---
title: SR 925. Senate Study Committee on a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia; create
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/sr925
cite_as: SR 925, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr925
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr925.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr925/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73939
date: 2026-03-31
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.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 497
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr925.md?full=1
bill_number: SR 925
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: Senate
bill_type: resolution
status_date: 2026-03-31
last_action: Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute
sponsors:
  - Sonya Halpern
  - Nan Orrock
  - Kim Jackson
  - Tonya Anderson
  - Randal Mangham
  - RaShaun Kemp
  - Harold Jones
  - Sally Harrell
  - Bo Hatchett
  - Shawn Still
  - Matt Brass
  - Freddie Sims
  - Nikki Merritt
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SR925/2025
upstream_id: 2130714
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - African American history
  - museums
  - cultural heritage
  - Georgia Senate committees
  - education and culture
---

# SR 925. Senate Study Committee on a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia; create

## Text

Senate Resolution 925
By: Senators Halpern of the 39th, Orrock of the 36th, Jackson of the 41st, Anderson of the
43rd, Mangham of the 55th and others
ADOPTED SENATE
A RESOLUTION
Creating the Senate Study Committee on a Museum of African American History and
Culture of Georgia; and for other purposes.
WHEREAS, Georgia's African American heritage is a rich treasure that deserves to be
documented, preserved, cultivated, and promoted so that it may be discovered and explored
and serve as a point of cultural education on the significance of the African American
experience in this state; and
WHEREAS, Georgia would benefit from the creation of a clearinghouse and authenticator
for information and insights about African Americans in Georgia and the nation through
collaboration with other public, educational, corporate, and Georgia based institutions on
strategies for promoting African American history and culture; and
WHEREAS, Georgia would benefit from the discovery, identification, preservation,
collection, and cataloging of African American historical materials and artifacts and the
establishment and management of, and coordination with, museums and other appropriate
facilities for the promotion of African American history and culture to Georgians; and
WHEREAS, through the dissemination and integration of African American historical and
cultural materials into the mainstream of Georgia life and education, the State of Georgia
would have the opportunity to foster constructive social change through better racial
understanding.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE:
(1) Creation of Senate study committee. There is created the Senate Study Committee
on a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia.
(2) Members and officers. The committee shall be composed of five members of the
Senate to be appointed by the President of the Senate; such members shall include the
Senate Majority Leader, the Senate Minority Leader, and the chairperson of the Georgia
Legislative Black Caucus. The President shall designate a legislative member of the
committee as 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 and funding. 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. The allowances 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.
(6) Report.
(A) In the event the committee adopts any specific findings or recommendations that
include suggestions for proposed legislation, the chairperson 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 unless the same has been approved 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 chairperson of the committee and filed with
the Secretary of the Senate.
(D) In the absence of an approved report, the chairperson may file with the Secretary
of the Senate a copy 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 creates a five-member study committee to examine establishing a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia, with a report due before the committee disbands on December 1, 2026.

### Plain-language summary

This resolution sets up the Senate Study Committee on a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia. The committee will study how Georgia could document, preserve, and promote African American history and culture, including possibly creating a museum or clearinghouse for related materials and information.

The committee will have five senators appointed by the President of the Senate, including the Senate Majority Leader, the Senate Minority Leader, and the chairperson of the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus. The chairperson will call meetings and can recommend legislation based on the committee's findings. Legislative members get standard daily allowances (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8) for up to five meeting days, paid from Senate funds. The committee must file any approved report before it is abolished on December 1, 2026.

### What it does

- Creates the Senate Study Committee on a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia to study the topic and recommend action.
- Sets the committee's membership at five senators, naming the Senate Majority Leader, Minority Leader, and Georgia Legislative Black Caucus chairperson as required members.
- Directs the President of the Senate to appoint a chairperson from among the legislative members to call and run meetings.
- Authorizes legislative members to receive standard daily allowances for up to five meeting days, funded through the Senate's budget.
- Requires the chairperson to file an approved report or recommended legislation with the Secretary of the Senate before the committee disbands.
- Sets the committee's abolishment date as December 1, 2026.

### Who it affects

The resolution directly affects the five senators appointed to the committee, including Senate leadership and the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus chairperson. More broadly, it could affect Georgians interested in African American history, museums, educators, and cultural institutions if the committee's work leads to future legislation or a museum.

### Why it matters

The resolution does not create a museum itself but starts a formal legislative process to explore one. Any concrete change, such as funding or building a museum, would depend on future legislation the committee might recommend after its study concludes in late 2026.

### Key provisions

- Paragraph (1) formally creates the Senate Study Committee on a Museum of African American History and Culture of Georgia.
- Paragraph (2) sets membership at five senators appointed by the President of the Senate, including specific leadership roles, with a designated chairperson.
- Paragraph (3) charges the committee with studying the issues described in the resolution's preamble and recommending action or legislation.
- Paragraph (5) ties legislative member pay to O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8 and caps allowances at five days unless extended, funded from Senate appropriations.
- Paragraph (6) lays out reporting rules, requiring majority committee approval before any report is filed with the Secretary of the Senate.
- Paragraph (7) abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

## Status

- Status: Passed (2026-03-31)
- Last action: Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (2026-03-31)
- Sponsors: Sonya Halpern, Nan Orrock, Kim Jackson, Tonya Anderson, Randal Mangham, RaShaun Kemp, Harold Jones, Sally Harrell, Bo Hatchett, Shawn Still, Matt Brass, Freddie Sims, Nikki Merritt
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73939

> The history, votes, and amendments (497 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sr925.md?full=1