--- title: SB 255. General Assembly; authorization of statutory investigatory powers to certain committees of the General Assembly; codify a process collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sb255 cite_as: SB 255, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb255 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb255.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb255/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70787 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/sb254.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb256.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 1195 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb255.md?full=1 bill_number: SB 255 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: - Bill Cowsert - Rob Leverett text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB255/2025 upstream_id: 1983848 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - legislative investigations - subpoena power - General Assembly rules - government transparency - legislative oversight --- # SB 255. General Assembly; authorization of statutory investigatory powers to certain committees of the General Assembly; codify a process ## Text 25 LC 47 3681S Senate Bill 255 By: Senator Cowsert of the 46th AS PASSED A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Chapter 1 of Title 28 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to1 general provisions regarding the General Assembly, so as to cod ify a process for the2 authorization of statutory investigatory powers to certain comm ittees of the General3 Assembly; to provide for oaths and subpoena powers related to such investigatory powers;4 to provide for confidentiality of certain materials; to explici tly preserve any authority,5 immunity, privilege, or power granted to or possessed by the Ge neral Assembly or its6 members; to provide for related matters; to provide an effectiv e date; to repeal conflicting7 laws; and for other purposes.8 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:9 SECTION 1.10 Chapter 1 of Title 28 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated , relating to general11 provisions regarding the General Assembly, is amended by adding a new Code section to12 read as follows:13 "28-1-17.14 (a) The Senate or the House of Representatives may, through ru les of procedure or15 resolution, authorize one or more committees of such chamber to exercise the investigatory16 S. B. 255 - 1 - 25 LC 47 3681S powers provided for in Code Section 45-15-19. The Senate and t he House of17 Representatives may, through joint resolution or joint rules of procedure, authorize one or18 more joint committees to exercise the investigatory powers prov ided for in Code19 Section 45-15-19.20 (b) For the purpose of conducting any investigation, a committee that has been authorized21 to exercise investigatory powers pursuant to subsection (a) of this Code section shall have22 the power to administer oaths; to call any party to testify under oath at such investigation;23 to require the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, records, and papers; and24 to take the depositions of witnesses. For such purposes, the c ommittee is authorized to25 issue a subpoena for any witness or a subpoena to compel the pr oduction of any books,26 records, or papers consistent with the rules of procedure or re solution enabling such27 committee. A subpoena issued under this Code section may be served at any place in this28 state and in any manner authorized in Code Section 24-13-24.29 (c) When authorized by the rules of procedure or resolution enabling such committee, the30 confidential treatment of material and information in the course of investigations and other31 proceedings of such committee shall be recognized by law. Such confidential treatment32 shall be preserved in proceedings under this Code section and as provided in paragraph (2)33 of subsection (d) of this Code section.34 (d)(1) In case of refusal to obey a subpoena issued under this Code section to any person35 and upon application by the committee that has been authorized to exercise investigatory36 powers pursuant to subsection (a) of this Code section, the sup erior court in whose37 jurisdiction the witness is to appear or in which the books, re cords, or papers are to be38 produced may issue to that person an order requiring him or her to appear before the court39 to show cause why he or she should not be held in contempt for refusal to obey the40 subpoena. Failure to obey a subpoena may be punished by the court as contempt of court.41 (2) If the application for a subpoena requests confidential treatment, the court shall take42 any and all steps necessary or appropriate to preserve the conf identiality of the43 S. B. 255 - 2 - 25 LC 47 3681S application. The court may, but shall not be required to, issu e the subpoena in such a44 manner as to preserve its confidentiality. If the court determines that a subpoena may be45 issued but confidential treatment is not warranted under the ru les of procedure or46 resolution enabling such committee, the judge shall so notify t he chairperson or acting47 chairperson; and the chairperson or acting chairperson shall then have the option to:48 (A) Abandon the request for a subpoena, in which case the appl ication shall remain49 confidential; or50 (B) Accept the determination of the court, in which case the subpoena shall issue, but51 the application and the issuance shall not be treated as confidential.52 (e) Nothing in this Code section, Code Section 28-1-16, Code Section 45-15-17, or Code53 Section 45-15-19, or in any other section of this Code, is intended to, or shall be interpreted54 as, abrogating, modifying, superseding, or in any other way lim iting any authority,55 immunity, privilege, or power granted to or possessed by the Ge neral Assembly, the56 Senate, the House of Representatives, any committee of either c hamber, any joint57 committee, and the members thereof, whether explicitly or implicitly, by the Constitution,58 the rules of procedure of either chamber, statutory law, decisional law, or common law and59 the General Assembly expressly intends to preserve all such authority, immunity, privilege,60 and power. Nor is this Code section in any way intended to, or shall be interpreted as,61 abrogating, modifying, superseding, or in any limiting any investigations by, or powers of,62 any committees of the Senate or the House of Representatives that were authorized, or to63 any subpoenas issued by or other actions taken by any such comm ittee, prior to the64 effective date of this Code section."65 SECTION 2.66 This Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law67 without such approval.68 S. B. 255 - 3 - 25 LC 47 3681S SECTION 3.69 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.70 S. B. 255 - 4 - ## 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. Senate Bill 255 sets up a formal legal process for Georgia House and Senate committees to get subpoena power for investigations, letting them compel testimony and documents and keep some material confidential. ### Plain-language summary Georgia law already allows certain investigatory powers under a separate code section, but there was no clear, codified process for how House or Senate committees could be authorized to use them. This bill adds a new section, O.C.G.A. § 28-1-17, to Title 28 of the Georgia Code that spells out how a chamber, or both chambers jointly, can grant a committee the power to administer oaths, subpoena witnesses and documents, and take depositions during an investigation. The bill also lets a chamber's rules or resolution authorizing a committee include confidentiality protections for investigation materials, and it sets up a court process for enforcing subpoenas, including contempt proceedings for people who refuse to comply. It specifically preserves any existing authority or privilege the General Assembly already has and does not affect investigations or subpoenas already underway before the law takes effect. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it or it becomes law without his signature. ### What it does - Creates a new Georgia Code section (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-17) letting the Senate, House, or a joint committee be formally authorized through rules or resolution to use existing investigatory powers. - Gives an authorized committee the power to administer oaths, subpoena witnesses and records, and take depositions during an investigation. - Allows subpoenas issued under this process to be served anywhere in Georgia using the service methods already set out in Georgia's code (O.C.G.A. § 24-13-24). - Sets up a court enforcement process where a superior court can order a noncompliant witness to show cause and hold them in contempt for refusing a subpoena. - Allows confidentiality protections for investigation materials when a chamber's authorizing rules or resolution call for it, with court procedures to preserve that confidentiality. - Preserves all existing authority, immunity, privilege, or power the General Assembly or its committees already have, and protects investigations already underway. ### Who it affects This bill affects members and committees of the Georgia Senate and House of Representatives, witnesses or entities that might be subpoenaed in a legislative investigation, and Georgia's superior courts, which would handle enforcement of subpoenas and contempt proceedings under this process. ### Why it matters If a legislative committee needs to investigate something, this bill gives it a clear, legally defined path to compel testimony and documents and to keep some investigation materials confidential, while giving witnesses a court process to challenge a subpoena before facing contempt penalties. ### Key provisions - Subsection (a) lets a chamber, through rules or resolution, authorize a committee (or a joint committee via joint resolution) to use the investigatory powers in O.C.G.A. § 45-15-19. - Subsection (b) gives an authorized committee power to administer oaths, subpoena witnesses and records, and take depositions, with subpoenas served under existing service rules (O.C.G.A. § 24-13-24). - Subsection (c) allows confidentiality protection for investigation materials if the authorizing rules or resolution call for it. - Subsection (d) creates a superior court process for enforcing subpoenas, including contempt of court for refusal to comply, and special procedures to protect confidentiality of subpoena applications. - Subsection (e) preserves all existing legislative authority, immunity, privilege, or power and exempts investigations or subpoenas that began before the law's effective date. - Section 2 makes the law effective immediately upon the Governor's signature or upon becoming law without his signature. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-14) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-05-14 (2025-05-14) - Sponsors: Bill Cowsert, Rob Leverett - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70787 > The history, votes, and amendments (1,195 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb255.md?full=1