HB1201: HB1201 Fire protection; compliance with safety standards for smoke detectors; provide

Georgia law already requires smoke detectors in new dwellings and dwelling units under O.C.G.A. \u00a7 25-2-40. This bill adds a new requirement that those smoke detectors meet a technical safety standard called UL 217, the Standard for Smoke Alarms (ninth edition or a later edition set by rule or regulation). The requirement is phased in over two years. Starting January 1, 2027, any smoke detector that is newly installed or replaced must meet the standard. Starting January 1, 2028, every smoke detector covered by the law, whether newly installed or already in place, must meet the standard. The bill also repeals any conflicting laws, a routine step in Georgia legislation.

• Adds a requirement that smoke detectors covered by Georgia's dwelling smoke detector law meet the UL 217 safety standard (ninth edition or later).
• Sets January 1, 2027 as the date newly installed or replaced smoke detectors must comply with the standard.
• Sets January 1, 2028 as the date all covered smoke detectors, not just new or replaced ones, must comply with the standard.
• Allows the compliance standard to update automatically to later editions of UL 217 through rule or regulation rather than requiring a new law each time.
• Repeals any existing state laws that conflict with this new requirement.

The bill affects owners, landlords, and occupants of new dwellings and dwelling units covered by Georgia's smoke detector law, along with builders, property managers, and manufacturers or sellers of smoke detectors who will need to ensure their products meet the UL 217 standard.

Georgians in covered dwellings could eventually be required to replace older smoke detectors that do not meet the newer UL 217 standard, which is designed to better detect certain types of fires, including those from modern furniture materials, changing what counts as a legally compliant detector.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. \u00a7 25-2-40 by adding paragraph (4) to subsection (a), setting the UL 217 ninth edition standard (or later) as the compliance benchmark for smoke detectors.
• Section 1 creates a staggered timeline: newly installed or replaced detectors must comply starting January 1, 2027, while all detectors covered by the subsection must comply starting January 1, 2028.
• Section 1 allows later editions of the UL 217 standard to apply automatically if adopted by rule or regulation, without requiring a new statute.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting state laws, a standard closing provision.

1. 2026-03-04Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2026-03-03House Passed/Adopted (House)
3. 2026-03-03House Third Readers (House)
4. 2026-02-24House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
5. 2026-02-09House Second Readers (House)
6. 2026-02-06House First Readers (House)
7. 2026-02-05House Hopper (House)

• Joseph Gullett (R, HD-019)Primary sponsor
• Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 3, 2026

   166 yea, 1 nay (8 not voting, 2 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #588

• fire safety
• smoke detectors
• housing regulations
• building codes