Georgia CommonsHouse · Introduced · 2025-2026 Regular Session
HB 812: Buildings and housing; revise process by which a local governing body may propose amendments to state minimum standard codes
Last action March 6, 2026 · House Withdrawn, Recommitted
A House committee substitute for HB 812 would require larger Georgia counties and cities to post real-time online tracking of building permits and would expand the role of private licensed professionals in reviewing building and land-disturbance permits.
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 Comm Sub version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
Currently, Georgians applying for building permits or erosion and sediment control permits often have limited visibility into where their application stands, and county and city building departments have wide discretion over what counts as a complete or acceptable application. This bill changes that in several ways. It requires local governments that issued more than 250 building permits in the previous year to run a public, searchable website showing real-time status of every open permit application, starting January 1, 2027. It also lets applicants hire private professional providers (licensed engineers, architects, or qualified inspectors) to review plans and inspections instead of waiting on local staff, expands where those providers can work (including erosion and sediment control), and makes their approved inspection reports automatically accepted unless the local government flags problems within five business days. The bill also tightens rules on permit denials. Local building officials and erosion control issuing authorities must give written, specific reasons for any denial or incomplete determination, tied to a published list of required materials, and must do so within set time limits.
What the bill does
- Requires counties and cities that issued more than 250 building permits in the prior year to maintain a public website with real-time status updates on permit applications, starting January 1, 2027.
- Lets applicants hire private licensed engineers, architects, or qualified inspectors to review plans and inspections for a 50 percent reduction in local regulatory fees, regardless of whether local staff could meet review deadlines.
- Makes a private professional provider's approved inspection report automatically accepted by law unless the local government identifies specific deficiencies in writing within five business days.
- Requires local building officials to give applicants a written list of specific regulatory requirements not met whenever an application is denied or found incomplete.
- Requires local erosion and sediment control issuing authorities to publish an objective list of required application materials and limits denials to failures to meet that published list or other law.
- Extends the private professional provider review and inspection process to erosion and sediment control permits under Chapter 7 of Title 12.
Who it affects
The bill affects county and municipal building departments and erosion control issuing authorities, private engineers, architects, and qualified inspectors who review permits, and anyone applying for a building permit or land-disturbance permit in Georgia, especially in larger, higher-volume jurisdictions.
Why it matters
Permit applicants in larger jurisdictions would gain online tracking of their applications and a faster path to using private reviewers instead of waiting on local staff, while local governments would face new website, disclosure, and response-time obligations. Denials would have to come with specific, documented reasons rather than general explanations.
Key provisions
- Section 1 requires the Department of Community Affairs to publish local building code amendment determinations on its website in real time, replacing the old public-records-request system.
- Section 2 adds new Code Section 8-2-25.1 requiring local governments with more than 250 annual permits to run a real-time, searchable public permit-status website by January 1, 2027, or link to a compliant third-party system.
- Section 3 revises O.C.G.A. § 8-2-26 to expand private professional providers' review authority to erosion and sediment control plans, require written, specific reasons for permit denials or incomplete findings, and make approved private inspection reports automatically accepted unless the local government objects within five business days.
- Section 4 removes the erosion control exemption from qualified inspector rules under O.C.G.A. § 8-2-26.1.
- Section 5 revises O.C.G.A. § 12-7-9 to require local issuing authorities to publish required application materials, sets a 5-day completeness determination deadline (or the application is deemed accepted), and limits grounds for denying or rejecting applications to that published list.
- Section 6 revises O.C.G.A. § 12-7-11 to require local issuing authorities to give applicants a written, specific list of reasons for any permit denial or nonacceptance, tied to published requirements.
From the bill
“If no such determination has been made within five days of the filing of any permit application, the application shall be deemed complete and accepted.”
“No local issuing authority shall deny or deem incomplete and not accept an application for any reason other than the failure to comply with required materials or stylistic preferences published by a local authority”
Discussed in meetings (7)
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.
House Governmental Affairs Committee, February 25, 2026
From 0:06:37 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor presented a substitute for HB 812 to reduce construction-permitting delays and housing costs. A supporting presenter said it would publish local code amendments online, require permit-status websites for jurisdictions issuing more than 250 permits, extend private reviews to land-development permits, and clarify review deadlines. The presenter described five days to check application completeness, a 45-day review period, 14 days for corrected applications, and pauses for state-agency reviews. In response to questions, presenters said the bill would not change zoning, missing the completeness deadline would not approve a permit, and local reviewers would decide whether unrelated material changes restart review. Business and construction organizations supported it. ACCG and Georgia Municipal Association witnesses welcomed several revisions but questioned short deadlines, liability and private erosion-control reviews. Environmental witnesses raised similar concerns about sediment damage and remedies. A Georgia Residential Land Development Council witness said engineers retain liability and developers provide bonds. Members extended local inspection-report review from two to five business days and removed the private provider's deadline for submitting corrections. They rejected a local-referendum requirement and an amendment narrowing that proposal to certain airport-related counties. The committee approved the amended substitute, with the hand count showing nine in favor and four opposed.
House Rules Committee, March 2, 2026
From 0:32:41 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said HB 812 would establish a clear timeline for development permit reviews, improve local government transparency and efficiency, and require developer accountability. The sponsor said it would not change local zoning decisions, state building codes or development regulations. Asked about the positions of GMA and ACCG, the sponsor said both organizations had spoken against the bill. No decision was recorded.
House Rules Committee, March 5, 2026
From 0:37:28 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2013
Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter said a substitute to HB 812 would clarify permitting provisions and add safeguards for local governments and local legislative delegations. A committee member asked whether concerns from organizations representing cities and counties had been satisfied. The presenter said those organizations had not been consulted specifically about the addition, but that it would give local governments and delegations more control. The committee approved the substitute without opposition and later placed the bill on the floor calendar without opposition.
House floor session, March 6, 2026 (legislative day 28, AM)
From 1:35:54 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (House Withdrawn, Recommitted)
Summary by Georgia Commons: A member moved to withdraw HB 812 from the calendar and return it to the Rules Committee. After the clerk read its caption concerning state building, plumbing and electrical codes, the House agreed without objection. No substantive discussion occurred.
House Rules Committee, March 6, 2026
From 0:40:48 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2139
Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter explained a substitute for HB 812, saying changes in Sections 3, 5 and 6 addressed school equalization grants and unusual zoning circumstances involving a new municipality. The presenter said the bill retained its goals of improving housing affordability and streamlining permits and zoning requests. A committee member asked whether the substitute exempted Mulberry and Paulding County from a requirement treating an application as approved if no response was given, describing that requirement as burdensome. The presenter confirmed the exceptions and said Mulberry faced a unique transition involving previous county decisions and the new city’s assumption of responsibilities. The committee approved the substitute after an objection and a show-of-hands vote; a complete tally was not announced. The committee later placed the substituted bill on the day’s supplemental calendar under modified structure. That motion also passed after an objection and a show-of-hands vote, with five opponents counted.
House Small Business Development Committee, March 17, 2026
From 0:44:32 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: Responding to a member’s question about why housing prices rose and what lawmakers could do, the Georgia Association of Realtors’ advocacy director discussed HB 812 alongside SB 447 as permitting reform. The advocacy director said the existing 45-day review period restarts with comments during the permitting process, contributing to approval timelines of nine to 12 months. The advocacy director argued that reducing delays would lower developers’ carrying costs and could help expand supply and reduce new-home prices. The chair said permitting delays had driven small local contractors out of the market and suggested encouraging their return to increase competition. The advocacy director also pointed to workforce training as support for future home construction. No vote or amendment was recorded.
Status timeline
- House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Mike Cheokas (R, HD-151)
- Trey Rhodes (R, HD-124)
- Noel Williams, Jr. (R, HD-148)
- Rick Jasperse (R, HD-11)
- Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
- Will Wade (R, HD-9)
Topics
- building permits
- construction regulation
- local government transparency
- erosion and sediment control
- private inspectors