Georgia CommonsHouse · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session
HR 145: Education and Public Health, Departments of; collaborate to prioritize the expansion of vision and hearing screenings at various grade levels; urge
Last action March 12, 2026 · House Passed/Adopted By Substitute
A Georgia House resolution urges the Department of Education and the Department of Public Health to work together to expand vision and hearing screenings for students at several grade levels, to catch undiagnosed problems that can hurt reading skills.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the resolution 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
Georgia currently requires hearing screening only at newborn hospital discharge and at school entry, and vision screening only at school entry. This resolution notes that about one-third of school age children have vision problems and 8 percent have hearing loss between ages six and 19, and that these problems can interfere with children learning to read. The resolution urges the Department of Education and the Department of Public Health to collaborate on a plan to expand vision and hearing screenings for students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and first, third, fifth, and eighth grades, plus transfer students at any grade level. It asks that the resulting plan be presented to the House and Senate education committees and the Georgia Council on Literacy. As a resolution, it does not create a binding legal requirement; it expresses the House's position and directs the Clerk to distribute copies to the two departments.
What the bill does
- Urges the Department of Education and Department of Public Health to jointly develop a strategy to expand vision and hearing screenings.
- Names specific grade levels for expanded screening: pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, first, third, fifth, and eighth grades, plus transfer students at any grade.
- Calls for the resulting screening strategy to be presented to the House Committee on Education, the Senate Education and Youth Committee, and the Georgia Council on Literacy.
- Directs the Clerk of the House to distribute copies of the resolution to the two state departments.
Who it affects
Georgia public school students at the named grade levels and transfer students generally, along with the Department of Education, the Department of Public Health, local school systems that would carry out any expanded screenings, and the legislative education committees that would review the resulting plan.
Why it matters
If the departments act on this resolution, more Georgia students could be screened for vision and hearing problems at additional grade levels, potentially catching undiagnosed issues that affect reading and academic performance earlier than current law requires, since screening is now mandated mainly at school entry.
Key provisions
- Cites O.C.G.A. § 20-2-771 as existing authority requiring the Department of Education to collaborate with public health authorities on student health mandates.
- Resolution clause (1) urges the two departments to develop a comprehensive strategy to expand screenings at pre-K through eighth grade and for transfer students.
- Resolution clause (2) requires the completed strategy to be presented to specified House and Senate committees and the Georgia Council on Literacy.
- Directs the Clerk of the House to distribute copies of the resolution to representatives of both departments.
From the bill
“hearing screening is only required as a newborn before hospital discharge and at entry into a school system, and vision screening is only required at entry into a school system”
“The Department of Education and Department of Public Health are urged to collaborate in developing a comprehensive strategy and methods to expand vision and hearing screenings for students in pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, and first, third, fifth, and eighth grades”
Discussed in meetings (8)
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 Education Committee, February 12, 2026
From 1:24:52 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the resolution urges the Departments of Education and Public Health to develop strategies for expanded vision and hearing screenings in prekindergarten, kindergarten, first, third, fifth and eighth grades, and for transfer students. The sponsor said unidentified vision and hearing problems can cause children to fall behind and described a family experience in which glasses improved a child's reading. A member asked about involving county health facilities, foundations and nonprofits in testing and obtaining glasses or hearing aids. The sponsor expected collaboration and said several groups had expressed interest. Asked whether agencies would report back, the sponsor said the resolution did not require a report but promised follow-up. Another member asked about math outcomes. The sponsor said stronger literacy foundations help learning broadly but did not know the specific effect of vision and hearing screenings on math scores. The committee approved the substitute by voice vote.
House Rules Committee, February 17, 2026
From 0:58:23 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the resolution would encourage schools to prioritize expanded vision and hearing screenings alongside literacy efforts. The sponsor said difficulty seeing the board or hearing the teacher could slow learning. No questions or decision followed.
House Rules Committee, March 9, 2026
From 0:26:53 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The chair proposed placing HR 145 on that day's floor calendar under modified structured rules. The motion received a second and passed without voiced opposition. There was no discussion of the resolution's substance.
House floor session, March 9, 2026 (legislative day 29)
From 1:39:39 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (House Withdrawn, Recommitted)
Summary by Georgia Commons: A committee chair moved to return HR 145 to the Rules Committee. The clerk described the resolution as urging the Departments of Education and Public Health to work together to expand vision and hearing screenings. The House withdrew the resolution from the calendar and returned it to Rules without objection. No reason for the move or debate on the proposal was recorded.
House Rules Committee, March 10, 2026
From 0:28:52 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2583
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor described HR 145 as a resolution urging vision and hearing screenings in schools for the youngest students and said it had been recommitted the previous day. The sponsor explained that the substitute changed line 19 to identify the House of Representatives, rather than the General Assembly, as the body adopting the resolution. After a motion and second, the committee approved the Rules substitute with no opposition voiced. No substantive questions or debate followed the presentation.
House Rules Committee, March 11, 2026
From 0:26:50 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2583
Summary by Georgia Commons: The chair proposed placing HR 145, by Rules substitute, on the next day's House calendar. After a motion and second, the committee agreed with no stated opposition. No explanation of the resolution's contents was given.
House floor session, March 12, 2026 (legislative day 31)
From 1:26:58 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2591
Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter said HR 145 would urge the education and public health departments to work together to expand student vision and hearing screenings. The presenter linked earlier detection to literacy, saying one-third of children experience vision problems during youth and 8% experience hearing problems. The presenter said screenings could help students see classroom boards and hear teachers without delays in getting help. No questions were asked. The House withdrew the committee substitute, adopted the Rules Committee substitute without objection, and adopted the resolution, 162 to 0. Differences between the substitutes were not explained.
Status timeline
- House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
- House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
Show full history (9 actions)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Chris Erwin (R, HD-32)
- Matt Dubnik (R, HD-29)
- Mike Cheokas (R, HD-151)
- Will Wade (R, HD-9)
- Matt Barton (R, HD-5)
- Bethany Ballard (R, HD-147)
Votes
- House voteMarch 12, 2026
162 yea, 0 nay (6 not voting, 8 excused)
Topics
- school health screenings
- vision and hearing screening
- student literacy
- public health
- education policy