--- title: HR 449. House Study Committee on Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau; create collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hr449 cite_as: HR 449, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr449 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr449.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr449/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71013 date: 2025-04-04 status: introduced corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 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/hr448.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr450.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 235 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr449.md?full=1 bill_number: HR 449 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-02-28 last_action: House Withdrawn, Recommitted sponsors: - Tyler Smith - Stan Gunter - Trey Kelley - Matt Reeves - Shea Roberts text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR449/2025 upstream_id: 1989311 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - traffic violations - traffic courts - legislative study committees - driver rights - victim rights --- # HR 449. House Study Committee on Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau; create ## Text 25 LC 48 1547 House Resolution 449 By: Representatives Smith of the 18th, Gunter of the 8th, Kelley of the 16th, Reeves of the 99th, and Roberts of the 52nd A RESOLUTION Creating the House Study Committee on Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau; and1 for other purposes.2 WHEREAS, the state's traffic violations bureau (TVB) laws, a sy stem that allows drivers3 accused of certain traffic violations to pay their fines online or by mail and never appear in4 a courtroom, is a great convenience to both motorists and the c ourts, but, as written, these5 laws can allow drivers who commit dangerous acts on our streets and highways to totally6 avoid both prosecutorial and judicial supervision; and7 WHEREAS, persons injured in, or who have damages brought upon t hem, due to traffic8 accidents can be deprived of their rights to make victim impact statements; and9 WHEREAS, enacted in March, 1966, the TVB system is likely unconstitutional as there is10 no requirement that defendants be advised of their rights as were created by the Miranda v.11 Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 (1966) decision, rendering the system out dated, confusing, and12 fraught with danger to drivers who pay fines using the TVB system; and13 H. R. 449 - 1 - 25 LC 48 1547 WHEREAS, a study should be undertaken to determine what actions could be taken to14 examine the TVB system and draft statutes that would modernize the system for our state's15 traffic courts.16 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:17 (1) Creation of House study committee. There is created the House Study Committee18 on the Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau.19 (2) Members and officers. The committee shall be composed of eleven members as20 follows:21 (A) The chairperson of the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee;22 (B) Two members of the House of Representatives appointed by t he Speaker of the23 House of Representatives, one of whom shall be designated as ch airperson of the24 committee;25 (C) The chairperson of the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council (PAC ) or his or her26 designee;27 (D) The president of the Georgia Association of Solicitors-Gen eral or his or her28 designee;29 (E) The president of the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (GACDL)30 or his or her designee;31 (F) The president of the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police or his or her designee;32 (G) The president of the Georgia Sheriffs' Association or his or her designee; 33 (H) The president of the Council of Municipal Court Judges of Georgia or his or her34 designee;35 (I) The president of the Council of Magistrate Court Judges or his or her designee; and36 (J) The president of the Council of Probate Court Judges of Ge orgia or his or her37 designee.38 H. R. 449 - 2 - 25 LC 48 1547 (3) Powers and duties. The committee shall undertake a study of the conditions, needs,39 issues, and problems mentioned above or related thereto and recommend any action or40 legislation which the committee deems necessary or appropriate.41 (4) Meetings. The chairperson shall call all meetings of the committee. The committee42 may conduct such meetings at such places and at such times as it may deem necessary or43 convenient to enable it to exercise fully and effectively its powers, perform its duties, and44 accomplish the objectives and purposes of this resolution.45 (5) Allowances, expenses, and funding.46 (A) The legislative members of the committee shall receive the allowances provided47 for in Code Section 28-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.48 (B) Members of the committee who are state officials, other than legislative members,49 or who are state employees shall receive no compensation for th eir services on the50 committee, but they may be reimbursed for expenses incurred by them in the51 performance of their duties as members of the committee in the same manner as they52 are reimbursed for expenses in their capacities as state officials or employees.53 (C) Members of the committee who are not legislators, state of ficials, or state54 employees shall receive a daily expense allowance in an amount the same as that55 specified in subsection (b) of Code Section 45-7-21 of the Offi cial Code of Georgia56 Annotated, as well as the mileage or transportation allowance a uthorized for state57 employees.58 (D) The allowances and expenses authorized by this resolution shall not be received59 by any member of the committee for more than five days unless a dditional days are60 authorized. Funds necessary to carry out the provisions of this resolution shall come61 from funds appropriated to the House of Representatives; except that funds for the62 reimbursement of the expenses of state officials, other than le gislative members, and63 state employees shall come from funds appropriated to or otherwise available to their64 respective agencies.65 H. R. 449 - 3 - 25 LC 48 1547 (6) Report.66 (A) In the event the committee adopts any specific findings or recommendations that67 include suggestions for proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file a report of the68 same prior to the date of abolishment specified in this resolut ion, subject to69 subparagraph (C) of this paragraph.70 (B) In the event the committee adopts a report that does not i nclude suggestions for71 proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file the report, subject to subparagraph (C)72 of this paragraph.73 (C) No report shall be filed unless the same has been approved prior to the date of74 abolishment specified in this resolution by majority vote of a quorum of the committee.75 A report so approved shall be signed by the chairperson of the committee and filed with76 the Clerk of the House of Representatives. Any member of the committee may file a77 minority report that shall accompany the majority report.78 (D) In the absence of an approved report, the chairperson may file with the Clerk of the79 House of Representatives a copy of the minutes of the meetings of the committee in80 lieu thereof.81 (7) Abolishment. The committee shall stand abolished on December 1, 2025.82 H. R. 449 - 4 - ## 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 an 11-member study committee to examine the state's traffic violations bureau system, which lets drivers pay certain traffic fines without going to court. ### Plain-language summary Georgia's traffic violations bureau (TVB) system lets drivers accused of certain traffic offenses pay fines by mail or online instead of appearing in court. This resolution says that system, created in 1966, may let dangerous drivers avoid prosecutorial and judicial oversight, can deny crime victims the chance to make impact statements, and may be unconstitutional because it does not require drivers to be told of their legal rights, similar to Miranda warnings. The resolution creates the House Study Committee on Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau, made up of legislators, prosecutors, defense lawyers, police and sheriffs' representatives, and several categories of judges. The committee would study the TVB system's problems and recommend legislation. It would hold meetings as needed, receive limited funding from House appropriations, and would have to file any findings or recommended legislation before it is abolished on December 1, 2025. ### What it does - Creates the House Study Committee on Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau, made up of 11 members from the legislature, law enforcement, courts, and legal associations. - Directs the committee to study problems with the TVB system, including lack of court oversight and missing victim impact statement rights. - Authorizes legislative members to receive standard travel and expense allowances under O.C.G.A. ยง 28-1-8, and sets expense rules for other members. - Requires the committee to file a report with any recommended legislation before it is abolished, or file meeting minutes if no report is approved. - Abolishes the committee automatically on December 1, 2025, ending its work and funding. ### Who it affects Georgia drivers who use the traffic violations bureau to pay fines by mail or online, crime victims of traffic accidents, and the legislators, prosecutors, defense attorneys, police chiefs, sheriffs, and judges named to serve on the new study committee. ### Why it matters If the study leads to future legislation, it could change how routine traffic tickets are handled in Georgia, potentially requiring more court involvement, informing drivers of their rights, or giving accident victims a say before fines are resolved. For now, the resolution only sets up a committee to study the issue. ### Key provisions - Paragraph (1) creates the House Study Committee on the Modernization of the Traffic Violations Bureau. - Paragraph (2) sets the committee's membership at 11, including House members, the Judiciary Non-Civil Committee chair, and representatives of prosecutors, defense lawyers, police chiefs, sheriffs, and several judicial councils. - Paragraph (3) directs the committee to study the TVB system's problems and recommend action or legislation. - Paragraph (5) sets allowance and expense rules, capping paid days at five unless additional days are authorized, with funding from House appropriations. - Paragraph (6) requires the committee to file a report with any legislative recommendations, approved by majority vote, before the abolishment date. - Paragraph (7) abolishes the committee on December 1, 2025. ## Status - Status: Introduced (2025-02-28) - Last action: House Withdrawn, Recommitted (2025-04-04) - Sponsors: Tyler Smith, Stan Gunter, Trey Kelley, Matt Reeves, Shea Roberts - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71013 > The history, votes, and amendments (235 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr449.md?full=1