---
title: HR 1665. House Study Committee on Environmental Protection Division Permit and Variance Procedures and Rights to Review; create
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hr1665
cite_as: HR 1665, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1665
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1665.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1665/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74043
date: 2026-03-25
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.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 199
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1665.md?full=1
bill_number: HR 1665
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: resolution
status_date: 2026-03-12
last_action: House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute
sponsors:
  - Rick Townsend
  - Ron Stephens
  - Lynn Smith
text_version: Comm Sub
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR1665/2025
upstream_id: 2133378
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - environmental permits
  - EPD
  - water and air quality regulation
  - legislative study committees
  - administrative review rights
---

# HR 1665. House Study Committee on Environmental Protection Division Permit and Variance Procedures and Rights to Review; create

## Text

The House Committee on Special Rules offers the following substitute to HR 1665:
A RESOLUTION
Creating the House Study Committee on Environmental Protection Division Permit and
Variance Procedures and Rights to Review; and for other purposes.
WHEREAS, the Environmental Protection Division of the Department of Natural Resources
(EPD) is charged with the protection of this state's air, land, and water resources; and
WHEREAS, as part of its duties, the EPD regulates public and private facilities in the areas
of air quality, water quality, hazardous waste, water supply, solid waste, surface mining,
underground storage tanks, and other similar activities, and issues and enforces state permits
and variances in such areas; and
WHEREAS, it would be beneficial to study the EPD's procedures relating to granting,
denying, revoking, or amending permits or variances, as well as any rights to administrative
or judicial review by aggrieved or adversely affected parties, to evaluate whether any action
by the state is warranted to ensure efficient and economical operations or to better serve the
public welfare.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:
(1) Creation of House study committee. There is created the House Study Committee
on Environmental Protection Division Permit and Variance Procedures and Rights to
Review.
(2) Members and officers.
(A) The committee shall be composed of seven members of the House of
Representatives to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(B) The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall designate all members of the
committee and a chairperson of the committee.
(3) Powers and duties. The committee shall undertake a study of the conditions, needs,
issues, and problems mentioned above or related thereto and recommend any action or
legislation which the committee deems necessary or appropriate.
(4) Meetings. The chairperson shall call all meetings of the committee. The committee
may conduct such meetings at such places and at such times as it may deem necessary or
convenient to enable it to exercise fully and effectively its powers, perform its duties, and
accomplish the objectives and purposes of this resolution.
(5) Allowances and funding.
(A) Members of the committee shall receive the allowances provided for in Code
Section 28-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.
(B) The allowances authorized by this resolution shall not be received by any member
of the committee for more than five days unless additional days are authorized. Funds
necessary to carry out the provisions of this resolution shall come from funds
appropriated to the House of Representatives.
(6) Report.
(A) In the event the committee adopts any specific findings or recommendations that
include suggestions for proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file a report of the
same prior to the date of abolishment specified in this resolution, subject to
subparagraph (C) of this paragraph.
(B) In the event the committee adopts a report that does not include suggestions for
proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file the report, subject to subparagraph (C)
of this paragraph.
(C) No report shall be filed unless the same has been approved prior to the date of
abolishment specified in this resolution by majority vote of a quorum of the committee.
A report so approved shall be signed by the chairperson of the committee and filed with
the Clerk of the House of Representatives.
(D) In the absence of an approved report, the chairperson may file with the Clerk of the
House of Representatives a copy of the minutes of the meetings of the committee in lieu
thereof.
(7) Abolishment. The committee shall stand abolished on December 1, 2026.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary.

A Georgia House resolution would create a study committee to examine how the Environmental Protection Division handles permits and variances, and what rights people have to challenge those decisions.

### Plain-language summary

The Environmental Protection Division (EPD) of the Department of Natural Resources regulates air quality, water quality, hazardous waste, solid waste, surface mining, underground storage tanks and similar activities across Georgia, issuing and enforcing permits and variances. This resolution does not change any of EPD's rules directly. Instead it creates the House Study Committee on Environmental Protection Division Permit and Variance Procedures and Rights to Review, made up of seven House members appointed by the Speaker, who also names the chairperson.
The committee would study EPD's procedures for granting, denying, revoking, or amending permits and variances, and look at what administrative or judicial review options exist for people or businesses affected by those decisions. It can recommend legislation, meets at the chairperson's call, and members get standard legislative allowances for up to five days unless more are approved. The committee would be abolished on December 1, 2026.

### What it does

- Creates a seven-member House study committee focused on EPD permit and variance procedures, with members appointed by the Speaker of the House.
- Directs the committee to study how EPD grants, denies, revokes, or amends permits and variances and how affected parties can seek review.
- Authorizes the committee to recommend legislation or other state action based on its findings.
- Sets member pay using existing legislative allowance rules (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8), capped at five days unless extended.
- Requires any approved findings or report to be filed with the Clerk of the House before the committee is abolished.
- Automatically abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

### Who it affects

The Environmental Protection Division and Department of Natural Resources, House members appointed to the committee, and businesses or individuals who hold or seek EPD permits and variances, including those in air quality, water quality, solid waste, hazardous waste, and mining industries.

### Why it matters

If problems in EPD's permitting or review process are affecting businesses, landowners, or communities, this committee could surface issues and propose changes to state law. It does not change any permit rules itself, only sets up a study process that ends by December 2026.

### Key provisions

- Paragraph (1) creates the House Study Committee on Environmental Protection Division Permit and Variance Procedures and Rights to Review.
- Paragraph (2) sets committee membership at seven House members, all appointed by the Speaker, who also designates the chairperson.
- Paragraph (3) charges the committee with studying EPD permit and variance procedures and related review rights and recommending action or legislation.
- Paragraph (5) limits paid allowances to five days per member unless additional days are authorized, funded from House appropriations.
- Paragraph (6) requires any approved report or findings to be filed with the Clerk of the House before the committee's abolishment date.
- Paragraph (7) abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2026-03-12)
- Last action: House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (2026-03-25)
- Sponsors: Rick Townsend, Ron Stephens, Lynn Smith
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74043

> The history, votes, and amendments (199 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1665.md?full=1