HB 159: Georgia Housing and Finance Authority; increase outstanding bond limit

The Georgia Housing and Finance Authority helps finance affordable housing across the state, partly by issuing bonds and notes to raise money for its single-family residential housing program. Current law (O.C.G.A. § 50-26-10) caps how much the authority can have outstanding in these bonds and notes at any one time at $3 billion, not counting bonds issued to refinance existing debt. This bill doubles that cap to $6 billion. It does not change the separate, smaller limits on bonds for other enterprises ($140 million) or health care services ($30 million), and it does not touch the existing exemption from state usury and interest rate laws. The change would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it or it otherwise becomes law without his signature.

• Raises the cap on outstanding bonds and notes for the authority's single-family residential housing program from $3 billion to $6 billion.
• Leaves in place the existing exclusion for bonds and notes issued to refund (refinance) already outstanding debt, which do not count toward the cap.
• Keeps unchanged the separate $140 million limit on bonds for other financed enterprises and the $30 million limit for health care services financing.
• Keeps the existing exemption of the authority's bonds from state interest rate and usury law limits.

The Georgia Housing and Finance Authority, which issues the bonds; investors who buy the authority's bonds and notes; and, indirectly, Georgians seeking single-family home financing through the authority's housing programs, since the higher cap allows more borrowing capacity for that program.

By doubling the borrowing ceiling, the authority gains more room to issue debt to fund its single-family housing finance programs without needing further legislative action. This could support more home financing activity, though the bill itself does not direct how the additional borrowing capacity would be used.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 50-26-10(i)(1), raising the single-family residential housing bond and note limit from $3 billion to $6 billion.
• Section 1 preserves the existing rule that bonds and notes issued to refund outstanding bonds and notes do not count toward the cap.
• Section 1 leaves subsections (i)(2) through (i)(4) unchanged, including the $140 million enterprise financing limit, the $30 million health care services limit, and the exemption from state interest rate laws.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as the date of the Governor's approval or the date the bill becomes law without his signature.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-05-13Effective Date
2. 2025-05-13Act 173
3. 2025-05-13House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-07House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-03-21Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2025-03-21Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2025-03-18Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
8. 2025-03-13Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)

• Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)Primary sponsor
• Matt Reeves (R, HD-99)
• Beth Camp (R, HD-135)
• Kimberly New (R, HD-40)
• Drew Echols (R, SD-49)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 6, 2025

   162 yea, 10 nay (4 not voting, 4 excused)

   PASSAGE: House Vote #198

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 21, 2025

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

   PASSAGE: Senate Vote #268

• housing finance
• affordable housing
• state bonds
• Georgia Housing and Finance Authority