--- title: HB 801. Long County; Board of Commissioners; revise powers of chairperson collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb801 cite_as: HB 801, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb801 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb801.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb801/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71486 date: 2025-05-13 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 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/hb800.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb802.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 885 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb801.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 801 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-13 last_action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 sponsors: - Buddy DeLoach text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB801/2025 upstream_id: 2012243 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - local government - county government - Long County - county manager - government administration --- # HB 801. Long County; Board of Commissioners; revise powers of chairperson ## Text 25 LC 47 3633/AP House Bill 801 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representative DeLoach of the 167th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend an Act to re-create and establish the Board of Commiss ioners of Long County,1 approved March 10, 1988 (Ga. L. 1988, p. 3755), as amended, so as to revise the powers of2 the chairperson of the board of commissioners; to provide for a county manager; to provide3 an effective date; to provide for related matters; to repeal co nflicting laws; and for other4 purposes.5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:6 SECTION 1.7 An Act to re-create and establish the Board of Commissioners of Long County, approved8 March 10, 1988 (Ga. L. 1988, p. 3755), as amended, is amended by revising Section 4 and9 adding a new section to read as follows:10 "SECTION 4.11 Chairperson.12 The chairperson of the board shall:13 H. B. 801 - 1 - 25 LC 47 3633/AP (1) Preside at all meetings of the board unless otherwise adop ted by appropriate14 resolution. The rules of order shall be governed by Robert's Rules of Order unless15 otherwise adopted by appropriate resolution; and16 (2) Be recognized as the official head of Long County, Georgia , by state, federal, and17 other authorities.18 SECTION 4.1.19 County manager.20 (a) The board shall employ a county manager who shall be responsible for the supervision,21 direction, and control of the administration of the affairs of Long County. The board shall,22 by appropriate ordinance, set and determine the terms and condi tions of employment, 23 limitations of authority, scope of duties, compensation, and grounds for termination of the24 county manager.25 (b) In the event of a vacancy in the office of county manager, whether by reason of death,26 incapacity, or termination, the board may, by majority vote upo n a proper motion at a27 meeting held pursuant to Code Section 50-14-1 of the O.C.G.A., authorize the chairperson28 of the board to serve as interim county manager; provided, however, that such authorization29 shall expire 90 days following such vote by the board."30 SECTION 2.31 This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2025.32 SECTION 3.33 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.34 H. B. 801 - 2 - ## 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 801 rewrites the powers of Long County's board chairperson and requires the county to hire a professional county manager to run day-to-day operations, effective July 1, 2025. ### Plain-language summary This bill amends the 1988 local act that set up the Long County Board of Commissioners. It rewrites Section 4 to spell out the chairperson's duties: presiding over board meetings under Robert's Rules of Order (unless the board adopts different rules) and serving as the official representative of Long County to state, federal, and other authorities. The bill also adds a new Section 4.1 requiring the board to employ a county manager, who would handle the supervision and administration of county affairs. The board sets that manager's pay, duties, and grounds for firing by ordinance. If the manager's job becomes vacant, the board can vote to let the chairperson temporarily fill in as interim manager, but only for up to 90 days. The changes take effect July 1, 2025, and any conflicting laws are repealed. ### What it does - Rewrites Section 4 of the 1988 Long County commissioners act to define the chairperson's duty to preside at meetings under Robert's Rules of Order unless the board adopts other rules. - Designates the chairperson as the official head of Long County for dealings with state, federal, and other authorities. - Adds a new Section 4.1 requiring the board to hire a county manager to oversee administration of county affairs. - Gives the board authority to set the county manager's compensation, duties, authority limits, and grounds for termination by ordinance. - Allows the board to appoint the chairperson as interim county manager for up to 90 days if the position becomes vacant, following a vote at an open meeting. - Sets the effective date of the changes as July 1, 2025 and repeals conflicting laws. ### Who it affects The Long County Board of Commissioners and its chairperson, any future county manager hired under the new position, and Long County residents whose local government structure and administration would change under the bill. ### Why it matters Long County would move toward a more structured management setup, with a hired county manager handling daily administration instead of leaving that entirely to elected commissioners. This clarifies the chairperson's formal role and creates a fallback plan if the manager's job is vacant. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises Section 4 of the 1988 Long County act, defining the chairperson's role in presiding over meetings and representing the county to outside authorities. - Section 1 also adds Section 4.1, requiring the board to employ a county manager responsible for supervising county administration. - Section 4.1(a) lets the board set the county manager's employment terms, compensation, and grounds for termination through ordinance. - Section 4.1(b) allows the chairperson to serve as interim county manager for up to 90 days after a board vote, in case of a vacancy from death, incapacity, or termination. - Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2025. - Section 3 repeals any laws that conflict with this Act. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-13) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 (2025-05-13) - Sponsors: Buddy DeLoach - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71486 > The history, votes, and amendments (885 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb801.md?full=1