HB 1591: Dekalb County; Board of Education; recruitment, vetting, and appointment of and contracting with school system superintendent; establish protocols

This bill amends the 1963 local law that created DeKalb County's school board election districts, adding a new section that governs how the board hires its superintendent. It requires the board to conduct a comprehensive background investigation of every finalist for superintendent before any job offer, contract talks, or public naming of a preferred candidate. That investigation must cover criminal records, education and license verification, 20 years of employment history, credit reports, civil court records, social media presence, reference interviews, and media searches, all done by an independent third-party firm at the board's expense. The bill also requires the board to post the final proposed contract and a financial impact study on the school system's website for at least seven days before voting, and to take a roll-call vote to approve any superintendent's appointment and contract. The same posting and timeline rules apply to contract extensions, renewals, terminations, or separation agreements. The board must also keep a public online portal of superintendent search and personnel action records for at least ten years.

• Requires the DeKalb County Board of Education to complete a comprehensive background investigation of every superintendent finalist before any job offer or contract talks begin.
• Specifies the exact scope of the background check, including criminal records, credit reports, 20 years of employment history, license verification, and social media review.
• Requires the investigation to be done by an independent third-party firm at the board's expense, with no cost passed on to candidates.
• Requires the board to post the final proposed superintendent contract and a financial impact study online for at least seven days before voting.
• Requires a roll-call vote to approve a superintendent's appointment and contract, and extends the same posting and voting rules to contract renewals, extensions, and terminations.
• Requires the board to maintain a public online portal of superintendent search and personnel records for at least ten years.

The DeKalb County Board of Education, current and future candidates for DeKalb County School System superintendent, the board's legal counsel, third-party background investigation firms, and DeKalb County residents and taxpayers who follow superintendent hiring and contracting decisions.

DeKalb County residents would gain more visibility into how their school system's top administrator is chosen and paid, since contracts and financial details must be posted publicly before a vote. Superintendent candidates would face a more extensive and standardized vetting process than before.

• Section 3.3(d) bars the board from employing, appointing, or contracting with a superintendent until a comprehensive background investigation is complete.
• Section 3.3(e) requires investigations to start within five business days of naming finalists and lists required components, from criminal records to social media review.
• Section 3.3(f) requires an independent third-party investigator, compliance with the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, and at least seven years of record retention.
• Section 3.3(g) requires the investigation report to go to the board's legal counsel and then to the full board in executive session before any public action.
• Section 3.3(h) requires the final contract and a financial impact study to be posted online for at least seven days before a roll-call vote on appointment.
• Section 3.3(i) applies the same posting and timeline rules to contract extensions, renewals, terminations, and separation agreements.
• Section 3.3(j) requires a public online portal of superintendent search and personnel action records, kept for at least ten years.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-25House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-23House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-20House Hopper (House)

• Karla Drenner (D, HD-085)Primary sponsor
• Karen Lupton (D, HD-083)
• Billy Mitchell (D, HD-088)
• Omari Crawford (D, HD-089)
• Saira Draper (D, HD-090)
• Long Tran (D, HD-080)

• DeKalb County schools
• school superintendent hiring
• background checks
• school board transparency
• local education law