---
title: HB 503. State Election Board; promulgate, amend, adopt, or repeal nonemergency rules and regulations in odd-numbered years; provide
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb503
cite_as: HB 503, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb503
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb503.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb503/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70427
date: 2025-02-20
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/hb503.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 503
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-18
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Saira Draper
- Floyd Griffin
- Lisa Campbell
- L.C. Myles
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB503/2025
upstream_id: 1974319
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- election rules
- State Election Board
- election administration
- government transparency
---
# HB 503. State Election Board; promulgate, amend, adopt, or repeal nonemergency rules and regulations in odd-numbered years; provide
## Text
House Bill 503
By: Representatives Draper of the 90th, Griffin of the 149th, Campbell of the 35th, and Myles
of the 126th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 2 of Title 21 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
elections and primaries generally, so as to provide that the State Election Board may only
promulgate, amend, adopt, or repeal nonemergency rules and regulations in odd-numbered
years; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 2 of Title 21 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to elections and
primaries generally, is amended by revising Code Section 21-2-35, relating to emergency
rules and regulations, imminent peril requirement, and procedures, as follows:
"21-2-35.
(a) Except for emergency rule making as provided for in subsection (b) of this Code
section, the State Election Board shall only promulgate, amend, adopt, or repeal rules and
regulations during odd-numbered years. After July 1, 2025, the State Election Board shall
take no rule-making action upon nonemergency rules or regulations, including the initiation
of any rule making, promulgation, amendment, adoption, or repeal of nonemergency rules
or regulations in an even-numbered year.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, Chapter 3 of Title 38, relating to
emergency management, or Chapter 13 of Title 50, the 'Georgia Administrative Procedure
Act,' to the contrary, the State Election Board may only adopt emergency rules or
regulations in circumstances of imminent peril to public health, safety, or welfare. To
adopt any such emergency rule or regulation, in addition to any other rule-making
requirement of this chapter or Chapter 13 of Title 50, the State Election Board shall:
(1) Give notice to the public of its intended action;
(2) Immediately upon the setting of the date and time of the meeting at which such
emergency rule or regulation is to be considered give notice by email of its intended
action to:
(A) The Governor;
(B) The Lieutenant Governor;
(C) The Speaker of the House of Representatives;
(D) The chairpersons of the standing committees of each house of the General
Assembly tasked with election matters;
(E) The Secretary of State;
(F) Legislative counsel; and
(G) The chief executive officer of each political party registered pursuant to subsection
(a) of Code Section 21-2-110; and
(3) State in the notices required by paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection the nature
of the emergency and the manner in which such emergency represents an imminent peril
to public health, safety, or welfare.
(b)(c) Upon adoption or promulgation of any emergency rule or regulation pursuant to
subsection (b) of this Code section, a majority of the State Election Board shall certify in
writing that such emergency rule or regulation was made in strict and exact compliance
with the provisions of this chapter and subsection (e) of Code Section 50-13-4.
(c)(d) In the event of any conflict between this Code section and any provision of Chapter
13 of Title 50, this Code section shall govern and supersede any such conflicting
provision."
SECTION 2.
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 503 would limit the Georgia State Election Board to making non-emergency rule changes only in odd-numbered years, starting after July 1, 2025, while keeping a separate path for emergency rules.
### Plain-language summary
Currently the State Election Board can adopt, amend, or repeal election rules at any time, subject to existing emergency and administrative procedure requirements. This bill rewrites part of Georgia's election law (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-35) to say that, outside of true emergencies, the board can only take rule-making action during odd-numbered years. After July 1, 2025, the board could not start, promulgate, amend, adopt, or repeal any nonemergency rule or regulation in an even-numbered year.
The bill keeps the existing emergency rule-making process largely intact but relabels it as subsection (b). To adopt an emergency rule, the board must still show imminent peril to public health, safety, or welfare, notify the public, immediately email notice to a list of state officials and party leaders, and explain the nature of the emergency. The bill also keeps the requirement that the board certify emergency rules were made in strict compliance with the law, and confirms this Code section overrides conflicting provisions of the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act.
### What it does
- Restricts the State Election Board to making nonemergency rule changes (adopting, amending, or repealing rules) only during odd-numbered years, starting after July 1, 2025.
- Bars the board from even beginning a nonemergency rule-making process in an even-numbered year.
- Preserves the board's ability to adopt emergency rules at any time, but only when there is imminent peril to public health, safety, or welfare.
- Requires the board to notify the public and email specific officials, including the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House, Secretary of State, and party chief executives, before adopting an emergency rule.
- Keeps the requirement that a majority of the board certify in writing that any emergency rule was adopted in strict compliance with the law.
- Clarifies that this Code section overrides any conflicting provision in the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act (O.C.G.A. Title 50, Chapter 13).
### Who it affects
The State Election Board itself, which faces new timing limits on its rule-making power; state officials such as the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House, Secretary of State, and legislative committee chairs, who must be notified of emergency rules; political parties registered with the state; and, indirectly, county election officials and voters affected by election rules.
### Why it matters
Election administrators, candidates, and voters rely on the board's rules to know how elections are run. Limiting nonemergency rule changes to odd-numbered years, which fall between general election cycles, would prevent the board from altering rules in the same calendar year as elections held in even years, except through the narrower emergency process.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 21-2-35 to add a new subsection (a) restricting the board to nonemergency rule-making only in odd-numbered years, effective after July 1, 2025.
- The new subsection (a) also blocks the board from initiating any nonemergency rule-making process during even-numbered years, not just finalizing rules.
- The existing emergency rule-making provisions become subsection (b), still requiring imminent peril to public health, safety, or welfare and public notice before adoption.
- Subsection (b) requires immediate email notice of emergency rule proposals to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House, relevant committee chairs, Secretary of State, legislative counsel, and party chief executives.
- The renumbered subsection (c) keeps the requirement that a majority of the board certify emergency rules were adopted in strict compliance with the chapter and O.C.G.A. § 50-13-4(e).
- The renumbered subsection (d) states this Code section governs over any conflicting provision of the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act (O.C.G.A. Title 50, Chapter 13).
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-18)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-02-20)
- Sponsors: Saira Draper, Floyd Griffin, Lisa Campbell, L.C. Myles
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70427
> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb503.md?full=1