HB1347: HB1347 Public Retirement Systems Investment Authority Law; provide certain retirement systems the option to invest in real estate

Georgia law limits how public pension funds can invest, including how much they can put into real estate and other alternative investments like private equity or hedge funds. Currently, only a few systems, such as the Georgia Municipal Employees Benefit System and the Georgia Firefighters' Pension Fund, are allowed to invest up to 10 percent of their assets in real estate. This bill extends that same 10 percent real estate option to any other 'large retirement system' as defined in Georgia law, except for the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia and the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia. It also raises the general cap on alternative investments (things beyond stocks and bonds) for eligible large retirement systems from 10 percent to 15 percent of their assets, while leaving the separate, specific caps for the Firefighters' Pension Fund, the Peace Officers' Annuity and Benefit Fund, the Teachers Retirement System, and the Employees' Retirement System unchanged. The bill does not include a stated effective date beyond standard enactment.

• Allows large retirement systems, other than the Employees' Retirement System and Teachers Retirement System of Georgia, to invest up to 10 percent of their fund assets in real estate.
• Lets those systems keep real estate investments they already owned even if the fund's total asset value later drops below the threshold that would otherwise limit them.
• Raises the overall cap on alternative investments for eligible large retirement systems from 10 percent to 15 percent of their assets.
• Leaves the separate alternative investment caps unchanged for the Georgia Firefighters' Pension Fund (20 percent), the Peace Officers' Annuity and Benefit Fund (15 percent), the Teachers Retirement System (5 percent), and the Employees' Retirement System (10 percent).

Large Georgia public retirement systems, including municipal, county, and other governmental pension funds classified as 'large retirement systems' under state law, along with the Georgia Municipal Employees Benefit System and the Georgia Firefighters' Pension Fund named specifically in the bill. Public employees and retirees who depend on these pension funds are indirectly affected.

Pension fund managers would have more flexibility to put retirement fund money into real estate and other alternative investments, which can offer different returns and risks than stocks and bonds. This could change how public employee retirement funds grow or lose value over time, affecting the long-term security of pensions for government workers.

• Section 1 rewrites subsection (b) of O.C.G.A. § 47-20-83 to extend the 10 percent real estate investment option to large retirement systems generally, excluding the Employees' Retirement System and Teachers Retirement System of Georgia.
• Section 1 preserves existing rules letting funds keep real estate they already owned if asset values later decrease.
• Section 2 rewrites paragraph (1) of subsection (d) of O.C.G.A. § 47-20-87 to raise the general alternative investment cap for eligible large retirement systems from 10 percent to 15 percent of assets.
• Section 2 keeps the existing separate caps for the Firefighters' Pension Fund, Peace Officers' Annuity and Benefit Fund, Teachers Retirement System, and Employees' Retirement System unchanged.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-06House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
2. 2026-02-19House Second Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-18House First Readers (House)
4. 2026-02-17House Hopper (House)

• Brad Thomas (R, HD-021)Primary sponsor
• John Carson (R, HD-046)
• Chris Erwin (R, HD-032)
• Lehman Franklin (R, HD-160)

• public pensions
• retirement systems
• real estate investment
• state finance law