HR 998: Adjournment; relative to

Each year the Georgia General Assembly must adopt a resolution laying out which days it will meet during its regular session. This resolution sets that schedule for 2026, listing 40 numbered legislative days between January 12 and April 2, along with committee work days when neither chamber convenes for regular business. It marks March 6 as Crossover Day, the deadline by which bills typically must pass one chamber to remain eligible in the other, and April 2 as Sine Die, the last day of the session. The resolution also lets the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate jointly suspend this schedule and reconvene the General Assembly elsewhere if an emergency or disaster makes meeting at the State Capitol unsafe or impossible, using procedures tied to the Governor's emergency powers over the seat of government. Adopting the resolution also counts as both chambers' consent for adjournment purposes under the Georgia Constitution.

• Establishes the specific calendar of convening dates, legislative day numbers, and committee work days for the General Assembly's 2026 session from January 12 to April 2.
• Designates March 6, 2026 as Crossover Day and April 2, 2026 as Sine Die, the final adjournment day of the session.
• Requires each chamber to remain adjourned between legislative days until it convenes again, per Code Section 28-1-2.
• Allows the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate to jointly suspend the set schedule and relocate or reschedule meetings during a declared emergency or disaster.
• Requires prompt notice to all House and Senate members if the schedule is discontinued because of an emergency.
• States that adopting this resolution serves as both chambers' consent for adjournment purposes under Article III, Section IV, Paragraph I(b) of the Georgia Constitution.

This resolution directly affects the members and staff of the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate, the Speaker of the House, the President of the Senate, and the Governor's office, since it governs when lawmakers meet and how the legislature would respond to an emergency disrupting normal session dates.

The schedule determines the practical rhythm of Georgia's legislative session, including the crossover deadline that shapes when bills must move to stay alive and the final day for passing legislation. The emergency provisions ensure the legislature can keep functioning if the Capitol becomes unusable.

• Part I lists convening dates for legislative days 1 through 40, plus specific committee work days such as February 23, March 2, March 5, March 11, March 17, March 24, and March 26.
• Part I sets March 6, 2026 as Crossover Day (legislative day 28) and April 2, 2026 as Sine Die (legislative day 40).
• Part I incorporates Code Section 28-1-2 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated for how meetings are held, while letting each chamber set its own daily convening and adjournment hours.
• Part II authorizes the Speaker and the President of the Senate, by joint agreement, to discontinue the schedule and reconvene at a temporary location the Governor has proclaimed under Code Section 38-3-52 during an emergency.
• Part II separately allows the same officers to discontinue the schedule and later reconvene back at the State Capitol if no gubernatorial proclamation of a temporary location has been made.
• Part II requires prompt notice to all members of both chambers if the schedule is discontinued, with each house remaining adjourned until the officers jointly set a new convening date.
• Part II states that adopting the resolution constitutes both chambers' consent for purposes of the adjournment provision in Article III, Section IV, Paragraph I(b) of the Georgia Constitution.

1. 2026-01-12Senate Transmitted House (Senate)
2. 2026-01-12Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
3. 2026-01-12House Immediately Transmitted to Senate (House)
4. 2026-01-12House Read and Adopted (House)
5. 2026-01-12House First Readers (House)
6. 2026-01-12House Hopper (House)

• Chuck Efstration (R, HD-104)Primary sponsor

1. PassedHouse voteJanuary 12, 2026

   148 yea, 27 nay (0 not voting, 1 absent)

   Adjournment: House Vote #455

2. PassedSenate voteJanuary 12, 2026

   51 yea, 0 nay (1 not voting, 3 absent)

   Adoption: Senate Vote #492

3. PassedSenate voteFebruary 26, 2026

   26 yea, 20 nay (3 not voting, 6 absent)

   Motion To Adjourn: Senate Vote #598

• legislative schedule
• General Assembly session
• Crossover Day
• Sine Die
• legislative emergency procedures