HR998: HR998 Adjournment; relative to

Each year the Georgia General Assembly must adopt a resolution fixing which days it will meet and when it will finally adjourn (called Sine Die). This resolution lays out that day-by-day schedule for the 2026 regular session, running from January 12, 2026 through April 2, 2026, and numbering each meeting as a legislative day, with some days marked as committee work days and one, March 6, marked as Crossover Day, the deadline by which bills typically must pass their originating chamber. The resolution also restates existing law (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-2) on how each chamber sets its own convening and adjourning times, and it sets rules for what happens if a manmade or natural emergency, disaster, or enemy attack makes it unsafe to meet at the State Capitol. In that case the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate can jointly move or reschedule sessions, including to a temporary location declared by the Governor.

• Sets the exact calendar of legislative days, committee work days, Crossover Day, and Sine Die adjournment for the 2026 regular session, from January 12 to April 2, 2026.
• Confirms that convening and adjourning times each legislative day are set by each chamber under existing law (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-2), unless this resolution says otherwise.
• Authorizes the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate to jointly suspend the set schedule and reconvene at a temporary location if the Governor declares an emergency seat of government under O.C.G.A. § 38-3-52.
• Authorizes the same two officers to jointly suspend and reschedule sessions at the Capitol itself if an emergency prevents meeting there but the Governor has not declared a temporary location.
• Requires prompt notice to all House and Senate members if the schedule is disrupted, and keeps each chamber in adjournment until the officers jointly set a new convening date.
• States that adopting this resolution counts as both chambers' consent for emergency relocation purposes under Article III, Section IV, Paragraph I(b) of the Georgia Constitution.

This resolution directly affects members of the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate, legislative staff, lobbyists, and anyone tracking bill deadlines, since it fixes the days lawmakers meet, the Crossover Day cutoff, and the final adjournment date for the 2026 session.

The schedule determines how much time bills have to move through committees and floor votes before Crossover Day and Sine Die, which shapes which bills realistically can pass in 2026. The emergency provisions also give legislative leaders a clear, pre-approved way to relocate or delay sessions if a disaster strikes.

• Part I sets a legislative day-by-day calendar from January 12, 2026 to April 2, 2026, identifying committee work days and marking March 6 as Crossover Day and April 2 as Sine Die (legislative day 40).
• Part I confirms that meeting hours follow O.C.G.A. § 28-1-2, with each chamber setting its own convening and adjourning times, and that each house stays adjourned between legislative days.
• Part II lets the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate jointly suspend the schedule and reconvene elsewhere if the Governor declares a temporary emergency seat of government under O.C.G.A. § 38-3-52.
• Part II lets the same two officers jointly suspend and reschedule sessions at the Capitol if an emergency prevents meeting there but no temporary location has been declared.
• Part II requires prompt notice to all members of any schedule disruption and keeps each chamber adjourned until a new date is jointly set, with a new schedule set later by joint resolution if needed.
• Part II states that adopting this resolution serves as both chambers' consent for emergency relocation under Article III, Section IV, Paragraph I(b) of the Georgia Constitution.

1. 2026-01-12Senate Transmitted House (Senate)
2. 2026-01-12Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
3. 2026-01-12House Immediately Transmitted to Senate (House)
4. 2026-01-12House Read and Adopted (House)
5. 2026-01-12House First Readers (House)
6. 2026-01-12House Hopper (House)

• Chuck Efstration (R, HD-104)Primary sponsor

1. PassedHouse voteJanuary 12, 2026

   148 yea, 27 nay (0 not voting, 1 absent)

   Adjournment: House Vote #455

2. PassedSenate voteJanuary 12, 2026

   51 yea, 0 nay (1 not voting, 3 absent)

   Adoption: Senate Vote #492

3. PassedSenate voteFebruary 26, 2026

   26 yea, 20 nay (3 not voting, 6 absent)

   Motion To Adjourn: Senate Vote #598

• legislative calendar
• General Assembly session schedule
• Crossover Day
• state government operations
• emergency continuity of government