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Senate · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session

SB 452: Retirement and Pension; maximum employer contribution to a 401(k) for certain state law enforcement officers; increase

Last action July 1, 2026 · Effective Date

Senate Bill 452 would boost how much state agencies contribute to certain law enforcement officers' 401(k) retirement accounts, raising the maximum employer match for these officers above what other state employees receive.

Read the full bill text

These buttons carry the bill's own text, not the summaries below. Copy for LLM, View as markdown, and Send to AI use the Markdown version: the text as filed, then the summaries under a heading that names them as ours. View raw is the text alone.

The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Enrolled version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.

In plain language

Georgia already lets state employees enroll in a 401(k) style retirement savings plan under O.C.G.A. § 47-2-357, with the state matching a portion of what employees contribute. Currently, after five years of service, the state can add an extra 0.5 percent match for each year of service beyond five, capped at a 9 percent total employer contribution. This bill creates a new category called 'state law enforcement officer,' covering peace officers employed by the Department of Community Supervision and certain sworn officers certified by the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council. For these officers, starting July 1, 2026, the extra match for years of service beyond five rises to 2 percent per year, and the total employer contribution cap rises to 15 percent of the officer's pay, as long as the officer contributes at least 5 percent of their own salary. The law would take effect July 1, 2026.

What the bill does

  • Creates a new legal definition of 'state law enforcement officer' covering certain peace officers at the Department of Community Supervision and other certified sworn officers.
  • Raises the extra employer 401(k) match for these officers from 0.5 percent to 2 percent of pay for each year of creditable service beyond five years.
  • Increases the overall cap on employer 401(k) contributions for these officers from 9 percent to 15 percent of compensation.
  • Keeps the existing 9 percent employer contribution cap and 0.5 percent per-year match in place for all other state employees covered by the plan.
  • Sets the effective date for these changes as July 1, 2026.

Who it affects

The bill affects state law enforcement officers, specifically peace officers employed by the Department of Community Supervision and sworn officers certified by the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council, along with the state agencies that employ them and administer their 401(k) retirement contributions.

Why it matters

Qualifying officers with more than five years of service who contribute at least 5 percent of their pay would see significantly larger state contributions to their retirement savings, up to 15 percent of their salary instead of 9 percent, changing the long-term value of their retirement benefits compared with other state employees.

Key provisions

  • Section 1 adds a new definition of 'state law enforcement officer' to O.C.G.A. § 47-2-357, covering Department of Community Supervision peace officers and certain certified sworn officers.
  • Section 1 keeps the base employer match of up to 5 percent for any employee who contributes an equal share of salary into the 401(k) account.
  • Section 1 changes the additional service-based match for non-law-enforcement members starting July 1, 2026, but keeps the rate at 0.5 percent per year over five years and the 9 percent overall cap.
  • Section 1 adds a new paragraph (3) giving state law enforcement officers a 2 percent additional match per year of service beyond five years, capped at a 15 percent total employer contribution.
  • Section 2 sets the effective date of the Act as July 1, 2026.
  • Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

From the bill

“'State law enforcement officer' means: (A) A peace officer, as such term is defined in Code Section 35-8-2, employed by the Department of Community Supervision; or (B) A sworn law enforcement officer certified by the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council”

This is the bill's new definition of which officers qualify for the higher retirement match.

“such member's employer shall contribute an additional amount equal to 2 percent of the member's compensation for each year of such member's creditable service that exceeds five years; provided, however, that the total rate of any employer's contribution pursuant to this subsection shall not exceed 15 percent of the member's compensation.”

This sets the new, higher 401(k) match rate and cap for qualifying state law enforcement officers.

Discussed in meetings (12)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

  1. Senate Retirement Committee, February 10, 2026

    From 0:19:01 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: A committee member began presenting SB 452 before the sponsor arrived. The sponsor said it would raise the maximum state 401(k) contribution for eligible law enforcement officers from 9% to 15%, reached after 10 years of service, three years earlier than the current maximum. The sponsor said officers would contribute 5% to receive the maximum and described the change as a recruitment and retention measure that would limit long-term financial risk. The sponsor said Georgia ranked 49th in retirement pay and cited a 2023 State Patrol survey in which 41% of troopers would leave for a better retirement plan and 63% considered their retirement benefits very inadequate. Asked how many officers had left for federal jobs, the sponsor said those figures were unavailable and offered to seek them. After initially describing the pre-2009 pension as eliminated, the sponsor clarified that a pension remained, believed to provide 1.25% per year of service. The chair and another member raised concerns about retirees going years without cost-of-living increases. A supporting member said retaining officers could reduce hiring and training costs. The committee unanimously approved a do-pass motion by voice vote.

  2. Senate Rules Committee, February 12, 2026

    From 0:11:36 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor described SB 452 as a governor-backed proposal to increase the state’s matching contributions to state law enforcement officers’ retirement accounts to as much as 15%. A committee member asked whether it would cover every state-employed certified peace officer, including officers outside the Georgia State Patrol, such as those in the Department of Agriculture. The sponsor said the bill referred to state law enforcement officers but could not confirm whether all those peace officers qualified and offered to find out. Later, the committee unanimously selected the bill for the Senate calendar along with two other proposals.

  3. Senate floor session, February 17, 2026 (legislative day 19)

    From 2:32:13 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (Senate Third Read)

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor presented SB 452 as an administration proposal to improve recruitment and retention by increasing the state's matching retirement contributions for certified, sworn state law enforcement officers in the Georgia State Employees' Pension and Savings Plan. The sponsor said the proposal would accelerate annual increases in the employer match to as much as 2 percentage points, reaching a 15% cap after ten years of service, compared with 7.5% in year ten under the current plan. The sponsor said Georgia ranked 49th nationally in state law enforcement retirement benefits. No senators asked questions or spoke against the measure. The Senate passed it 49 to 0.

  4. House Retirement Committee, March 17, 2026

    From 0:04:53 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the bill would increase the state’s maximum 401(k) contribution for certain state peace officers to 15%, with an officer contributing 5%. Presenting the proposal on behalf of the governor, the sponsor said Georgia ranked 49th nationally for peace officer retirement benefits and that better benefits would help recruitment and retention. The chair clarified that the proposal would enhance a defined-contribution savings plan rather than establish a defined-benefit pension. A committee member asked how the contribution would increase with service. The sponsor explained that officers would receive a 5% match after five years, followed by increases of two percentage points per year, subject to the 15% maximum. The committee approved the bill by voice vote, with no opposition heard.

  5. House Rules Committee, March 19, 2026

    From 0:55:52 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor described the bill as a governor's proposal to increase the retirement contribution match for state peace officers. The sponsor said the match would rise to 15 percent when an officer contributes 5 percent after 10 years. There were no questions. The committee later placed the bill on the Legislative Day 34 calendar without voiced opposition.

  6. House floor session, March 19, 2026 (legislative day 34)

    From 2:11:09 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2877

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The House sponsor said SB 452 would increase state 401(k) matching contributions for eligible law-enforcement officers to as much as 15%, beginning in the tenth year of service. The sponsor said it covered POST-certified officers and Department of Community Supervision officers and would cost about $5.5 million annually. Citing recruitment and retention concerns, the sponsor said Georgia ranked near the bottom nationally for state law-enforcement retirement pay and had fewer troopers several years ago than in 1996. One member asked why the increase did not extend to all public employees. The sponsor called the proposal a measured response to law-enforcement needs. Another member asked about an earlier increase for all state employees, which the sponsor confirmed. The sponsor said individual-account retirement plans offered flexibility and lower long-term state costs. A second speaker supported the bill, saying this approach could take effect without waiting for an actuarial review and would give officers control over their retirement accounts. The House passed the bill, 163 to 0.

Status timeline

  1. 2026-07-01Effective Date
  2. 2026-05-06Act 414
  3. 2026-05-06Senate Date Signed by Governor (Senate)
  4. 2026-04-10Senate Sent to Governor (Senate)
  5. 2026-03-19House Passed/Adopted (House)
  6. 2026-03-19House Third Readers (House)
  7. 2026-03-18House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
  8. 2026-02-19House Second Readers (House)
Show full history (15 actions)
  1. 2026-02-18House First Readers (House)
  2. 2026-02-17Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
  3. 2026-02-17Senate Third Read (Senate)
  4. 2026-02-12Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
  5. 2026-02-11Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
  6. 2026-02-03Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
  7. 2026-02-02Senate Hopper (Senate)

Sponsors

  • Bo Hatchett (R, SD-50)Primary sponsor
  • Randy Robertson (R, SD-29)
  • Brian Strickland (R, SD-42)
  • Blake Tillery (R, SD-19)
  • John Albers (R, SD-56)
  • Steve Gooch (R, SD-51)
  • Jason Anavitarte (R, SD-31)
  • Matt Brass (R, SD-6)
  • Timothy Bearden (R, SD-30)
  • Russ Goodman (R, SD-8)
  • Ben Watson (R, SD-1)
  • Billy Hickman (R, SD-4)
  • Mike Hodges (R, SD-3)
  • Jason T. Dickerson (R, SD-21)
  • Max Burns (R, SD-23)
  • Chuck Payne (R, SD-54)
  • Drew Echols (R, SD-49)
  • Chuck Hufstetler (R, SD-52)
  • Greg Dolezal (R, SD-27)
  • Lee Anderson (R, SD-24)
  • Kay Kirkpatrick (R, SD-32)
  • Shawn Still (R, SD-48)
  • Frank Ginn (R, SD-47)
  • Clint Dixon (R, SD-45)
  • Larry Walker, III (R, SD-20)
  • Bill Cowsert (R, SD-46)
  • Ed Setzler (R, SD-37)
  • Marty Harbin (R, SD-16)
  • Sam Watson (R, SD-11)
  • Rick Williams (R, SD-25)
  • Carden Summers (R, SD-13)
  • John Carson (R, HD-46)

Votes

  1. PassedSenate voteFebruary 17, 2026

    49 yea, 0 nay (2 not voting, 3 excused)

    PASSAGE: Senate Vote #549

  2. PassedHouse voteMarch 19, 2026

    163 yea, 0 nay (4 not voting, 9 excused)

    PASSAGE: House Vote #730

Topics

  • state employee retirement
  • 401(k) contributions
  • law enforcement benefits
  • public pensions
  • Department of Community Supervision

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