HB1066: HB1066 Nuisances; immunity from public and private nuisance claims; provide

Under current Georgia law, property owners near a business or facility can sometimes sue over noise, dust, traffic, or other disturbances by claiming the facility is a legal nuisance. This bill adds a new section to Georgia's nuisance law (O.C.G.A. Title 41, Chapter 1) that protects racing facilities, defined broadly to include tracks, pits, garages, and related grounds used for organized motor vehicle racing, from these lawsuits. A property owner cannot sue over nuisance claims tied to racing operations if the racing facility was already built before the owner bought the property or built new construction nearby, within a set distance (five miles in rural counties, three miles elsewhere). The bill also says a racing facility that has operated for at least a year cannot become a nuisance simply because conditions around it changed. However, the immunity does not cover claims based on a material change to the facility's historic racing operations. The law would take effect July 1, 2026, and apply to nuisance lawsuits filed on or after that date.

• Creates a new Georgia Code section (O.C.G.A. § 41-1-11) giving racing facilities immunity from public and private nuisance lawsuits tied to racing operations.
• Bars nuisance claims from property owners who bought or built near a racing facility after it already existed, within a five-mile radius in rural counties or three miles elsewhere.
• Protects racing facilities that have operated for at least one year from being declared a nuisance solely because surrounding conditions changed.
• Carves out an exception allowing nuisance claims when a facility makes a material change to its historic racing operations.
• Sets an effective date of July 1, 2026, applying only to nuisance lawsuits filed on or after that date.

Owners and operators of motor racing facilities such as race tracks, along with nearby property owners, homeowners, and future buyers of land near tracks, especially in rural counties with populations under 50,000 according to the 2020 census.

Georgians who live or plan to buy property near a racing facility would lose the ability to sue over noise, dust, traffic, lighting, or fumes from normal racing activity, while track owners and operators would gain stronger legal protection against nuisance lawsuits tied to their operations.

• Section 1 adds O.C.G.A. § 41-1-11, defining 'area of the racing facility,' 'racing facility,' 'racing operations,' and 'rural county' for purposes of the immunity.
• Subsection (b) bars nuisance claims by property owners who purchased or built new construction near a racing facility after it was already built.
• Subsection (c) protects racing facilities operating at least one year from becoming a nuisance solely due to changed conditions around the facility.
• Subsection (d) states the immunity does not apply to claims based solely on a material change to a facility's historic racing operations.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applying to nuisance actions filed on or after that date.
• Section 3 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2026-02-12House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
2. 2026-02-10House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
3. 2026-02-05House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
4. 2026-02-02House Second Readers (House)
5. 2026-01-29House First Readers (House)
6. 2026-01-28House Hopper (House)

• Will Wade (R, HD-009)Primary sponsor
• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)
• Karen Mathiak (R, HD-082)
• Tyler Smith (R, HD-018)
• Josh Bonner (R, HD-073)
• Rob Clifton (R, HD-131)

• nuisance lawsuits
• motorsports
• property rights
• rural counties
• racing facilities