HB 1450: State militia; oversight of any deployment of the National Guard by the Governor; provide

Currently the Governor has broad authority under Georgia law to call up the state militia, including the National Guard, for emergencies like riots, disasters, or invasions, with few reporting requirements. This bill adds a new Code section (38-2-6.2) that requires the Governor to notify the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate, and the Attorney General within 48 hours of ordering state active duty, and within seven days of a federal mobilization, giving details on legal authority, mission scope, cost, and troop numbers. For deployments of 100 or more Guard members, the Governor or adjutant general must brief legislative defense committees. No deployment can exceed 14 days without General Assembly approval by joint resolution, and if the legislature is not in session, the Governor must call an emergency session. The bill also bars using the Guard for active combat without a congressional declaration of war, restricts its role in drug enforcement to support functions, and prohibits deploying it to intimidate voters. The adjutant general must file an annual report on deployments, readiness, and funding needs.

• Requires the Governor to notify top legislative leaders and the Attorney General within 48 hours of any state active duty call-up of the National Guard, including legal basis, cost, and troop numbers.
• Requires notice within seven days of a federal mobilization of the Guard, including an assessment of the impact on state emergency readiness.
• Requires a legislative briefing before deploying 100 or more Guard members, covering the necessity, legal basis, and mission details.
• Caps most Guard deployments at 14 consecutive days unless the General Assembly approves a longer deployment by joint resolution.
• Bars sending Guard members into active combat overseas unless Congress has declared war or taken equivalent constitutional action.
• Limits the Guard's role in drug enforcement operations to support of law enforcement and bans it from being deployed to intimidate voters.

The Governor and the adjutant general, who gain new reporting and briefing duties; the Speaker of the House, President of the Senate, and Attorney General, who receive the notifications; legislative defense and veterans committees, which must be briefed; and National Guard members and units whose deployments become subject to new time limits and restrictions.

If enacted, Georgia lawmakers would gain a formal role in reviewing and potentially ending National Guard deployments that last more than two weeks, and would receive detailed information about cost, scope, and legal basis whenever the Guard is called up, changing a process that currently rests largely with the Governor alone.

• Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 38-2-6 to make the Governor's existing emergency call-up power subject to the new oversight section, 38-2-6.2.
• Section 3 creates new Code Section 38-2-6.2, defining 'active combat,' 'federal mobilization,' and 'state active duty,' and setting the notification, briefing, and 14-day deployment cap rules.
• Section 3 requires General Assembly approval by joint resolution (simple majority in both chambers) to extend a deployment beyond 14 days or its originally reported duration.
• Section 3 bars Guard members from being sent into active combat abroad absent a congressional declaration of war or equivalent action under Article I, Section 8, Clause 11.
• Section 3 limits the Guard's counterdrug role to support of law enforcement and bars it from conducting searches, seizures, or arrests without express legal authorization.
• Section 3 prohibits deploying the Guard to intimidate, threaten, or coerce voters, and requires an annual report from the adjutant general to the General Assembly by January 31 each year.
• Sections 4 through 8 amend several existing Code sections (38-2-10, 38-2-11, 38-2-25, 38-2-90, 38-2-91) to make other Guard deployment and duty provisions subject to the new oversight section 38-2-6.2.

1. 2026-02-26House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-02-25House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-24House Hopper (House)

• Derrick Jackson (D, HD-068)Primary sponsor
• Teddy Reese (D, HD-140)
• Billy Mitchell (D, HD-088)
• Eric Bell (D, HD-075)
• Sandra Scott (D, HD-076)
• Viola Davis (D, HD-087)

• National Guard
• state militia
• legislative oversight
• military deployment
• voting rights