HB987: HB987 Voluntary Portable Benefit Plan Act; enact

Independent contractors in Georgia, such as gig workers or freelancers, typically do not get employer-sponsored benefits like health insurance or retirement plans because they are not classified as employees. This bill creates a new legal framework, called the Voluntary Portable Benefit Plan Act, that allows any person or company to voluntarily put money into a 'portable benefit account' owned by an independent contractor. That account can be used to pay for benefit plans covering health insurance, unemployment insurance, disability insurance, life insurance, or retirement. The bill sets rules for how these contributions can work, including allowing them to come from money withheld out of the contractor's pay, but only if the contractor agrees in writing and can opt in or out at any time. Importantly, the bill states that making these voluntary contributions does not make the paying business an 'employer' or turn the contractor's work into 'employment' under Georgia's employment security law (O.C.G.A. Chapter 8 of Title 34). The bill repeals conflicting laws and adds this new framework to the Code.

• Creates a new legal definition and framework for 'portable benefit accounts' that independent contractors own and control to pay for benefits like health insurance or retirement.
• Allows any person or business, including app-based companies, to voluntarily contribute money into an independent contractor's portable benefit account.
• Permits those contributions to be withheld directly from a contractor's pay, but only with a clear written agreement and the contractor's voluntary opt-in.
• Requires that contractors be allowed to opt out of the withholding arrangement at any time.
• States that making these voluntary contributions does not make the paying business an employer or make the contractor's work count as employment under Georgia law.

Independent contractors and gig workers in Georgia, including those working through app-based platforms, along with the businesses or individuals who hire them, banks and financial institutions that might administer these accounts, and investment management firms offering portable benefit account services.

Independent contractors currently often lack access to employer-provided benefits. This bill would let companies fund benefit accounts for them without risk of being reclassified as an employer, potentially opening a path to health, retirement, or disability coverage for gig workers while preserving their independent contractor status.

• Section 1 names the bill the 'Voluntary Portable Benefit Plan Act.'
• Section 2 adds new Code Section 34-8-43.1 defining 'hiring party,' 'independent contractor,' 'portable benefit account,' 'portable benefit account provider,' and 'portable benefit plan.'
• Subsection (b) allows any person or entity, including internet or app-based companies, to voluntarily contribute to an independent contractor's portable benefit account.
• Subsection (c) allows contributions to come from withheld compensation only if there is a clear written agreement, the withholding is opt-in, and the contractor can opt out at any time.
• Subsection (d) specifies that these voluntary contributions do not classify the contributing business as an 'employer' or the contractor's work as 'employment' under existing law (O.C.G.A. §§ 34-8-33 and 34-8-35).
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-05-11Effective Date 2026-07-01
2. 2026-05-11Act 466
3. 2026-05-11House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-20Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-03-20Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2026-03-19Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
8. 2026-03-18Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)

• Todd Jones (R, HD-025)Primary sponsor
• Brad Thomas (R, HD-021)
• Victor Anderson (R, HD-010)
• Mike Cameron (R, HD-001)
• Carter Barrett (R, HD-024)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)

1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 17, 2026

   108 yea, 52 nay (5 not voting, 10 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #521

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 20, 2026

   44 yea, 1 nay (3 not voting, 6 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #773

• gig workers
• independent contractors
• employee benefits
• health insurance
• employment law