--- title: SR 854. Pippin, Kay; recognize collection: bills id: 2025-2026/sr854 cite_as: SR 854, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr854 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr854.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr854/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73620 date: 2026-02-26 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/sr853.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr855.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 94 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr854.md?full=1 bill_number: SR 854 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: Senate bill_type: resolution status_date: 2026-02-26 last_action: Senate Read and Adopted sponsors: - Ricky Williams - Randy Robertson - John Albers - Shawn Still - Russ Goodman - Max Burns - Bo Hatchett - Chuck Hufstetler - Steven McNeel - Chuck Payne - Bill Cowsert - Mike Hodges - Marty Harbin - Timothy Bearden - Jason T. Dickerson - Sam Watson - Brian Strickland - Lee Anderson text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR854/2025 upstream_id: 2124830 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - Georgia Senate resolution - civic recognition - Jackson Georgia - local government leaders --- # SR 854. Pippin, Kay; recognize ## Text Senate Resolution 854 By: Senators Williams of the 25th, Robertson of the 29th, Albers of the 56th, Still of the 48th, Goodman of the 8th and others A RESOLUTION Recognizing and commending Kay Pippin; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, in 2013, Kay Pippin was the first woman to seek the mayor's seat in the 200 year history of the city of Jackson, Georgia; and WHEREAS, during her tenure as mayor, she installed over four miles of new water and sewer lines, installed new water infrastructure leading to the industrial park, paved numerous streets, installed new LED street lamps, landscaped the town square, built an 11 mile mountain biking and hiking trail connecting the downtown to Indian Springs State Park, removed over 160 blighted properties, and purchased a number of new police and public works vehicles including a new, state-of-the art fire truck; and WHEREAS, she also secured green spaces for pocket parks and planted multiple trees, ensured employees received annual salary increases and improved benefits each year the mayor was in office, continued the city's history of no city property taxes, secured the city's first ever state and federal grants totaling $8 million, and successfully managed 8 city services including 24/7 police, fire, city court, roads and streets, water and sewer, as well as delivery of electricity to over 5,000 customers; and WHEREAS, prior to her election, she served nine years (1985-1994) on the Butts County Board of Education and had an extensive career with the Georgia Association of Educators where she served in many capacities including Director of Government Relations and Chief Lobbyist; and WHEREAS, she served as a lobbyist in 24 sessions of the Georgia General Assembly and coordinated the political involvement of over 40,000 school employees during her career; and WHEREAS, after her 1998 retirement from the Georgia Association of Educators, Kay Pippin served as the President/CEO of the Henry County Chamber of Commerce in McDonough, Georgia, from 2002 to 2013; and WHEREAS, under her leadership, the Chamber became a powerful voice and partner on important public policy issues, including improving academic success of the public school system, securing a technical college, building one of Georgia's first academies for advanced studies, securing a new exit on I-75, and conducting annual planning retreats involving 80 leaders of county and city governments; and WHEREAS, it is abundantly fitting and proper that the outstanding accomplishments of this remarkable and distinguished Georgian be appropriately recognized. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE that the members of this body recognize and commend Kay Pippin for her efficient, effective, unselfish, and dedicated public service to the City of Jackson, Henry County, Butts County, and the State of Georgia and extend the most sincere best wishes for continued health and happiness. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate is authorized and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to Kay Pippin. ## 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 and commends Kay Pippin, former mayor of Jackson, for her decades of public service in Butts and Henry counties. ### Plain-language summary This resolution is a ceremonial honor from the Georgia Senate rather than a change to state law. It recognizes Kay Pippin, who in 2013 became the first woman to seek the mayor's office in the city of Jackson's 200 year history, for a range of accomplishments during her tenure, including new water and sewer infrastructure, street paving, a hiking and biking trail, blight removal, and securing the city's first state and federal grants. The resolution also recounts her earlier career, including nine years on the Butts County Board of Education, decades as a lobbyist and government relations official for the Georgia Association of Educators, and her later role leading the Henry County Chamber of Commerce. The Senate directs that a copy of the resolution be given to Pippin as a keepsake. ### What it does - Formally recognizes and commends Kay Pippin for her public service to the City of Jackson, Henry County, Butts County, and Georgia. - Directs the Secretary of the Senate to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to Kay Pippin. - Creates no new law, funding, or regulatory requirement; it is a ceremonial statement by the Senate. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names Kay Pippin, the honoree, and references the City of Jackson, Henry County, Butts County, the Georgia Association of Educators, and the Henry County Chamber of Commerce as places and organizations tied to her career. ### Why it matters The resolution has no legal or regulatory effect on Georgians; it is a public expression of appreciation. Its main real-world consequence is a formal record of recognition and a keepsake copy delivered to Pippin. ### Key provisions - The resolution's whereas clauses detail Pippin's tenure as Jackson's first female mayoral candidate and her infrastructure, budget, and service accomplishments in office. - The resolved clause has the Senate formally recognize and commend Pippin for her service to Jackson, Henry County, Butts County, and Georgia. - A further resolved clause directs the Secretary of the Senate to make a copy available for distribution to Pippin. ## Status - Status: Passed (2026-02-26) - Last action: Senate Read and Adopted (2026-02-26) - Sponsors: Ricky Williams, Randy Robertson, John Albers, Shawn Still, Russ Goodman, Max Burns, Bo Hatchett, Chuck Hufstetler, Steven McNeel, Chuck Payne, Bill Cowsert, Mike Hodges, Marty Harbin, Timothy Bearden, Jason T. Dickerson, Sam Watson, Brian Strickland, Lee Anderson - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73620 > The history, votes, and amendments (94 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr854.md?full=1