---
title: HB 562. Natural Resources, Department of; five-year moratorium on acceptance of applications for new or requests to modify existing permits; provisions
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb562
cite_as: HB 562, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb562
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb562.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb562/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70613
date: 2025-02-24
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: 132
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb562.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 562
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-20
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Darlene Taylor
- Ron Stephens
- Steven Sainz
- Gerald Greene
- Debbie Buckner
- Carolyn Hugley
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB562/2025
upstream_id: 1978476
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- surface mining
- Okefenokee Swamp
- environmental permits
- Trail Ridge
- Department of Natural Resources
---
# HB 562. Natural Resources, Department of; five-year moratorium on acceptance of applications for new or requests to modify existing permits; provisions
## Text
House Bill 562
By: Representatives Taylor of the 173rd, Stephens of the 164th, Sainz of the 180th, Greene of
the 154th, Buckner of the 137th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Part 3 of Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 12 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to surface mining, so as to provide for a five-year moratorium on the
acceptance of applications for new permits and the acceptance of requests to modify existing
permits by the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources
to expand the area of land affected by surface mining operations on Trail Ridge; to provide
a definition; to provide exemptions; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws;
and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Part 3 of Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 12 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to surface mining, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"12-4-85.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term 'Trail Ridge' means the elevated, geological
feature bounded on the west by the Okefenokee Swamp and its watershed; on the east by
an elevation of 100 feet above mean sea level; on the south by the triple divide of the
Soldiers Camp Island, Boone Creek, and Barbar Branch watersheds; and on the north by
the triple divide of the Upper Buffalo Creek, Big Creek, and Okefenokee Swamp
watersheds.
(b) Beginning on July 1, 2025, and continuing through June 30, 2030, the division shall
not accept any applications for new permits, nor shall the division accept any requests to
modify any existing permits for any surface mining operations on Trail Ridge that seek to
expand the area of affected land.
(c) This Code section shall not prohibit the acceptance or denial of any applications for
new permits or requests to modify any existing permits for any surface mining operations
on Trail Ridge submitted to and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30,
2025."
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.
A Georgia House bill would bar the Environmental Protection Division from accepting new or expanded surface mining permit applications on Trail Ridge, near the Okefenokee Swamp, for five years starting July 1, 2025.
### Plain-language summary
Trail Ridge is a geological formation bordering the Okefenokee Swamp that has been the site of mining permit disputes because of concerns about the swamp's water levels. This bill adds a new section to Georgia's surface mining law (O.C.G.A. § 12-4-85) that defines Trail Ridge's boundaries using specific watershed and elevation markers.
From July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2030, the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources would be barred from accepting any new permit applications or any requests to expand existing permits for surface mining operations on Trail Ridge. The bill carves out an exception: applications or modification requests already submitted and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30, 2025 could still be accepted or denied under the moratorium.
### What it does
- Adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 12-4-85) defining 'Trail Ridge' by its geographic boundaries near the Okefenokee Swamp.
- Prohibits the Environmental Protection Division from accepting new surface mining permit applications on Trail Ridge from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2030.
- Prohibits the division from accepting requests to modify existing permits if the modification would expand the land affected by mining on Trail Ridge during that same five-year window.
- Exempts applications or modification requests already submitted and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30, 2025 from the moratorium.
### Who it affects
Mining companies seeking to open or expand surface mining operations on Trail Ridge, the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources, which processes the permits, and residents and environmental groups concerned about the Okefenokee Swamp's water levels and ecology.
### Why it matters
For five years, no new or expanded mining permits could move forward on Trail Ridge, pausing any efforts to grow surface mining footprint near the Okefenokee Swamp, while permit requests already filed and deemed complete before the deadline could still proceed through the normal review process.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds new Code section 12-4-85 to Georgia's surface mining law, defining Trail Ridge using specific watershed divides and a 100-foot elevation line as its eastern boundary.
- Subsection (b) imposes the moratorium: from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2030, the division cannot accept new permit applications or requests to expand existing permitted mining areas on Trail Ridge.
- Subsection (c) exempts from the moratorium any applications or modification requests submitted and deemed complete by the division on or before June 30, 2025.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-20)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-02-24)
- Sponsors: Darlene Taylor, Ron Stephens, Steven Sainz, Gerald Greene, Debbie Buckner, Carolyn Hugley
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70613
> The history, votes, and amendments (132 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb562.md?full=1