---
title: SR 1049. Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier; create
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/sr1049
cite_as: SR 1049, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr1049
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr1049.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr1049/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74503
date: 2026-03-27
status: introduced
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.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 95
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr1049.md?full=1
bill_number: SR 1049
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: Senate
bill_type: resolution
status_date: 2026-03-25
last_action: Senate Read and Referred
sponsors:
  - Shawn Still
  - Drew Echols
  - Greg Dolezal
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR1049/2025
upstream_id: 2138473
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - Lake Lanier
  - water rights
  - state government studies
  - natural resources management
  - interstate water disputes
---

# SR 1049. Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier; create

## Text

Senate Resolution 1049
By: Senators Still of the 48th, Echols of the 49th and Dolezal of the 27th
A RESOLUTION
Creating a Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier; and for
other purposes.
WHEREAS, at present Lake Lanier is entirely owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps.
of Engineers; and
WHEREAS, greater ownership and control over Lake Lanier and its management would
provide numerous benefits to the residents of this state; and
WHEREAS, such benefits would include enhanced long-term water security for more than
3.5 million Georgia residents; and
WHEREAS, such ownership and control would enhance the ability of the state to make
long-term water storage and planning decisions, mitigating impacts from potential future
disputes with Alabama and Florida; and
WHEREAS, such benefits would include allowing local partners to be able to use collected
fees across multiple parks, rather than being limited to the site where the funds were
collected, helping keep sites open and safe; and
WHEREAS, the proactive increased management of water quality could reduce the cost of
treating drinking water for the metro Atlanta area; and
WHEREAS, the future of the approximately $5 billion annual economic impact associated
with the lake's recreational use, real estate, and associated businesses is crucial for the state;
and
WHEREAS, a study is needed to evaluate ways in which the state could procure and benefit
from various degrees of ownership and management of Lake Lanier, improve efficiency,
create more flexible management solutions, and enhance greater local benefits.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF
GEORGIA:
(1) Creation of Senate study committee. There is created the Senate Study Committee
on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier.
(2) Members and officers.
(A) The committee shall be composed of seven members all of whom shall be
appointed by the President of the Senate as follows:
(i) The chairperson of the Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee or
other member of such committee;
(ii) The chairperson of the Senate Public Safety Committee or other such member of
such committee;
(iii) The chairperson of the Senate State Institutions and Property Committee
(iv) Two additional members of the Senate; and
(v) One member who is employed by the Department of Natural Resources;
(vi) One member of the public.
The President of the Senate shall appoint the chairperson of the committee;
(3) Powers and duties. The committee shall undertake a study of the conditions, needs,
issues, and problems mentioned above or related thereto and recommend any action or
legislation which the committee deems necessary or appropriate.
(4) Meetings. The chairperson shall call all meetings of the committee. The committee
may conduct such meetings at such places and at such times as it may deem necessary or
convenient to enable it to exercise fully and effectively its powers, perform its duties, and
accomplish the objectives and purposes of this resolution.
(5) Allowances, expenses, and funding.
(A) The legislative members of the committee shall receive the allowances provided
for in Code Section 28-1-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.
(B) Members of the committee who are state officials, other than legislative members,
or state employees shall receive no compensation for their services on the committee,
but they may be reimbursed for expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as
members of the committee in the same manner as they are reimbursed for expenses in
their capacities as state officials or employees.
(C) Members of the committee who are not legislators, state officials, or state
employees shall receive a daily expense allowance in an amount the same as that
specified in subsection (b) of Code Section 45-7-21 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, as well as the mileage or transportation allowance authorized for state
employees.
(D) The allowances and expenses authorized by this resolution shall not be received by
any member of the committee for more than five days unless additional days are
authorized. Funds necessary to carry out the provisions of this resolution shall come
from funds appropriated to the Senate; except that funds for the reimbursement of the
expenses of state officials, other than legislative members, and state employees shall
come from funds appropriated to or otherwise available to their respective agencies.
(6) Report.
(A) In the event the committee adopts any specific findings or recommendations that
include suggestions for proposed legislation, the chairpersons shall file a report of the
same prior to the date of abolishment specified in this resolution, subject to
subparagraph (C) of this paragraph.
(B) In the event the committee adopts a report that does not include suggestions for
proposed legislation, the chairperson shall file the report, subject to subparagraph (C)
of this paragraph.
(C) No report shall be filed without approval prior to the date of abolishment specified
in this resolution by majority vote of a quorum of the committee. A report so approved
shall be signed by the chairpersons of the committee and filed with the Secretary of the
Senate.
(D) In the absence of an approved report, the chairpersons may file with the Secretary
of the Senate copies of the minutes of the meetings of the committee in lieu thereof.
(7) Abolishment. The committee shall stand abolished on December 1, 2026.

## 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 would create a study committee to examine whether the state should acquire or take a greater management role over Lake Lanier, which is currently owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

### Plain-language summary

Lake Lanier is currently owned and operated entirely by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This resolution creates the Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier to look at whether Georgia could gain some form of ownership or management control over the lake, which supplies water to more than 3.5 million residents and supports about $5 billion a year in economic activity tied to recreation, real estate, and local businesses.
The seven-member committee, appointed by the President of the Senate, would include Senate committee chairs, additional senators, a Department of Natural Resources employee, and a member of the public. It can hold meetings, study issues like water security, water quality, and disputes with Alabama and Florida over shared water resources, and recommend legislation. Legislative members get standard travel and expense allowances, and any report must be approved and filed before the committee is abolished on December 1, 2026.

### What it does

- Creates the Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier to study state ownership and management options for the lake.
- Sets committee membership at seven people, including Senate committee chairs, two additional senators, a Department of Natural Resources employee, and a public member, all appointed by the President of the Senate.
- Authorizes the committee to hold meetings, study related issues, and recommend legislation or other action.
- Sets standard legislative expense allowances for senator members and daily expense allowances for non-legislator members under existing Georgia law (O.C.G.A. §§ 28-1-8 and 45-7-21).
- Requires any committee report with legislative recommendations to be approved by majority vote and filed with the Secretary of the Senate before the committee ends.
- Abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

### Who it affects

Georgia senators appointed to the committee, the Department of Natural Resources, residents of metro Atlanta and other areas who rely on Lake Lanier for drinking water, and businesses and property owners connected to the lake's recreation and real estate economy.

### Why it matters

If lawmakers eventually acted on the committee's findings, it could reshape who controls Lake Lanier's water storage, fees, and management, affecting drinking water costs, park operations, and Georgia's position in long-running water disputes with Alabama and Florida. For now, the resolution only sets up a study, not any actual change in ownership.

### Key provisions

- Paragraph (1) creates the Senate Study Committee on Acquiring and Management of Lake Lanier.
- Paragraph (2) sets the committee's seven-member composition and gives the President of the Senate appointment and chairperson-selection authority.
- Paragraph (3) directs the committee to study conditions and issues related to Lake Lanier ownership and management and recommend legislation as needed.
- Paragraph (5) sets member compensation and expense reimbursement rules, capping allowances at five days unless additional days are authorized.
- Paragraph (6) requires a majority-vote-approved report to be filed with the Secretary of the Senate before the committee's abolishment, or meeting minutes if no report is approved.
- Paragraph (7) abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2026-03-25)
- Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2026-03-27)
- Sponsors: Shawn Still, Drew Echols, Greg Dolezal
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74503

> The history, votes, and amendments (95 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr1049.md?full=1