HB 756: Chatham Area Transit Authority; abolish current memberships; provide new board

The Chatham Area Transit Authority, created by a 1986 state law and amended since, currently has a board whose members hold office under existing rules. This bill wipes that board out and starts over. It says that everyone serving on the authority as of June 30, 2025 loses their seat and those offices are abolished on that date. Starting July 1, 2025, a new board of up to 11 members takes over, with seats assigned to specific bodies: Chatham County commissioners, the Savannah Board of Aldermen, Port Wentworth and Garden City councils, the Savannah-Georgia Convention Center Authority, and the Chatham County legislative delegation. It sets different term lengths depending on the seat, residency rules, grounds for removal, meeting and quorum rules, and conflict-of-interest restrictions. The law takes effect June 30, 2025.

• Vacates and abolishes all current Chatham Area Transit Authority board seats as of June 30, 2025.
• Creates a new 11-member board starting July 1, 2025, with seats assigned to Chatham County, Savannah, Port Wentworth, Garden City, and other groups.
• Sets term lengths for different seats: two-year terms for some, four-year terms for others, and terms tied to elected office for local government appointees.
• Requires certain board members to meet specific qualifications, such as being a person with a disability, a city resident, or affiliated with a business or tourism advocacy group.
• Establishes rules for forfeiting a board seat, including felony convictions or missing too many meetings, and how vacancies get filled.
• Bars board members from voting on matters where they have a financial interest and denies compensation for service, though it allows reimbursement for expenses.

Members of the current Chatham Area Transit Authority board, who lose their seats; Chatham County, the City of Savannah, Port Wentworth, Garden City, the Savannah-Georgia Convention Center Authority, and the Chatham County legislative delegation, which gain appointment power; and residents of Chatham County who rely on CAT transit services.

Chatham County's public transit system would be run by an entirely new set of appointed officials with different qualifications, terms, and removal rules than the current board, changing who controls decisions over bus routes, funding, and operations for Savannah-area riders.

• Section 2.2(a)(1) vacates and abolishes the current authority membership effective June 30, 2025.
• Section 2.2(a)(2) creates a new board of up to 11 members with seats allocated to specific governments and organizations, listed in subparagraphs (A) through (J).
• Section 2.2(a)(3) sets term lengths: two years for some appointees, four years for others, and terms tied to elective office for county and city government representatives.
• Section 2.2(c) bars a member who has served two consecutive full terms from reappointment until two years have passed.
• Section 2.2(d) lists grounds for forfeiting a board seat, including lacking qualifications, a felony or moral turpitude conviction, or excessive absences from meetings.
• Section 2.2(f) prohibits members and employees from voting or profiting on matters where they have a financial interest.
• Section 2.2(g) states board members receive no compensation but can be reimbursed for pre-authorized expenses.
• Section 2 sets the effective date of the Act as June 30, 2025.

1. 2025-06-30Effective Date
2. 2025-05-14Act 323
3. 2025-05-14House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-10House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-04-02Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2025-04-02Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
7. 2025-03-31Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
8. 2025-03-31House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)

• Edna Jackson (D, HD-165)Primary sponsor
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Jesse Petrea (R, HD-166)
• Carl Gilliard (D, HD-162)
• Anne Allen Westbrook (D, HD-163)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 31, 2025

   167 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 10 excused)

   Supplemental Local Calendar: House Vote #361

2. PassedSenate voteApril 2, 2025

   55 yea, 1 nay

   SUPPLEMENTAL LOCAL CONSENT CALENDAR: Senate Vote #400

• public transit
• Chatham County government
• Savannah local government
• transit authority board
• local government appointments