--- title: HB 913. Administrative Service, Department of; prohibit a governmental entity from entering into contracts for the licensing of certain software applications collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb913 cite_as: HB 913, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb913 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb913.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb913/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72004 date: 2026-02-12 status: introduced 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/hb912.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb914.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 185 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb913.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 913 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-04-02 last_action: House Committee Favorably Reported sponsors: - Tim Fleming - Joseph Gullett - Scott Holcomb - Matt Reeves - Omari Crawford text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB913/2025 upstream_id: 2019427 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - state purchasing rules - software licensing - government contracts - technology procurement --- # HB 913. Administrative Service, Department of; prohibit a governmental entity from entering into contracts for the licensing of certain software applications ## Text House Bill 913 By: Representatives Fleming of the 114th, Gullett of the 19th, Holcomb of the 101st, Reeves of the 99th, and Crawford of the 89th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Part 1 of Article 3 of Chapter 5 of Title 50 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to general authority, duties, and procedure of the Department of Administrative services relative to state purchasing, so as to prohibit a governmental entity from entering into contracts for the licensing of software applications that limit such governmental entity's ability to install or run such software applications on certain desktop or server hardware of such governmental entity's choosing; to provide for a definition; to provide for related matters; to provide an effective date and applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA: SECTION 1. Part 1 of Article 3 of Chapter 5 of Title 50 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to general authority, duties, and procedure of the Department of Administrative Services relative to state purchasing, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows: "50-5-86. (a) As used in this Code section, the term 'governmental entity' means any department, agency, board, bureau, commission, authority, county, municipal corporation, school system, or other political subdivision of this state. (b) A contract procured by a governmental entity for the licensing of software applications designed to run on generally available desktop or server hardware shall not limit such governmental entity's ability to install or run such software applications on the desktop or server hardware of such governmental entity's choosing." SECTION 2. (a) This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law without such approval. (b) This Act shall apply to all contracts for the licensing of software applications entered into by governmental entities on or after the effective date of this Act, and to any renewals, modifications, or extensions of such agreements entered into on or after such date. SECTION 3. 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. A Georgia House bill would bar state agencies, counties, cities, school systems, and other government bodies from signing software license contracts that restrict which computer hardware they can run the software on. ### Plain-language summary Georgia's purchasing rules currently do not address whether software vendors can require government customers to run applications only on specific desktop or server hardware. This bill would add a new section to the state purchasing law (O.C.G.A. Title 50, Chapter 5) that prohibits governmental entities from entering into software licensing contracts that limit their ability to install or run the software on the desktop or server hardware of their own choosing, as long as the software is designed to run on generally available hardware. The bill defines 'governmental entity' broadly to include state departments, agencies, boards, commissions, counties, municipal corporations, and school systems. It would apply to new contracts entered into after the bill takes effect, as well as to renewals, modifications, or extensions of existing agreements made after that date. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it, or if it becomes law without his signature. ### What it does - Adds a new Georgia purchasing law section (O.C.G.A. ยง 50-5-86) barring governmental entities from signing software contracts that restrict which hardware the software runs on. - Defines 'governmental entity' to include state departments, agencies, boards, commissions, counties, municipal corporations, and school systems. - Limits the restriction to software designed to run on generally available desktop or server hardware. - Applies the rule to new contracts and to renewals, modifications, or extensions of existing contracts signed after the law takes effect. - Sets the effective date as the date the Governor signs the bill or it otherwise becomes law without his signature. ### Who it affects State agencies, county and municipal governments, school systems, and other political subdivisions of Georgia that purchase or license software, as well as the software vendors who contract with them for licenses tied to particular hardware. ### Why it matters Government agencies sometimes face software licenses that force them to buy or keep specific hardware to keep using the software. This bill would give Georgia governmental entities more freedom to choose their own computer equipment, potentially affecting future procurement negotiations and existing contract renewals. ### Key provisions - Section 1 adds new Code section 50-5-86, prohibiting hardware-restrictive software license contracts for governmental entities. - Section 1 defines 'governmental entity' to cover state departments, agencies, boards, bureaus, commissions, authorities, counties, municipalities, school systems, and other political subdivisions. - Section 2 sets the effective date as the date of the Governor's approval or the date the bill becomes law without approval, and applies the rule to future contracts and renewals or modifications of existing ones. - Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws. ## Status - Status: Introduced (2025-04-02) - Last action: House Committee Favorably Reported (2026-02-12) - Sponsors: Tim Fleming, Joseph Gullett, Scott Holcomb, Matt Reeves, Omari Crawford - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72004 > The history, votes, and amendments (185 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb913.md?full=1