Georgia CommonsHouse · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session
HB 37: Education; require local school systems to notify employees regarding social security withholdings and eligibility for certain benefits
Last action July 1, 2025 · Effective Date
House Bill 37 would require Georgia's local school systems to tell employees whether their pay is subject to Social Security withholding and whether they qualify for pension or retirement benefits, and it changes who pays for family health coverage for local school board members.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Enrolled version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
Some Georgia school employees are covered by Social Security and pension plans and some are not, but state law has not required school systems to clearly explain this to workers. House Bill 37 adds a new section to Georgia's education code requiring every local school system, starting July 1, 2025, to tell new hires whether Social Security taxes will be withheld from their pay and whether they can join a retirement or pension plan. Current employees must get the same notice by December 31, 2025, and again at least every five years. When an employee leaves, the school system must tell them whether Social Security taxes were withheld at any point during their employment. The bill also changes the rule for local school board members who choose group health or dental insurance. Under current law, board members must personally pay the entire cost of covering family members on their insurance. The bill removes that specific requirement from the law, changing how those family coverage costs are handled. The law would take effect July 1, 2025.
What the bill does
- Requires local school systems to notify new employees whether Social Security taxes will be withheld from their pay, starting July 1, 2025.
- Requires notice to new hires about eligibility for Social Security-linked benefit plans and any other pension or retirement plan available to them.
- Requires school systems to give the same notice to all current employees by December 31, 2025, and repeat it at least once every five years.
- Requires school systems to tell departing employees whether Social Security taxes were withheld during any part of their employment.
- Removes the current law's requirement that local school board members personally pay all costs of extending their health or dental insurance to family members.
Who it affects
Employees of Georgia's local public school systems, both newly hired and current staff, who will receive new notices about Social Security and retirement benefits. Local school system administrators, who must create and send the notices. Local board of education members who carry group health or dental insurance covering family members.
Why it matters
Some public school employees are not covered by Social Security, which can affect their retirement income and eligibility for benefits later in life. The new notice requirement helps employees understand their coverage status early and at separation. The change to board member insurance costs could shift who bears the expense of covering board members' families.
Key provisions
- Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 20-2-55 to remove the requirement that local board of education members pay the full cost of any insurance coverage for their family members.
- Section 2 creates new O.C.G.A. § 20-2-219.1, requiring notice to new employees about Social Security withholding and pension or retirement plan eligibility starting July 1, 2025.
- Section 2 requires school systems to give the same notice to current employees by December 31, 2025, and at least once every five years after that.
- Section 2 requires notice to departing employees about whether Social Security taxes were withheld from their pay during their employment.
- Section 3 sets the effective date of the Act as July 1, 2025.
From the bill
“Notice of whether: (A) Social security taxes will be withheld from his or her pay;”
“each local school system shall notify each employee at or near the time of such employee's separation whether social security taxes were withheld from his or her pay during any part of his or her employment.”
Status timeline
- Effective Date
- Act 170
- House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- House Sent to Governor (House)
- House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub (House)
- Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
- Senate Third Read (Senate)
- Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
Show full history (16 actions)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- House Passed/Adopted (House)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Rob Leverett (R, HD-123)
- Bethany Ballard (R, HD-147)
- Scott Hilton (R, HD-48)
- Ed Setzler (R, SD-37)
Votes
- House voteMarch 4, 2025
169 yea, 2 nay (3 not voting, 6 excused)
- Senate voteApril 2, 2025
52 yea, 1 nay (1 not voting, 2 excused)
- House voteApril 4, 2025
163 yea, 0 nay (8 not voting, 9 excused)
Topics
- Social Security benefits
- public school employees
- teacher retirement
- school board insurance
- education law