.
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.

HB1410 would require Georgia public schools to give students vision screenings at set grade levels, notify parents, and create a state fund to help pay for eye exams and glasses for students who need them.

### Plain-language summary

Georgia currently requires eye examinations or screenings mainly when a child enters first grade. This bill would expand that system by requiring every public school student in kindergarten through grade 12 to receive a vision screening at initial enrollment and again in kindergarten and grades one, three, five, seven, and ten, starting no later than August 1, 2027. Screenings could be done by school nurses, trained staff, contracted health professionals, optometrists, ophthalmologists, or certified contractors.
Parents would get advance notice and could opt their child out. Parents of children who fail a screening would be notified within ten school days and given a referral for a full eye exam, plus information about financial help. Schools would report screening data yearly, and the State Board of Education and the Department of Public Health would share de-identified data to connect vision outcomes with literacy performance. The bill also creates the Georgia Vision Access Fund to pay for screening equipment, training, and eye care for uninsured students, funded by state money, grants, and donations. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it.

### What it does

- Requires vision screenings for all K-12 public school students at enrollment and at specific grade levels (kindergarten, 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10) by August 1, 2027.
- Requires schools to notify parents at least five school days before a scheduled screening and allow them to opt their child out.
- Requires notification to parents within ten school days if a child fails a screening, along with a referral for a full eye exam and information on financial assistance.
- Requires schools to try to confirm completed eye exams and close referral cases within sixty school days.
- Creates the Georgia Vision Access Fund within the Department of Public Health to pay for screening equipment, staff training, eye exams, glasses, and related costs for uninsured or underinsured students.
- Directs the Department of Public Health and State Board of Education to jointly develop standards for screenings and a data-sharing system linking vision results to statewide literacy performance.

### Who it affects

Public school students in kindergarten through 12th grade and their parents or guardians, local school systems and school health staff, the Department of Public Health, the State Board of Education, and eye care providers such as optometrists and ophthalmologists who may receive referrals or funding through the new program.

### Why it matters

Families would see more frequent, technology based vision checks for their children, earlier notice of vision problems tied to reading difficulties, and new financial help for exams and glasses. Schools and health agencies would take on new screening, reporting, and data-sharing duties tied to firm deadlines.

### Key provisions

- Section 3 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 20-2-770 to require vision screenings at enrollment and at kindergarten and grades 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10, no later than August 1, 2027.
- Subsection (d) lists who may perform screenings, including school nurses, licensed optometrists and ophthalmologists, and Department of Public Health certified contractors.
- Subsections (e) and (f) set parent notice requirements: five school days advance notice for opt-out, and ten school days after a failed screening, with a referral included.
- Subsection (g) requires schools to verify completed eye exams and close referrals within sixty school days.
- Subsection (h) requires annual reporting of screening numbers, failed screenings, and completed exams to the State Board of Education.
- Section 4 creates the Georgia Vision Access Fund (new O.C.G.A. § 31-2A-21) funded by state appropriations, grants, and donations to cover equipment, training, and eye care costs.
- Subsection (c) of the new Code section requires the Department of Public Health to set and update, every five years, evidence based screening standards.
- Section 5 makes the Act effective immediately upon the Governor's signature or upon becoming law without signature.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2026-02-20)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2026-02-25)
- Sponsors: Terry Cummings, Kim Schofield, Viola Davis, Sandra Scott
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73463

> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1410.md?full=1