--- title: SR 104. Georgia Hearing Day; recognize February 10, 2025 collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr104 cite_as: SR 104, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr104 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr104.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr104/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69817 date: 2025-02-04 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13 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/sr103.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr105.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 94 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr104.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 104 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2025-02-04 last_action: Senate Read and Adopted sponsors: - Carden Summers - John Kennedy - Jason Anavitarte - Ed Harbison - Larry Walker - Marty Harbin - Billy Hickman - David Lucas - Ricky Williams - Lee Anderson - Freddie Sims - Derek Mallow - Sam Watson - Nan Orrock - Sally Harrell - Kenya Wicks - Nikki Merritt text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR104/2025 upstream_id: 1953011 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - hearing loss - public health awareness - Georgia Senate resolutions - audiology --- # SR 104. Georgia Hearing Day; recognize February 10, 2025 ## Text Senate Resolution 104 By: Senators Summers of the 13th, Kennedy of the 18th, Anavitarte of the 31st, Harbison of the 15th, Walker III of the 20th and others A RESOLUTION Recognizing February 10, 2025, as Georgia Hearing Day at the state capitol; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, hearing plays a critical role in communication and personal relationships, overall health outcomes, psychological well-being, and safety; and WHEREAS, hearing loss has been tied to cognitive decline, dementia, falls, depression, and isolation. It can be a symptom of an underlying medical condition, including, but not limited to, infections, tumors, otosclerosis, and Meniere's disease and is typically irreversible; and WHEREAS, a study conducted by the Better Hearing Institute concluded that untreated hearing loss has significant income ramifications, including negatively impacting household income by up to $12,000 annually and costing $122 billion in lost earning in the United States; and WHEREAS, noise-induced hearing loss is a preventable and significant, through often unrecognized, health problem among United States adults, and is a growing problem with adolescents due to overamplification of personal listening devices; and WHEREAS, according to the National Institutes of Deafness and Other Communications Disorders (NIDCD), more than 37 million American adults (15 percent) report some trouble hearing, and approximately 28.2 million American adults could benefit from using hearing aids; and WHEREAS, according to the NIDCD, fewer than 30 percent of adults aged 70 and older and 16 percent of adults aged 20 to 69 who experience hearing loss and who could benefit from hearing aids have ever used them; and WHEREAS, the Georgia Society of Hearing Professionals, a chapter of the International Hearing Society, is composed of hearing health care professionals, including hearing aid specialists and audiologists, who are trained and specialize in the identification and assessment of hearing loss, rehabilitation through the use of hearing aids and related devices, and counseling; and WHEREAS, Georgia Hearing Day, founded by the Georgia Society of Hearing Professionals, aims to raise awareness of how to prevent deafness and hearing loss and to promote ear and hearing care across the world. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body recognize February 10, 2025, as Georgia Hearing Day at the state capitol to encourage the citizens of Georgia to protect their hearing and seek the services of a licensed hearing health care professional, such as a hearing aid specialist, audiologist, or otolaryngologist, for regular hearing checks. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to the public and press. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia Senate resolution recognizes February 10, 2025, as Georgia Hearing Day at the state capitol, encouraging Georgians to protect their hearing and get regular checkups. ### Plain-language summary This is a ceremonial resolution from the Georgia Senate, not a change to state law. It designates February 10, 2025, as Georgia Hearing Day at the state capitol, an observance started by the Georgia Society of Hearing Professionals to raise awareness about hearing loss and hearing care. The resolution cites statistics on hearing loss, including its links to cognitive decline, dementia, and depression, and its financial costs to affected households and the broader economy. It encourages Georgia residents to protect their hearing and to seek regular checkups from licensed hearing health professionals such as audiologists, hearing aid specialists, or otolaryngologists. It also directs the Secretary of the Senate to distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. ### What it does - Formally designates February 10, 2025, as Georgia Hearing Day at the state capitol. - Encourages Georgia residents to seek regular hearing checks from licensed hearing health professionals. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press. - Does not create any new law, funding, or requirement; it is a symbolic statement by the Senate. ### Who it affects The resolution primarily addresses Georgia residents generally, encouraging them to seek hearing care, and it recognizes hearing health professionals such as audiologists, hearing aid specialists, and otolaryngologists represented by the Georgia Society of Hearing Professionals. ### Why it matters While the resolution carries no legal force or funding, it gives official Senate recognition to hearing health awareness efforts, which advocates can use to draw public attention to the risks and costs of untreated hearing loss and to encourage Georgians to get their hearing checked. ### Key provisions - The resolving clause recognizes February 10, 2025, as Georgia Hearing Day at the state capitol. - It encourages citizens to protect their hearing and seek services from a licensed hearing health care professional, such as a hearing aid specialist, audiologist, or otolaryngologist. - A final clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to make copies of the resolution available to the public and press. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-02-04) - Last action: Senate Read and Adopted (2025-02-04) - Sponsors: Carden Summers, John Kennedy, Jason Anavitarte, Ed Harbison, Larry Walker, Marty Harbin, Billy Hickman, David Lucas, Ricky Williams, Lee Anderson, Freddie Sims, Derek Mallow, Sam Watson, Nan Orrock, Sally Harrell, Kenya Wicks, Nikki Merritt - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69817 > The history, votes, and amendments (94 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr104.md?full=1