Georgia CommonsHouse · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session
HB 856: Brooks County Development Authority; appointment of members; revise provisions
Last action May 13, 2025 · Effective Date
A bill affecting only Brooks County would change how the seven members of the Brooks County Development Authority are appointed, removing an old district system and setting new residency rules and four-year terms.
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 Enrolled version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
This bill amends the 1967 law that created the Brooks County Development Authority, a body that oversees local development matters in Brooks County, Georgia. It removes an older section of the law that set up outdated districting and initial-term rules for how members were chosen, leaving that section repealed and reserved (kept as a blank placeholder in the law's structure). It then rewrites the section covering appointments. The Brooks County governing authority (the county commission) will appoint all seven members, choosing outstanding local citizens. Two of the seven must live within the City of Quitman's city limits, and the other five must live anywhere in Brooks County. All members serve four-year terms and continue serving until a successor is appointed and qualified. Any conflicting prior laws are repealed.
What the bill does
- Repeals and reserves Section 2 of the 1967 Act, removing outdated rules about authority districts and initial appointment terms.
- Rewrites Section 3 to require the Brooks County governing authority to appoint all seven development authority members.
- Sets a residency requirement that two of the seven members must live within the City of Quitman and five anywhere in Brooks County.
- Establishes four-year terms for all members, with members continuing to serve until a successor is appointed and qualified.
- Repeals any other state laws that conflict with these changes.
Who it affects
Residents of Brooks County and the City of Quitman, particularly citizens who might serve on the Brooks County Development Authority, and the Brooks County governing authority, which now holds sole appointment power over the authority's seven members.
Why it matters
The change clarifies and modernizes who gets to pick members of a local economic development body and where those members must live, replacing an old districting system with straightforward residency and appointment rules set entirely by the county government.
Key provisions
- Section 1 repeals and reserves Section 2 of the original 1967 Act, eliminating outdated districting and initial term language.
- Section 2 rewrites Section 3 to require the Brooks County governing authority to appoint all seven authority members from among outstanding local citizens.
- Section 2 requires two members to reside within the City of Quitman and five members to reside anywhere in Brooks County.
- Section 2 sets member terms at four years, continuing until successors are duly appointed and qualified.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting prior laws.
From the bill
“The governing authority of Brooks County shall appoint seven members to the authority by selecting outstanding citizens of Brooks County.”
“Two members shall be residents of Brooks County residing within the corporate limits of the City of Quitman, and the remaining five members shall be residents residing anywhere within the geographic boundaries of Brooks County.”
Status timeline
- Effective Date
- Act 243
- House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- House Sent to Governor (House)
- Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- House Passed/Adopted (House)
Show full history (13 actions)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- John LaHood (R, HD-175)
Votes
- House voteMarch 31, 2025
165 yea, 0 nay (10 not voting, 5 excused)
- Senate voteApril 2, 2025
55 yea, 1 nay
Topics
- local government
- Brooks County
- development authority
- Quitman
- county appointments