HB1482: HB1482 Jails; certain municipal corporations make municipal detention facilities or jails available for use by a sheriff under certain conditions; require

This bill targets municipal detention facilities or jails located within the area that Georgia law defines as the jurisdiction of the Capitol Police Division of the Department of Public Safety (O.C.G.A. § 35-2-122). Under current law, a municipal corporation is not required to let a county sheriff use its jail facility. The bill adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 42-4-17) requiring any municipal corporation that owns or operates such a facility, whether or not it currently holds inmates, to make that facility available to the county sheriff upon request, as long as the sheriff has funding appropriated for that purpose. The municipal corporation may charge the sheriff a fee, but the fee cannot exceed the municipality's actual cost of maintaining the facility. The bill would take effect immediately upon the Governor's signature or becoming law without it.

• Creates a new requirement that certain municipal jails or detention facilities near the State Capitol be made available to the county sheriff upon request.
• Applies the requirement only to facilities within the geographic area defined as Capitol Police Division jurisdiction under O.C.G.A. § 35-2-122.
• Conditions the requirement on the sheriff having sufficient appropriated funding to pay for using the facility.
• Allows the municipal corporation to charge a fee for the facility's use, capped at its actual maintenance cost.
• Sets the effective date as immediately upon the Governor's signature or the bill becoming law without signature.

County sheriffs, particularly in the area around the State Capitol, who may need extra jail space; municipal corporations that own or operate detention facilities in that area, which must now share them; and county governments responsible for funding sheriffs' detention operations.

Sheriffs facing jail overcrowding or facility limitations near the Capitol could gain access to municipal jail space they previously could not require, potentially easing detention capacity problems, while municipalities would be required to share facilities they control, subject to being reimbursed for actual costs.

• Section 1 adds new Code Section 42-4-17 to Title 42, Chapter 4 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.
• Subsection (a) requires a municipal corporation owning or operating a jail within the Capitol Police Division's jurisdictional radius to place it at a requesting sheriff's disposal, if the sheriff has funding.
• Subsection (b) permits the municipal corporation to charge a fee for use of the facility, capped at its actual maintenance cost.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as upon the Governor's approval or becoming law without approval.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-06House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
2. 2026-03-04House Second Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-03House First Readers (House)
4. 2026-02-26House Hopper (House)

• Charles Martin (R, HD-049)Primary sponsor

• jails and detention facilities
• county sheriffs
• municipal government
• Capitol Police jurisdiction