---
title: HB 704. State government; auditor produce certain monthly and annual reports; replace requirement
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb704
cite_as: HB 704, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb704
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb704.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb704/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71072
date: 2026-02-04
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: 341
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb704.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 704
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-03-03
last_action: House Withdrawn, Recommitted
sponsors:
  - Mike Cheokas
  - Todd Jones
  - Matt Dubnik
  - Robert Dickey
  - Shaw Blackmon
  - Darlene Taylor
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB704/2025
upstream_id: 1990334
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - state contracting
  - government transparency
  - architectural and engineering firms
  - state auditor
  - public procurement
---

# HB 704. State government; auditor produce certain monthly and annual reports; replace requirement

## Text

House Bill 704
By: Representatives Cheokas of the 151st, Jones of the 25th, Dubnik of the 29th, Dickey of the
134th, Blackmon of the 146th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 50-6-25 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
maintenance of statistics on architectural and engineering firms doing business with the state
and ineligibility of firms, so as to replace the requirement that the state auditor produce
certain monthly reports with the requirement that he or she produce annual reports; to
provide for the removal of certain requirements; to amend Code Sections 42-2-14
and 50-22-7 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to power of Governor to
declare state of emergency with regard to jail and prison overcrowding and exemptions from
requirements and construction with Code Section 50-6-25, respectively, so as to provide for
cross-references; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other
purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Code Section 50-6-25 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to maintenance
of statistics on architectural and engineering firms doing business with the state and
ineligibility of firms, is amended by revising said Code section as follows:
"50-6-25.
<del>(a)(1) The state auditor shall maintain statistics on all architectural and engineering firms
doing business with the various departments, agencies, authorities, and public
corporations of the state, except the Department of Transportation which shall be
governed by paragraph (2) of this subsection. The statistics shall show the percentage of
the total state business done by each such firm and shall be made available to the General
Assembly and all departments, agencies, authorities, and public corporations of the state
using architectural and engineering services. The state auditor shall compile the statistics
and shall maintain the statistics current on a monthly basis.
(2) The state auditor shall include in the statistics provided for in paragraph (1) of this
subsection all architectural and engineering firms doing business with the Department of
Transportation. The Department of Transportation shall report its architectural and
engineering contracts to the state auditor in two divisions. In the first division, such
department shall report those contracts which are under a gross value of $1 million at the
time of execution by the total contract amount without accounting for any subcontracts.
In the second division, such department shall report those contracts with a gross value in
excess of $1 million at the time of execution and shall report all subcontracts thereunder
which are in excess of $25,000.00 as further provided for in this Code section. The
statistics shall show the total percentage of state business done by each such firm and
shall be made available to the General Assembly and the Department of Transportation.
The state auditor shall compile the statistics and shall maintain the statistics current on
a monthly basis. With respect to any contract of the Department of Transportation in
excess of $1 million with an architectural or engineering firm which awards a portion of
the business in an amount in excess of $25,000.00 under such contract to one or more
subcontractors or joint-venture partners, such department shall report to the state auditor
the amount of each subcontractor or joint-venture partner with that portion of the business
awarded to such subcontractor or joint-venture partner, and such amounts shall not be
</del>
<del>listed or included as business of the Department of Transportation awarded to the
architectural or engineering firm receiving the state contract. The architectural or
engineering firm shall report to the Department of Transportation, as part of its preaward
audit conducted by such department, the amount of business in excess of $25,000.00
under an anticipated contract which the contractor intends to award to any subcontractor
or joint-venture partner, and, after verification that the information reported is correct, the
Department of Transportation shall furnish such information to the state auditor. The
state auditor shall revise the statistics with respect to architectural and engineering firms
currently doing business with the Department of Transportation with respect to contracts
outstanding on April 19, 1995, under which all services have not been performed by such
architectural and engineering firms in satisfaction of the contract. Such revised statistics
shall be computed in accordance with the provisions of this subsection crediting
subcontractors and joint-venture partners with business awarded to them and providing
that such amounts credited shall not be listed or included as business of the state awarded
to the architectural or engineering firm receiving the state contract. Such revised
statistics shall be provided by the contractor within 60 days of April 19, 1995, and, after
such time, the state auditor shall not be required to revise such statistics.
(b) Any architectural or engineering firm which has received more than 10 percent of the
total awarded for such services by the departments, agencies, authorities, and public
corporations of the state during any period of 36 months, as calculated pursuant to the
provisions of subsection (a) of this Code section and shown by the statistics of the state
auditor, shall be ineligible to contract with any department, agency, authority, or public
corporation of the state until the firm, during any period of 36 months, has been awarded
less than 10 percent of the total awarded for such services; provided, however, that any
architectural or engineering firm may contract with the Department of Transportation for
not more than 30 percent of the total awarded for such services, 10 percent for
transportation purposes, and 20 percent for tollway purposes.
</del>
<ins>(a) The state auditor shall annually provide the General Assembly with statistics on all
architectural and engineering firms doing business with the departments, agencies,
authorities, and public corporations of this state. The annual statistics shall include a listing
of the architectural and engineering firms that were awarded contracts during the preceding
fiscal year, including the amount of the contract awards, statistics on the number of
contracts awarded to firms in the State of Georgia, and statistics on the number of contracts
awarded to firms in rural areas of this state. The state auditor is authorized to provide any
additional statistical information, as determined necessary.
(b) The statistics will become a part of the annual reporting requirements as outlined in
Code Section 50-6-32, the 'Transparency in Government Act.' The annual statistics shall
be posted for the preceding fiscal year as soon as is practical after the close of each fiscal
year, but no later than January 1, beginning January 1, 2027."
</ins> SECTION 2.
Code Section 42-2-14 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to power of
Governor to declare state of emergency with regard to jail and prison overcrowding, is
amended by revising said Code section as follows:
"42-2-14.
The Governor, upon certification by the commissioner of corrections and approval by the
director of the Office of Planning and Budget that the population of the prison system of
the State of Georgia has exceeded the capacity of the prison system for any period of 90
consecutive days, beginning at any time after December 31, 1988, may declare a state of
emergency with regard to jail and prison overcrowding. Following the declaration of such
emergency, the department may establish additional facilities for use by the department,
such facilities to be either of a permanent type of construction or of a temporary or
movable type as the department may find most advantageous to the particular needs, to the
end that the inmates under its supervision may be so distributed throughout the state as to
facilitate individualization of treatment designed to prepare them for lawful living in the
community where they are most likely to reside after their release from a correctional
facility. For this purpose, the department may purchase or lease sites and suitable lands
and erect necessary buildings thereon or purchase or lease existing facilities, all within the
limits of appropriations as approved by the General Assembly. With the approval of the
Governor, provisions of Chapter 5 of Title 50, relating to the Department of Administrative
Services, <del>or provisions of Code Section 50-6-25</del> or Chapter 22 of Title 50, relating to
control over acquisition of professional services, may be waived by the department to
facilitate the rapid construction or procurement of facilities for inmates; <del>provided, however,
that the authority to waive provisions of Code Section 50-6-25 shall terminate as of July
1, 1991.</del> During any year in which correctional facilities are constructed or procured under
this Code section and any requirements are waived, the department shall furnish the
Governor and the General Assembly with a detailed report specifying the facilities
constructed or procured, the requirements waived, and the reasons therefor."
SECTION 3.
Code Section 50-22-7 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to exemptions
from requirements and construction with Code Section 50-6-25, is amended by revising said
Code section as follows:
"50-22-7.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, there shall be no public notice
requirement or utilization of the selection process as provided for in this chapter for
projects in which the state agency is able to reuse existing drawings, specifications,
designs, or other documents from a prior project by retention of the person who provided
the professional services and who prepared the original documents.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, the Board of Regents and
University System of Georgia shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter.
(c) <del>The provisions of Code Section 50-6-25, relating to the eligibility of architectural and
engineering firms to do business with the state, shall not be affected or superseded by the
provisions of this chapter.
(d)</del> Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, there shall be no public notice
requirement or utilization of the selection process as provided for in this chapter for
services required for the predesign phase of any state agency construction project unless
the state agency estimates the predesign phase alone to have costs for professional services
in excess of $75,000.00. No award of a contract to provide predesign services under this
exemption shall be interpreted to preclude the lawful necessity to give public notice and
use the selection process for design of projects meeting the criteria of paragraph (5) of
Code Section 50-22-2. Costs for predesign services, whether or not those services are
exempt under this subsection, shall be added to any other costs of an activity for purposes
of determining whether the activity is a project."
SECTION 4.
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 704 would change how the state auditor tracks architectural and engineering firms that do business with Georgia government, replacing monthly statistics and a 10 percent contract cap with a single annual public report.

### Plain-language summary

Current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 50-6-25) requires the state auditor to keep monthly statistics on architectural and engineering firms working with state agencies, and it bars any firm from winning more than 10 percent of such contracts over a 36-month period, with special rules for the Department of Transportation. House Bill 704 would strike that entire monthly-tracking and eligibility-cap system and replace it with a simpler annual report. The auditor would report yearly to the General Assembly on which firms got contracts, the dollar amounts, how many contracts went to Georgia-based firms, and how many went to firms in rural areas. That report would become part of the state's existing annual disclosure requirements under the Transparency in Government Act (O.C.G.A. § 50-6-32) and would have to be posted by January 1 each year, starting January 1, 2027.
The bill also updates two related Code sections (42-2-14 and 50-22-7) to remove references to the old monthly-statistics system and the now-repealed 10 percent contract cap, since those provisions would no longer exist.

### What it does

- Removes the requirement that the state auditor keep monthly statistics on architectural and engineering firms doing business with Georgia state agencies.
- Eliminates the rule barring any architectural or engineering firm from winning more than 10 percent of state contracts in a 36-month period.
- Creates a new annual report requirement listing firms awarded contracts, contract amounts, and how many went to Georgia-based and rural-area firms.
- Folds the new annual statistics into the state's existing Transparency in Government Act reporting (O.C.G.A. § 50-6-32), due by January 1 each year starting in 2027.
- Removes outdated cross-references in two other Code sections (42-2-14 and 50-22-7) tied to the old monthly-reporting and eligibility-cap system.

### Who it affects

Architectural and engineering firms that contract with Georgia state agencies, authorities, and public corporations, including the Department of Transportation; the state auditor's office, which produces the reports; and the General Assembly, which receives them.

### Why it matters

Firms currently limited to 10 percent of state architectural and engineering work over three years would no longer face that cap, and the public would get information once a year instead of monthly. This changes how closely lawmakers and the public can track which firms are winning state design and engineering contracts.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 50-6-25 to remove the monthly statistics requirement and the 10 percent, 36-month contract eligibility cap for architectural and engineering firms.
- Section 1 requires the state auditor to annually report contract awards, dollar amounts, and counts of contracts going to Georgia and rural-area firms to the General Assembly.
- Section 1 ties the new annual statistics to the Transparency in Government Act (O.C.G.A. § 50-6-32) with a posting deadline of January 1 each year, starting January 1, 2027.
- Section 2 removes a reference in O.C.G.A. § 42-2-14 to the old authority (which had already expired in 1991) to waive Code Section 50-6-25 during prison overcrowding emergencies.
- Section 3 removes a subsection in O.C.G.A. § 50-22-7 stating that Code Section 50-6-25 was unaffected by that chapter, since the underlying eligibility rules are being replaced.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2025-03-03)
- Last action: House Withdrawn, Recommitted (2026-02-04)
- Sponsors: Mike Cheokas, Todd Jones, Matt Dubnik, Robert Dickey, Shaw Blackmon, Darlene Taylor
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71072

> The history, votes, and amendments (341 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb704.md?full=1