HB1227: HB1227 Elections; revise information sought from persons registering to vote who indicate that they were previously registered to vote in another state, county, or municipality

Currently, Georgians who moved from another state or from another Georgia county or municipality must provide some information when registering to vote so their old registration can be canceled. This bill spells out exactly what information counties must collect, including the applicant's previous address, and adds a signed statement authorizing cancellation of the old registration. For people who say they previously registered in another state, county registrars would send details like the applicant's name, birth year, last four digits of their Social Security number, and driver's license number to the Secretary of State monthly. The Secretary of State would then notify that other state's chief election official that the person registered in Georgia and wants their old registration canceled, and would post quarterly public reports on how many notices were sent to which states. Georgia could also use similar notices received from other states to cancel voters here who moved away. The changes would take effect January 1, 2027.

• Requires voter registration forms to include a specific space for applicants to list their previous registration address and a signed statement authorizing cancellation of that old registration.
• Requires county registrars to send detailed applicant information, including partial Social Security number and driver's license number, to the Secretary of State monthly when an applicant says they moved from another state.
• Directs the Secretary of State to notify the former state's chief election official that the applicant registered in Georgia and wants their prior registration canceled.
• Requires the Secretary of State to publish a quarterly public report listing how many such notices were sent and to which states.
• Allows Georgia to cancel a voter's registration here if it receives a comparable notice from another state showing that person registered to vote there.
• Sets the effective date of the changes as January 1, 2027.

People registering to vote in Georgia after moving from another state, county, or municipality; county boards of registrars, who must collect and transmit the new information; the Georgia Secretary of State's office, which must build a reporting system and notify other states; and Georgia voters who move out of state, whose old registrations could be canceled based on notices from their new state.

Voters who recently moved would need to provide more personal information, including partial Social Security and driver's license numbers, when registering. The added information-sharing between states is meant to help remove outdated registrations, which could affect how quickly a person's old registration is canceled and what data changes hands between states.

• Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 21-2-218 to require a specific form field for prior registration address and a signed cancellation statement, and requires registrars to send applicant details (name, birth year, partial Social Security number, license number, addresses, and a copy of the registration form) to the Secretary of State at least monthly.
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 21-2-225 to require the Secretary of State to notify the chief election official of the applicant's former state that the person registered in Georgia and wants to cancel their old registration, using secure communication or overnight delivery.
• Section 2 also requires a quarterly public report on the number of notices sent, the states receiving them, and the number of comparable notices Georgia received from other states.
• Section 3 amends O.C.G.A. § 21-2-232 to allow Georgia to remove a voter from its rolls based on a notice from another state's election officials showing that voter registered there, without needing to send a confirmation notice first.
• Section 4 sets the effective date as January 1, 2027.
• Section 5 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-06House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
2. 2026-02-09House Second Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-06House First Readers (House)
4. 2026-02-05House Hopper (House)

• Joseph Gullett (R, HD-019)Primary sponsor
• Tim Fleming (R, HD-114)
• Martin Momtahan (R, HD-017)
• Steven Sainz (R, HD-180)
• Brad Thomas (R, HD-021)
• Bill Yearta (R, HD-152)

• voter registration
• election rules
• voter list maintenance
• Secretary of State