SB 400: Education; unaccredited institutions from offering degrees; prohibit

Georgia currently regulates nonpublic postsecondary schools (private colleges, trade schools, and similar institutions) through the Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission, but the law does not stop an unaccredited school from awarding degrees. This bill changes that: it would make it illegal for a person or entity to grant or offer to grant a postsecondary degree unless the institution is accredited, or actively working toward accreditation, by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. It also defines 'distance education' for the first time and counts online instruction offered into or from Georgia as a regulated 'postsecondary activity.' The bill lets schools use an irrevocable letter of credit instead of a surety bond to meet financial guarantee requirements, spells out specific reasons the executive director must deny a school's application (such as past harm to students or willful noncompliance), and clarifies that the formal grievance and hearing process for denied applications does not cover denials of new course offerings. It also expands the schools required to hand over academic records if they close or are at risk of closing, and rewrites who must pay into and can be excused from the Tuition Guaranty Trust Fund, which reimburses students when a school shuts down owing them tuition.

• Makes it illegal to grant or offer a postsecondary degree unless the institution is accredited or actively pursuing accreditation by a federally recognized agency.
• Adds a legal definition of 'distance education' and classifies online instruction offered to Georgia residents, or offered from a Georgia-based operation, as a regulated postsecondary activity.
• Allows schools to post an irrevocable letter of credit from a bank or savings and loan instead of a surety bond to meet the state's financial guarantee requirement.
• Requires the executive director to deny an application to operate when the applicant meets specific listed factors, such as having previously caused financial harm to students or willfully violated the law.
• Clarifies that the formal appeal and hearing process for denied applications to operate does not apply when a school is denied permission to add new courses.
• Expands the academic-records handover requirement to cover degree-granting institutions that are otherwise exempt from the law, both when a school closes and when it is at risk of closing.

Nonpublic postsecondary schools operating in Georgia, including unaccredited degree-granting institutions, online and distance-education providers reaching Georgia students, the Nonpublic Postsecondary Education Commission and its executive director, the Tuition Guaranty Trust Fund's board of trustees, and students enrolled at these schools who rely on tuition refund protections if a school closes.

Students considering a private college or trade school would gain a legal guarantee that any degree-granting school is accredited or working toward it, reducing the risk of paying for a worthless credential. Schools face new bonding options and stricter, more defined grounds for having applications denied, while more institutions would be pulled into the fund that reimburses students if a school abruptly shuts down.

• Section 1 adds a definition of 'distance education' and expands 'postsecondary activity' to include distance education offered to Georgia residents or from a Georgia-based operation.
• Section 2 makes it a prohibited act to grant or offer postsecondary degrees without being accredited or in the process of becoming accredited by a U.S. Department of Education recognized agency.
• Section 3 authorizes the commission to let schools use an irrevocable letter of credit instead of a surety bond.
• Section 4 requires the executive director to deny an application when the applicant meets one or more listed risk factors, such as prior harm to students or willful noncompliance with the law.
• Section 5 states that the hearing and review process for denied operating authorizations does not apply to denials of additional course offerings.
• Section 6 expands who must turn over academic records upon closing or risk of closing to include certain exempt degree-granting institutions, and lets the executive director request records proactively if a school is at risk of closing.
• Section 7 restructures Tuition Guaranty Trust Fund participation, including a 5 percent-of-fund-balance cap on fees collected from any one school and new options to use a bond or letter of credit instead of paying annual fees.

1. 2026-03-31House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)
2. 2026-03-31House Third Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-19House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
4. 2026-02-17House Second Readers (House)
5. 2026-02-12House First Readers (House)
6. 2026-02-11Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
7. 2026-02-11Senate Third Read (Senate)
8. 2026-02-05Senate Read Second Time (Senate)

• Max Burns (R, SD-023)Primary sponsor
• Billy Hickman (R, SD-004)
• Chuck Hufstetler (R, SD-052)
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)
• Clint Dixon (R, SD-045)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)
• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)
• Marty Harbin (R, SD-016)
• Russ Goodman (R, SD-008)
• Steve Gooch (R, SD-051)
• Brian Strickland (R, SD-042)
• Charles Martin (R, HD-049)

1. PassedSenate voteFebruary 11, 2026

   48 yea, 1 nay (1 not voting, 4 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #539

2. PassedHouse voteMarch 31, 2026

   168 yea, 1 nay (1 not voting, 6 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #808

• higher education
• degree accreditation
• school closures
• tuition protection
• distance learning