---
title: HB 347. Georgia Pro-Birth Accountability Act; enact
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb347
cite_as: HB 347, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb347
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb347.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb347/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70109
date: 2025-02-12
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
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.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb347.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 347
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-10
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Dar'shun Kendrick
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB347/2025
upstream_id: 1964592
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- abortion law
- fetal heartbeat law
- public assistance
- child support
- Department of Human Services
---
# HB 347. Georgia Pro-Birth Accountability Act; enact
## Text
House Bill 347
By: Representative Kendrick of the 95th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to health, so as to
provide for the compensation of pregnant women who, but for a fetal heartbeat law, could
choose to terminate the pregnancy but are compelled to carry the pregnancy to term and give
birth to a child; to specify the type and duration of compensation; to provide for procedures
and requirements to obtain compensation; to provide for a short title; to provide for related
matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Georgia Pro-Birth Accountability Act."
SECTION 2.
Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to health, is amended by adding
a new chapter to read as follows:
"CHAPTER 9C
31-9C-1.
A pregnant woman who would be legally allowed to choose to terminate her pregnancy,
but for a law prohibiting an abortion upon a detectable human heartbeat of an embryo or
fetus, and who is accordingly compelled by the state to carry the pregnancy to term and
give birth to a child is entitled to be compensated by the state as provided in Code
Section 31-9C-2.
31-9C-2.
Compensation to which a woman is entitled pursuant to Code Section 31-9C-1 includes:
(1) Reasonable living, legal, medical, psychological, and psychiatric expenses that are
directly related to prenatal, intrapartal, and postpartal periods;
(2) Upon a detectable human heartbeat of an embryo or fetus, eligibility to claim the
embryo or fetus as a child for purposes of any child related federal or state income tax
credits or deductions, including, but not limited to, the child tax credit, the child and
dependent care tax credit, and the earned income tax credit;
(3) Entitlement of the pregnant woman to be paired with a specially trained nurse to
provide home visits from early pregnancy through the child's second birthday;
(4) Automatic eligibility for and entitlement to any public assistance benefits available
pursuant to Chapter 4 or 5 of Title 49, including, but not limited to, Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Program and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program (SNAP) benefits, which shall not be reduced or suspended before the child
reaches 18 years of age, and for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women,
Infants, and Children (WIC);
(5) If the woman or embryo or fetus, or both, die during the gestational period or during
labor and delivery, reimbursement of all associated funeral and burial expenses and, if
the woman dies, payment in compensation of loss of future earnings of the woman;
(6) If the woman becomes disabled as a result of carrying the embryo or fetus to term,
any medical expenses associated with the woman's disability, including, but not limited
to, costs associated with recommended surgery, treatment, physical or occupational
therapy, or other medical expenses and lost income of the woman, as long as the woman
is disabled;
(7) If the child is born with a congenital abnormality or disability, any medical expenses
associated with the care of that abnormality or disability, including, but not limited to,
costs of hospitalization, therapeutic and ADA-compliant equipment and accommodations,
and long-term care and treatment for the life of the child;
(8) Costs associated with health, dental, and vision insurance for the child until the age
of 18, including payment of any premiums, copays, deductibles, and other expenses;
(9) In the case of an unmarried woman, if the biological father of the child is unknown
or unable to provide support, child support pursuant to Article 1 of Chapter 6 of Title 19;
(10) If the pregnancy was caused by rape or incest, child support pursuant to Article 1
of Chapter 6 of Title 19; and
(11) A fully funded savings trust agreement pursuant to Section 529 of the Internal
Revenue Code to apply distributions toward qualified higher education expenses at any
eligible educational institution for the benefit of the child.
31-9C-3.
(a)(1) To obtain compensation from the state pursuant to Code Section 31-9C-1, a
woman shall file an affidavit with the Department of Human Services indicating that, but
for a law prohibiting an abortion upon a detectable human heartbeat of an embryo or
fetus, she would have chosen to terminate the pregnancy and not give birth to the child.
The affidavit may be filed any time after a medical professional determines the existence
of a detectable human heartbeat that prevents the woman from terminating the pregnancy
and before the birth of the child. The Department of Human Services shall process any
claims for compensation pursuant to this chapter in a timely manner.
(2) Upon receipt of an affidavit filed by a woman pursuant to this subsection, the
Department of Human Services shall assign a case manager to the woman in order to
develop a case plan to ensure that the woman is receiving adequate prenatal care, and to
determine any available state funded programs and services for which the woman and
embryo or fetus are eligible. The case manager shall meet with the pregnant woman
monthly in person to ensure that the pregnancy is continuing and that the requisite
programs, services, and funding are accessible. As part of the prenatal visits, the case
manager shall review all reports of the nurse assigned to the pregnant woman to ensure
that the woman is maintaining a nutritious, healthy lifestyle for development of the
embryo or fetus. After the birth of the child, the case manager shall make a reasonable
number of face-to-face visits, as determined by Department of Human Services
regulation, to ensure that the requisite programs, services, and funding continue to be
accessible for the woman and her child.
(b) The General Assembly shall establish a fund, separate and apart from the general fund,
to which shall be annually appropriated sufficient funds to award the compensation
authorized and required pursuant to this chapter and to fund the operational costs incurred
by the Department of Human Services in fulfilling the duties outlined in subsection (a) of
this Code section."
SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## 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 347 would create a new Georgia law entitling women who carry a pregnancy to term because of the state's fetal heartbeat abortion restriction to a wide range of state-funded compensation, from medical costs to child support to a college savings account.
### Plain-language summary
Georgia currently bans most abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detectable. This bill responds by creating a new chapter of state law (O.C.G.A. Title 31) that lets a pregnant woman who says she would have chosen abortion but for that law file an affidavit with the Department of Human Services and become entitled to state compensation.
That compensation covers living, medical, legal, and psychological expenses tied to pregnancy and birth; automatic eligibility for programs like TANF and SNAP through the child's 18th birthday; a trained home-visit nurse through the child's second birthday; funeral costs if the woman or child dies; disability-related medical costs; lifelong care costs if the child has a congenital condition; health insurance for the child until 18; child support in certain cases; and a funded 529 college savings account. The Department of Human Services would assign case managers to monitor each woman monthly, and the General Assembly would set up a separate fund to pay for it all. The bill does not state an effective date beyond standard enactment.
### What it does
- Creates a new chapter of Georgia law (O.C.G.A. Title 31, Chapter 9C) entitling women compelled to give birth under the heartbeat law to state compensation.
- Requires the Department of Human Services to process affidavits from pregnant women and assign case managers who conduct monthly prenatal visits and post-birth check-ins.
- Grants automatic eligibility for TANF, SNAP, and WIC benefits that cannot be reduced or suspended until the child turns 18.
- Provides for funeral costs, disability-related medical expenses, and lifelong care costs if the child is born with a congenital abnormality or disability.
- Requires the state to fund child health, dental, and vision insurance until age 18 and a fully funded 529 college savings account for the child.
- Directs the General Assembly to create a separate state fund to pay for all the compensation and related administrative costs.
### Who it affects
Pregnant women in Georgia who say they would have sought an abortion but for the state's fetal heartbeat law, their children, the Department of Human Services and its caseworkers and nurses, and the General Assembly, which must appropriate money into a new dedicated fund.
### Why it matters
If enacted, women affected by Georgia's heartbeat abortion law could receive extensive state-funded support, including medical care, cash benefits, child support, and college savings, potentially changing the financial and caregiving burden of a compelled pregnancy and requiring new state spending and administrative capacity.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 names the act the 'Georgia Pro-Birth Accountability Act.'
- New Code Section 31-9C-1 entitles a woman compelled to carry a pregnancy to term due to the heartbeat law to state compensation.
- New Code Section 31-9C-2 lists eleven categories of compensation, including medical expenses, tax credit eligibility, nurse home visits, public assistance, funeral costs, disability care, child support, and a 529 education savings account.
- New Code Section 31-9C-3(a) requires a woman to file an affidavit with the Department of Human Services stating she would have terminated the pregnancy but for the heartbeat law, filed any time between detection of a heartbeat and birth.
- New Code Section 31-9C-3(a)(2) requires the Department of Human Services to assign a case manager who meets monthly with the woman and conducts post-birth visits.
- New Code Section 31-9C-3(b) directs the General Assembly to create a separate fund, apart from the general fund, to pay for the compensation and program costs.
- Section 3 repeals conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-10)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-02-12)
- Sponsors: Dar'shun Kendrick
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70109
> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb347.md?full=1