--- title: HB 750. Forsyth County; State Court; add a judge collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb750 cite_as: HB 750, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb750 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb750.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb750/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71275 date: 2026-05-11 status: passed 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb749.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb751.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 1297 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb750.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 750 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2026-05-11 last_action: Effective Date 2026-05-11 sponsors: - Brent Cox - Carter Barrett - Lauren McDonald - David Clark - Rick Jasperse - Todd Jones text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB750/2025 upstream_id: 1996818 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - Forsyth County courts - state court judges - judicial appointments - local elections - Georgia courts --- # HB 750. Forsyth County; State Court; add a judge ## Text House Bill 750 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representatives Cox of the 28th, Barrett of the 24th, McDonald III of the 26th, Clark of the 100th, Jasperse of the 11th, and others A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend an Act to create the State Court of Forsyth County, approved April 15, 1996 (Ga. L. 1996, p. 4558), as amended, particularly by an Act approved May 1, 2002 (Ga. L. 2002, p. 5579), so as to add a judge to the court; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA: SECTION 1. An Act to create the State Court of Forsyth County, approved April 15, 1996 (Ga. L. 1996, p. 4558), as amended, particularly by an Act approved May 1, 2002 (Ga. L. 2002, p. 5579), is amended by revising subsection (a) of and adding a new subsection to Section 3 to read as follows: "(a) Effective July 1, 2026, there shall be three judges of the State Court of Forsyth County who shall be selected as provided in this section." "(e) The third judge of the State Court of Forsyth County shall be appointed by the Governor for an initial term of office beginning on July 1, 2026, and continuing through December 31, 2028, and until his or her successor is elected and qualified. All future successors to said judge shall be elected by the qualified voters of Forsyth County at a nonpartisan election to be held and conducted jointly with the general primary in 2028 and quadrennially thereafter pursuant to Code Section 21-2-138 of the O.C.G.A. The judge thus elected shall serve a four-year term and until his or her successor is elected and qualified." 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 750 would add a third judge to the State Court of Forsyth County starting July 1, 2026, with the Governor appointing the first judge and future judges chosen by county voters. ### Plain-language summary Forsyth County currently has two judges on its State Court, a court that handles civil and criminal cases below the felony level. This bill amends the 1996 law that created the court, as later amended in 2002, to expand the bench to three judges effective July 1, 2026. The bill spells out how the new seat gets filled. The Governor would appoint the first person to hold the third judgeship, serving from July 1, 2026 through December 31, 2028. After that, the seat becomes an elected position: Forsyth County voters would choose the judge in a nonpartisan election held alongside the 2028 general primary, and every four years after that, under Georgia's election law for judicial races (O.C.G.A. § 21-2-138). The elected judge serves a four-year term and continues until a successor is elected and qualified. ### What it does - Increases the number of judges on the State Court of Forsyth County from two to three, effective July 1, 2026. - Directs the Governor to appoint the first person to fill the new third judgeship, for a term running through December 31, 2028. - Establishes that future holders of the third judgeship will be chosen by Forsyth County voters in nonpartisan elections starting in 2028. - Sets the elected term for the third judge at four years, with the judge continuing in office until a successor is elected and qualified. - Repeals any existing laws that conflict with these changes. ### Who it affects Forsyth County residents and voters, who will eventually elect the new judge; the Governor, who makes the initial appointment; the person appointed or later elected to the new judgeship; and litigants and attorneys with cases in the State Court of Forsyth County. ### Why it matters Adding a third judge could allow the State Court of Forsyth County to handle its caseload with more judicial capacity, potentially affecting how quickly cases move through the court. It also creates a new elected judicial office that Forsyth County voters will fill starting in 2028. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises subsection (a) of Section 3 of the 1996 Act creating the State Court of Forsyth County to set the number of judges at three, effective July 1, 2026. - Section 1 adds a new subsection (e) specifying that the Governor appoints the third judge initially, serving from July 1, 2026 through December 31, 2028. - The new subsection (e) establishes that successors to the third judge will be elected by Forsyth County voters in nonpartisan elections held with the 2028 general primary and every four years afterward, per O.C.G.A. § 21-2-138. - The elected third judge serves a four-year term and remains in office until a successor is elected and qualified. - Section 2 repeals any laws that conflict with the Act. ## Status - Status: Passed (2026-05-11) - Last action: Effective Date 2026-05-11 (2026-05-11) - Sponsors: Brent Cox, Carter Barrett, Lauren McDonald, David Clark, Rick Jasperse, Todd Jones - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71275 > The history, votes, and amendments (1,297 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb750.md?full=1