HB 1530: Fairmount, City of; future mayors shall be elected to four-year terms; provide

This local bill amends the 1975 charter of the City of Fairmount, a small Georgia city. Currently the charter sets terms of office for the mayor and council. The bill rewrites Section 2.11 so that the mayor elected in 2027, and every mayor after that, will serve a four-year term instead of the current shorter term. City council members already serve four-year staggered terms under the charter, and that structure is kept in place, with Posts 1 and 3 elected together and Posts 2 and 4 elected two years later. The bill also rewrites Section 2.13 on compensation, keeping the rule that the mayor and council set their own salaries by ordinance, but confirming that any salary increase cannot take effect until after the next regular municipal election following the vote to raise it. The bill repeals any conflicting laws.

• Changes the mayor's term of office in the City of Fairmount from the current term to four years, starting with the mayor elected in 2027.
• Keeps the existing residency and qualification requirements for anyone running for mayor or city council, including one year of residency in Fairmount.
• Reaffirms that city council members serve staggered four-year terms, with Posts 1 and 3 and Posts 2 and 4 elected two years apart.
• Restates that any pay raise for the mayor or council members cannot take effect until after the next municipal election following the vote to increase it.
• Repeals any prior laws that conflict with these charter changes.

Residents and voters of the City of Fairmount, Georgia, along with anyone running for mayor or city council there. It also affects the current mayor and council members, whose future pay raises are governed by the updated timing rule.

Fairmount voters will elect their mayor to a four-year term starting in 2027 instead of a shorter cycle, meaning less frequent mayoral elections. The bill also locks in that any raise the mayor or council votes for themselves cannot start until after the next election, delaying its effect.

• Section 1 revises Charter Section 2.11 so the mayor elected in 2027 and all successors serve four-year terms, continuing the existing council structure of four staggered posts.
• Section 1 keeps residency, voter registration, and Georgia House of Representatives qualification standards for anyone seeking to be mayor or a council member.
• Section 2 revises Charter Section 2.13 to confirm that mayor and council pay is set by ordinance but any increase only applies after the next regular municipal election.
• Section 3 repeals any existing laws that conflict with these charter amendments.

1. 2026-05-12Effective Date 2026-05-12
2. 2026-05-12Act 671
3. 2026-05-12House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-20Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-03-20Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
7. 2026-03-19Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
8. 2026-03-18House Passed/Adopted (House)

• Matt Barton (R, HD-005)Primary sponsor
• Jason Ridley (R, HD-006)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 18, 2026

   161 yea, 2 nay (7 not voting, 6 absent)

   Local Calendar : House Vote #712

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 20, 2026

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

   Local Consent Calendar: Senate Vote #761

• local government charters
• municipal elections
• City of Fairmount
• elected official terms
• local government pay