HB 583: Motor vehicles; increase number of free license plates issued to certain veterans

This bill started as a proposal about veterans' license plates, but the version shown here is a Senate committee substitute that replaces that subject entirely with changes to Georgia's special district transit sales tax law (O.C.G.A. Chapter 48-8), often called Transit SPLOST. The bill changes the legal definition of 'transportation purposes' so that money raised through a Transit SPLOST can no longer be used to provide free or reduced fares for public transit riders. It also changes the rules for counties in federal air quality nonattainment areas that hold a Transit SPLOST election and lose: instead of being able to resubmit the tax question to voters at any time, those counties would have to wait eight years from the date of the failed election before trying again.

• Rewrites the definition of 'transportation purposes' in Georgia's special district transit sales tax law to exclude funding free or reduced-fare public transit service.
• Removes the ability of nonattainment-area counties to resubmit a failed Transit SPLOST ballot question 'from time to time' and instead requires an eight-year waiting period.
• Leaves other uses of Transit SPLOST money, such as roads, bridges, rail, airports, buses, and seaports, untouched.
• Repeals any existing state laws that conflict with these two changes.

County governments and transit authorities that levy or plan to levy special district transit sales taxes, transit agencies that might otherwise use that money for free or discounted fares, and residents of counties in federal air quality nonattainment areas who vote on these tax measures.

Counties would lose the option to fund fare-free or discounted transit rides with this specific sales tax, which could affect low-income riders who rely on reduced fares. Counties that lose a transit tax vote would also face a much longer wait, eight years, before trying again.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 48-8-260(4) to add language excluding 'purposes of providing free or reduced fares for public transit services' from the definition of allowable transportation purposes.
• Section 1 also makes a technical wording change, replacing 'these' with 'such' when referring to transportation facilities.
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 48-8-269.46(c) to remove the phrase allowing resubmission of a failed ballot question 'from time to time' and instead requires waiting eight years after the failed election.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws, a standard closing provision.

1. 2026-03-27Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
2. 2026-03-27Senate Third Read (Senate)
3. 2026-03-27Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
4. 2026-03-27Senate Tabled (Senate)
5. 2026-03-27Senate Engrossed (Senate)
6. 2026-03-23Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
7. 2026-03-20Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)
8. 2026-03-16Senate Withdrawn & Recommitted (Senate)

• Lydia Glaize (D, HD-067)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Josh Bonner (R, HD-073)
• Charles Cannon (R, HD-172)
• Mark Newton (R, HD-127)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 6, 2025

   171 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 6 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #205

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 16, 2026

   31 yea, 17 nay (3 not voting, 3 absent)

   Motion To Withdraw And Commit: Senate Vote #717

3. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   31 yea, 18 nay (4 not voting, 1 absent)

   Motion To Engross: Hb 229, Hb 583, Hb 960, Hb 1070: Senate Vote #826

4. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   26 yea, 22 nay (3 not voting, 3 absent)

   Motion To Table Remaining Legislation On The Rules Calendar: Senate Vote #835

5. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   34 yea, 15 nay (0 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #867

• transit funding
• sales taxes
• SPLOST
• public transportation
• county elections