--- title: HB 311. Advancing Fair Employment for All Ages Act; enact collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb311 cite_as: HB 311, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb311 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb311.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb311/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70022 date: 2025-04-04 status: introduced corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb310.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb312.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 235 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb311.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 311 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-02-06 last_action: House Withdrawn, Recommitted sponsors: - Kim Schofield - Dewey McClain - Sandra Scott - Viola Davis text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB311/2025 upstream_id: 1961018 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - age discrimination - employment law - older workers - workplace rights --- # HB 311. Advancing Fair Employment for All Ages Act; enact ## Text 25 LC 55 0362 House Bill 311 By: Representatives Schofield of the 63rd, McClain of the 109th, Scott of the 76th, and Davis of the 87th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Code Section 34-1-2 of the Official Code of Georgia An notated, relating to1 prohibition of age discrim ination in employment, so as to chang e the age of individuals2 protected by such prohibition; to provide for a short title; to provide for related matters; to3 provide for an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:5 SECTION 1.6 This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Advancing Fair Employment for All Ages7 Act."8 SECTION 2.9 Code Section 34-1-2 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to prohibition of10 age discrimination in employment, is amended by revising subsection (a) as follows:11 "(a) No person, firm, association, or corporation carrying on or conducting within this state12 any business requiring the employment of labor shall refuse to hire, employ, or license nor13 shall such person, firm, association, or corporation bar or discharge from employment any14 individual between the ages of 40 and 70 years 40 years of age or older, solely upon the15 H. B. 311 - 1 - 25 LC 55 0362 ground basis of age, when the reasonable demands of the position do not require such an16 age distinction, provided that such individual is qualified phy sically, mentally, and by17 training and experience to perform satisfactorily the labor ass igned to him or her or for18 which he or she applies. Nothing in this Code section shall affect the retirement policy or19 system of any employer where such policy or system is not merely a subterfuge to evade20 the purposes of this Code section. When the retirement or insu rance benefit program of21 any employer shall lawfully prohibit the employment of any person because of excessive22 age, such person shall have the authority, as a condition of employment, to waive the right23 to participate in any such program and receive any benefits the refrom. Nothing in this24 Code section shall be construed to prohibit compulsory retirement of any employee who25 has attained 65 years of age but not 70 years of age and who, f or the two-year period26 immediately before retirement, is employed in a bona fide execu tive or a high27 policy-making position, if such employee is entitled to an immediate nonforfeitable annual28 retirement benefit from a pension, profit-sharing, savings, or deferred compensation plan,29 or any combination of such plans, of the employer of such employee, which equals, in the30 aggregate, at least $27,000.00."31 SECTION 3.32 This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law33 without such approval.34 SECTION 4.35 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.36 H. B. 311 - 2 - ## 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. House Bill 311 would expand Georgia's age discrimination in employment law to protect workers 40 and older, removing the current 70-year-old upper age cutoff. ### Plain-language summary Georgia's current law against age discrimination in employment (O.C.G.A. § 34-1-2) only protects workers between the ages of 40 and 70. That means employers cannot be sued under this specific state law for discriminating against someone older than 70. House Bill 311 would remove that upper limit, extending protection to anyone 40 years of age or older, with no ceiling. The bill keeps the rest of the law's structure intact: employers still cannot refuse to hire, fire, or refuse to license someone because of age when the job itself does not require an age limit, as long as the worker is qualified. It also keeps existing exceptions for bona fide retirement plans and for compulsory retirement of certain high-level executives who qualify for a specific pension benefit. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it or it becomes law without his signature. ### What it does - Removes the current 70-year-old upper age limit in Georgia's employment age discrimination law, extending protection to all workers 40 and older. - Keeps the existing rule that employers cannot refuse to hire, employ, license, or fire a qualified worker solely because of age when the job does not require an age distinction. - Preserves the existing exception allowing legitimate retirement policies that are not used as a cover for age discrimination. - Keeps the existing carve-out letting employers require retirement for certain top executives aged 65 to 70 who qualify for a $27,000 annual pension benefit. - Gives the bill a short title, the 'Advancing Fair Employment for All Ages Act.' ### Who it affects Georgia workers over age 70 who currently fall outside the state's age discrimination protections, employers of all sizes doing business in Georgia, and businesses with retirement or executive compensation policies tied to age, since those provisions remain but interact with a now-uncapped protected class. ### Why it matters Workers older than 70 in Georgia currently have no protection under this specific state law if an employer refuses to hire or fires them for being too old. This bill would close that gap, meaning older workers statewide could bring age discrimination claims under state law regardless of how old they are. ### Key provisions - Section 1 names the bill the 'Advancing Fair Employment for All Ages Act.' - Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 34-1-2(a) to change the protected age range from '40 and 70 years' to '40 years of age or older,' removing the upper age limit. - Section 2 leaves intact the exception for legitimate employer retirement policies and the compulsory retirement carve-out for executives aged 65 to 70 with a qualifying $27,000 annual pension. - Section 3 makes the Act effective immediately upon the Governor's signature or upon becoming law without his signature. - Section 4 repeals any conflicting laws. ## Status - Status: Introduced (2025-02-06) - Last action: House Withdrawn, Recommitted (2025-04-04) - Sponsors: Kim Schofield, Dewey McClain, Sandra Scott, Viola Davis - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70022 > The history, votes, and amendments (235 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb311.md?full=1