Georgia CommonsHB 944: Motor vehicles; federal regulations regarding safe operation of commercial motor carriers and commercial vehicles; update reference date
Last action May 6, 2026 · Effective Date 2026-07-01
House Bill 944 updates a reference date in Georgia's trucking safety law so that the state automatically follows the version of federal commercial vehicle safety rules in effect as of January 1, 2026 instead of 2025.
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 LegiScan holds.
In plain language
Georgia law incorporates federal regulations on the safe operation of commercial motor carriers and commercial vehicles by referencing a specific date, so the state's rules stay tied to a fixed snapshot of the federal rulebook (49 C.F.R.) rather than shifting automatically with every federal change. This bill amends O.C.G.A. § 40-1-8 to move that reference date forward from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026. The change means Georgia's definition of 'present regulations' for trucking and hazardous materials transport safety will now point to the federal rules as they stood at the start of 2026. No other substantive changes are made to the code section, which also defines the Commissioner of Public Safety and the Department of Public Safety for purposes of this law. The bill repeals any conflicting laws.
What the bill does
- Changes the reference date in Georgia's commercial motor carrier safety law from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026, updating which version of federal trucking safety rules Georgia follows.
- Leaves unchanged the definitions of 'Commissioner' (the commissioner of public safety) and 'Department' (the Department of Public Safety) in the same code section.
- Repeals any existing state laws that conflict with this updated reference date.
Who it affects
Commercial truck and bus companies operating in Georgia, their drivers, and companies that transport hazardous materials, all of whom must comply with the federal safety regulations Georgia adopts by reference. The Georgia Department of Public Safety, which enforces these rules, is also affected.
Why it matters
By updating the reference date, Georgia ensures its trucking and hazardous materials safety standards match the most recent version of federal regulations rather than an outdated one, which affects what safety practices commercial drivers and carriers must follow to remain in compliance with state law.
Key provisions
- Section 1 revises subsection (a) of O.C.G.A. § 40-1-8 to change the date defining 'present regulations' from January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026.
- Section 1 keeps the existing definitions of 'Commissioner' and 'Department' unchanged.
- Section 2 repeals any laws in conflict with the updated reference date.
Status timeline
- Effective Date 2026-07-01
- Act 420
- House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- House Sent to Governor (House)
- Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
- Senate Third Read (Senate)
- Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
Show full history (15 actions)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- House Passed/Adopted (House)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Lauren McDonald (R, HD-026)
- Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
- Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
- Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)
- Timothy Bearden (R, SD-030)
Votes
- House voteFebruary 10, 2026
160 yea, 4 nay (5 not voting, 6 absent)
- Senate voteMarch 23, 2026
50 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 1 absent)
Topics
- commercial trucking
- motor carrier safety
- hazardous materials transport
- Department of Public Safety