House Resolution 428
By: Representatives Reese of the 140th, Hugley of the 141st, Buckner of the 137th, Smith of
the 138th, and Rice of the 139th
A RESOLUTION
Creating the House Study Committee on the Affordability and Accessibility of Georgia's
Legitimation Process; and for other purposes.
WHEREAS, in Georgia, a biological father who is not married to the mother of his child at
the time of such child's birth must file a separate legal petition in order to legitimate the child
and obtain legal rights as a parent; and
WHEREAS, the benefit of having two parents responsible for a child is known to have a
positive effect on a child's welfare; and
WHEREAS, in Georgia, biological fathers who wish to obtain parental rights to their
children are discouraged from doing so, often due to a lack of resources or awareness of the
costs associated with legitimation; and
WHEREAS, it is worth considering whether the legitimation process in Georgia may be
improved in a way that yields it more affordable and accessible, particularly for those
biological fathers with limited financial resources.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:
(1) Creation of House study committee. There is created the House Study Committee
on the Affordability and Accessibility of Georgia's Legitimation Process.
(2) Members and officers. The committee shall be composed of five members of the
House of Representatives. The Speaker of the House of Representatives shall designate
a member of the committee as 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. The legislative members of the committee shall receive
the allowances provided for in Code Section 28-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated. 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, 2025.