--- title: HR 864. Montgomery, Melissa; honor collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hr864 cite_as: HR 864, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr864 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr864.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr864/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71897 date: 2025-03-31 status: passed 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/hr863.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr865.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 131 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr864.md?full=1 bill_number: HR 864 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-03-31 last_action: House Read and Adopted sponsors: - Mike Cheokas text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR864/2025 upstream_id: 2017618 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - ceremonial resolution - Rosalynn Carter - Georgia House of Representatives - Monarch butterflies - Plains Georgia --- # HR 864. Montgomery, Melissa; honor ## Text 25 LC 129 0439 House Resolution 864 By: Representative Cheokas of the 151st A RESOLUTION Honoring Melissa Montgomery; and for other purposes.1 WHEREAS, Melissa Montgomery was the long time personal assistan t to First Lady2 Rosalynn Carter; and3 WHEREAS, she was instrumental in the creation of the Rosalynn C arter Butterfly Trail4 through partnerships with Emory University's deRoode Monarch La b and Research,5 Monarchs Across Georgia, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Services; and6 WHEREAS, the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail began due to Rosalynn Carter's concern of7 the declining number of Monarch butterflies; and8 WHEREAS, in 2013, Rosalynn decided she wanted to include native plants that would9 provide habitat for Monarchs and other butterflies and pollinat ors in her private garden in10 Plains as a way to help Monarchs; and11 WHEREAS, this private garden was the beginning for the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail,12 which now has over 3,000 registered gardens across the United States; and13 H. R. 864 - 1 - 25 LC 129 0439 WHEREAS, the success of the trail is due to supporters like Mel issa Montgomery, Mrs.14 Carter's personal assistant, who for over 39 years coordinated the personal, family, business,15 and organizational details that Mrs. Carter was involved in; and16 WHEREAS, due to Melissa's commitment to Mrs. Carter's desire to help the Monarchs, the17 United States Fish and Wildlife Services entered into a partnership with the Rosalynn Carter18 Butterfly Trail assisting with establishing funding and resourc es for hundreds of butterfly19 gardens in public places and schools in the Southeastern United States; and20 WHEREAS, it is abundantly fitting and proper that this outstand ing Georgian be21 appropriately recognized. 22 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that23 the members of this body honor the contributions Melissa Montgo mery has made to the24 Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail.25 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized26 and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution ava ilable for distribution to27 Melissa Montgomery.28 H. R. 864 - 2 - ## 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 honors Melissa Montgomery, longtime personal assistant to former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, for her role in creating the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail. ### Plain-language summary This is a ceremonial resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives, not a change to state law. It recognizes Melissa Montgomery, who worked for over 39 years as personal assistant to former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, for helping establish the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail. The resolution describes how the trail began in Rosalynn Carter's private garden in Plains in 2013 out of concern for declining Monarch butterfly populations, and how it grew into a network of over 3,000 registered gardens nationwide through partnerships with Emory University, Monarchs Across Georgia, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The House resolves to honor Montgomery's contributions and directs the Clerk of the House to provide her a copy of the resolution. ### What it does - Formally honors Melissa Montgomery for her contributions to the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail through a House resolution. - States the House of Representatives' recognition of her 39 years of work as Rosalynn Carter's personal assistant. - Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to Montgomery. - Creates no new law, funding, or regulatory requirement; it is purely a ceremonial statement by the House. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names and honors Melissa Montgomery. It also references the legacy of former First Lady Rosalynn Carter and organizations involved in the butterfly trail, including Emory University, Monarchs Across Georgia, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, though it imposes no obligations on them. ### Why it matters This resolution has no legal effect on Georgians' daily lives; it is a symbolic honor. Its main real-world consequence is that the House Clerk will provide Montgomery an official copy recognizing her decades of work supporting the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail. ### Key provisions - The whereas clauses describe Montgomery's 39-year tenure as Rosalynn Carter's personal assistant and her role in founding the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail. - The resolved clause states that the House of Representatives honors Montgomery's contributions to the Rosalynn Carter Butterfly Trail. - A further resolved clause directs the Clerk of the House to make a copy of the resolution available for distribution to Montgomery. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-03-31) - Last action: House Read and Adopted (2025-03-31) - Sponsors: Mike Cheokas - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71897 > The history, votes, and amendments (131 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr864.md?full=1