--- title: SB 137. City of Mulberry; provisions related to jurisdiction of the municipal court; revise collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sb137 cite_as: SB 137, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb137 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb137.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb137/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70094 date: 2025-05-14 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/sb136.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb138.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 888 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb137.md?full=1 bill_number: SB 137 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-14 last_action: Effective Date 2025-05-14 sponsors: - Clint Dixon - Chuck Efstration text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB137/2025 upstream_id: 1964475 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - municipal court jurisdiction - city of Mulberry - Gwinnett County services - local government transition - city charters --- # SB 137. City of Mulberry; provisions related to jurisdiction of the municipal court; revise ## Text 25 LC 47 3325 Senate Bill 137 By: Senator Dixon of the 45th AS PASSED A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend an Act to incorporate the City of Mulberry, approved F ebruary 13, 20241 (Ga. L. 2024, p. 3518), so as to revise provisions related to j urisdiction of the municipal2 court; to revise transition provisions; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting3 laws; and for other purposes.4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:5 SECTION 1.6 An Act to incorporate the City of Mulberry, approved February 1 3, 2024 (Ga. L. 2024,7 p. 3518), is amended by revising subsection (a) of Section 4.13 as follows:8 "(a) The municipal court shall have jurisdiction and authority to try and punish violations9 of this charter, all city ordinances, and such other violations as provided by law."10 SECTION 2.11 Said Act is further amended in Section 8.11 by revising subsections (e) and (g) as follows:12 "(e) During such transition period, Gwinnett County shall continue to provide within the13 territorial limits of the city all government services and functions which Gwinnett County14 provided in that area during the years 2023 and 2024 and at the same actual cost, except15 S. B. 137 - 1 - 25 LC 47 3325 to the extent otherwise provided in this section and except that the governing authority of16 Gwinnett County shall make no modifications to the zoning of any property located within17 the city during such transition period; provided, however, that upon at least 60 days' prior18 written notice to Gwinnett County by the City of Mulberry, resp onsibility for any such19 service or function shall be transferred to the City of Mulberr y. During the transition20 period, the city shall remain within the Gwinnett County special services district, but shall21 be removed from such district at the conclusion of such period."22 "(g) Any transfer of jurisdiction regarding violations of law or ordinance to the Municipal23 Court of the City of Mulberry during or at the end of the transition period shall not in and24 of itself abate any judicial proceeding pending in Gwinnett Cou nty or the pending25 prosecution of any violation of any ordinance of Gwinnett County."26 SECTION 3.27 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.28 S. B. 137 - 2 - ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary. A Senate bill would revise the City of Mulberry's charter to broaden its municipal court's jurisdiction and clarify how services and legal cases transfer from Gwinnett County during the city's transition period. ### Plain-language summary The City of Mulberry was incorporated in Gwinnett County by a 2024 Act of the Georgia General Assembly. This bill amends that founding charter in two ways. First, it rewrites the section defining the municipal court's jurisdiction so the court can try and punish violations of the city charter, city ordinances, and any other violations provided by law, rather than the narrower jurisdiction set out originally. Second, it updates the charter's transition provisions covering the period when Gwinnett County still provides city services. It confirms Gwinnett County must keep providing the same government services and functions at the same cost as in 2023 and 2024, bars county zoning changes in the city during that period, and requires 60 days' written notice before the city takes over a service. It also clarifies that shifting legal jurisdiction to the city's municipal court does not automatically end pending Gwinnett County court cases or prosecutions. ### What it does - Rewrites the municipal court's jurisdiction clause so it covers violations of the city charter, all city ordinances, and other violations provided by law. - Requires Gwinnett County to keep providing the same government services and functions in Mulberry at 2023-2024 cost levels during the transition period. - Bars Gwinnett County from making zoning changes to property inside Mulberry during the transition period. - Requires the City of Mulberry to give Gwinnett County at least 60 days' written notice before taking over a service or function. - Specifies that shifting legal jurisdiction to Mulberry's municipal court does not by itself end pending Gwinnett County judicial proceedings or ordinance prosecutions. - Repeals any existing laws that conflict with these changes. ### Who it affects Residents and property owners within the City of Mulberry, Gwinnett County government agencies currently providing services there, the Mulberry municipal court, and anyone with a pending Gwinnett County court case or ordinance prosecution tied to the city's territory. ### Why it matters The changes determine which court handles legal violations in Mulberry and ensure county services and zoning stay stable while the new city sets up its own operations, while also protecting ongoing Gwinnett County cases from being dismissed as jurisdiction shifts to the city. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises subsection (a) of Section 4.13 to expand the municipal court's authority to charter violations, city ordinances, and other legally provided violations. - Section 2 revises subsection (e) of Section 8.11 to keep Gwinnett County providing services at 2023-2024 cost and bar county zoning changes during the transition, with a 60-day notice requirement for service transfers. - Section 2 also revises subsection (g) of Section 8.11 to state that jurisdictional transfers to the Mulberry municipal court do not abate pending Gwinnett County judicial proceedings or ordinance prosecutions. - Section 3 repeals all laws and parts of laws that conflict with the Act. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-14) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-05-14 (2025-05-14) - Sponsors: Clint Dixon, Chuck Efstration - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70094 > The history, votes, and amendments (888 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb137.md?full=1