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House · Engrossed · 2025-2026 Regular Session

HB 676: Property; fine for any frivolous mechanic lien filed; provide

Last action March 23, 2026 · Senate Read Second Time

A Georgia House bill would impose a $1,500 fine on anyone who files a frivolous mechanic's lien against a property, on top of any attorney's fees or court costs.

Read the full bill text

These buttons carry the bill's own text, not the summaries below. Copy for LLM, View as markdown, and Send to AI use the Markdown version: the text as filed, then the summaries under a heading that names them as ours. View raw is the text alone.

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 Introduced version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.

In plain language

Under current Georgia law, contractors and material suppliers can file a mechanic's lien (a legal claim against a property) when they haven't been paid for work or materials. This bill adds a new section to that law targeting liens filed without a legitimate basis. Specifically, it says any mechanic's lien that is filed without substantial justification, not in good faith, or with malice or a wrongful purpose, using definitions already found in Georgia's law on frivolous litigation (O.C.G.A. § 51-7-80), would trigger a $1,500 fine per lien. That fine would come on top of any attorney's fees or court costs the filer might already owe. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it, or automatically if it becomes law without his signature.

What the bill does

  • Adds a new Code section (44-14-361.6) creating a $1,500 fine for each mechanic's lien filed that lacks substantial justification, isn't made in good faith, or is filed with malice or a wrongful purpose.
  • Ties the definitions of bad faith, malice, and wrongful purpose to an existing Georgia statute (O.C.G.A. § 51-7-80) rather than creating new definitions.
  • Makes the $1,500 fine additional to, not a replacement for, any attorney's fees or court costs already owed.
  • Sets the effective date as the moment the Governor signs the bill or it otherwise becomes law without his signature.

Who it affects

Contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers who file mechanic's liens against Georgia properties; property owners who are targets of such liens; and attorneys and courts handling lien disputes, since the fine adds a new financial consequence to frivolous filings.

Why it matters

Property owners facing baseless liens would gain a specific financial penalty they can point to beyond existing legal fees, which could discourage contractors or suppliers from filing liens without a real basis. Those who do file frivolous liens would face an added $1,500 cost per lien.

Key provisions

  • Section 1 adds new Code Section 44-14-361.6, creating the $1,500 per-lien fine for frivolous mechanic's liens filed under O.C.G.A. § 44-14-361.
  • The fine applies when a lien is filed without substantial justification, not in good faith, or with malice or wrongful purpose, using definitions from O.C.G.A. § 51-7-80.
  • The $1,500 fine is imposed in addition to any attorney's fees or court costs already recoverable.
  • Section 2 sets the effective date as the date of the Governor's approval or the date the bill becomes law without approval.
  • Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

From the bill

“Any lien filed pursuant to Code Section 44-14-361 that is made without substantial justification or that is not made in good faith or that is made with malice or a wrongful purpose, as such terms are defined in Code Section 51-7-80, shall be subject to a fine of $1,500.00 per lien filed, in addition to any attorney's fees or court costs.”

This is the bill's core provision, setting a $1,500 fine for each frivolous mechanic's lien.

Discussed in meetings (10)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

  1. House Judiciary Committee, January 27, 2026

    From 0:46:58 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the bill would impose a $1,500 penalty, plus attorney’s fees and court costs, on someone who knowingly files a mechanic’s lien without the legal right to do so. The sponsor described unauthorized liens as a way to pressure property owners into paying rather than fighting through court proceedings. A committee member who had represented homeowners in lien disputes asked whether fraudulent filings were increasing and what prompted the bill. The sponsor answered that entities were using liens as leverage despite lacking legal grounds, and said the bill would penalize that conduct without changing the existing requirements for filing a lien. The committee approved the bill by voice vote, with no opposition heard.

  2. House Rules Committee, February 2, 2026

    From 0:34:54 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 676 would impose a fine for filing frivolous liens against property. The sponsor said state law already specifies the requirements for filing a lien and the proposal would penalize filings that do not meet those requirements. No questions or calendar action followed.

  3. House Rules Committee, February 9, 2026

    From 0:47:36 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee placed HB 676 on the February 9 floor calendar after a motion and second, with no opposition voiced. The bill's contents were not discussed.

  4. House floor session, February 9, 2026 (legislative day 15)

    From 1:31:57 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 483

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 676 would impose a $1,500 penalty, in addition to attorney's fees and court costs, for filing a frivolous mechanic's lien. The sponsor said some entities without lien rights use filings to pressure property owners. A member with title-examination experience asked whether the bill would help clear titles and prevent obstacles to home purchases; the sponsor agreed. The House passed the bill 165 to 0.

  5. Senate Judiciary Committee, March 19, 2026

    From 0:27:20 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 676 would impose a $1,500 penalty per frivolous or bad-faith mechanic’s lien, plus attorney fees and court costs. The sponsor described improper liens as a pressure tactic used to force payment despite a lack of legal grounds. Asked why the penalty was $1,500, the sponsor said legislative counsel had misunderstood an intended $15,000 amount, but the sponsor chose to keep the bill moving. In response to questions, the sponsor said a judge would determine whether a lien was improper. The chair read the penalty as a fixed amount per lien, with fees and costs additional. Asked whether homeowners association liens were covered, the sponsor initially suggested they could be, but the chair and legislative counsel clarified that the bill concerned mechanic’s and material-related liens. Another member questioned whether malice could expose an otherwise valid claim to penalties. Legislative counsel said malice and wrongful purpose were defined elsewhere in state law and incorporated by reference. The committee recommended passage by 8 to 1.

  6. Senate Rules Committee, March 25, 2026

    From 0:27:40 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter said HB 676 would establish a penalty for filing a frivolous property lien, explaining that existing law already specified how to file a lien. No questions were asked, and no action on the bill was shown.

Status timeline

  1. 2026-03-23Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
  2. 2026-03-20Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
  3. 2026-02-10Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
  4. 2026-02-09House Passed/Adopted (House)
  5. 2026-02-09House Third Readers (House)
  6. 2026-01-28House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
  7. 2025-04-04House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
  8. 2025-03-04House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
Show full history (11 actions)
  1. 2025-02-28House Second Readers (House)
  2. 2025-02-27House First Readers (House)
  3. 2025-02-27House Hopper (House)

Sponsors

  • Rob Clifton (R, HD-131)Primary sponsor
  • Stan Gunter (R, HD-8)
  • Matt Reeves (R, HD-99)
  • Marcus Wiedower (R, HD-121)
  • Holt Persinger (R, HD-119)
  • Matthew Gambill (R, HD-15)
  • Ed Setzler (R, SD-37)

Votes

  1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 9, 2026

    165 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 9 excused)

    PASSAGE: House Vote #487

Topics

  • mechanic's liens
  • property law
  • construction contractors
  • frivolous lawsuits
  • property owners' rights

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Answers come from this document. Not legal advice.

Machine-readable https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb676.md · https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md · MCP https://mcp.georgiacommons.org/mcp

HB676: Property; fine for any frivolous mechanic lien filed; provide | Georgia Commons