SB623: SB623 State Court of Clayton County; compensation of the solicitor-general of the state court; revise provisions

This bill amends the 1964 law that created the State Court of Clayton County, specifically the section on how much the court's solicitor-general (the county's chief prosecutor in that court) gets paid. Under the revised law, the solicitor-general would receive a salary equal to 95 percent of the total compensation paid to the Chief Judge of the State Court of Clayton County, including any pay supplements the judge gets under state law or county ordinance, paid every two weeks from Clayton County funds. The bill also sets a floor: the solicitor-general's total salary can never be less than the greater of $191,007.00 or 95 percent of the chief judge's total compensation. The new pay rule would not take effect immediately. Instead, it kicks in on the first day of the month after the solicitor-general fully complies with Clayton County's required county-wide audits (under O.C.G.A. § 36-81-7) for the years 2024, 2025, and 2026.

• Rewrites Section 6 of the 1964 Act creating the State Court of Clayton County to reset how the solicitor-general's salary is calculated.
• Sets the solicitor-general's salary at 95 percent of the Chief Judge of the State Court of Clayton County's total compensation, including any supplements.
• Guarantees the solicitor-general's salary will never fall below $191,007.00, or 95 percent of the chief judge's pay if that is higher.
• Requires the salary to be paid in biweekly installments from Clayton County funds.
• Delays the effective date until the solicitor-general fully complies with required county-wide audits for 2024, 2025, and 2026.

The solicitor-general of the State Court of Clayton County, whose pay is directly set by this bill; the Chief Judge of that court, whose compensation is used as the benchmark; and Clayton County government, which funds and administers the audits tied to the pay change.

The bill changes how much Clayton County pays its state court solicitor-general and guarantees a minimum salary, but it withholds that pay change until the office completes overdue county audits, linking compensation directly to compliance with state audit requirements.

• Section 1 revises Section 6 of the 1964 Act (Ga. L. 1964, p. 2032, as amended by Ga. L. 2022, p. 5510) to set the solicitor-general's salary at 95 percent of the chief judge's total compensation, paid biweekly from county funds.
• Section 1 also sets a minimum salary floor of $191,007.00 or 95 percent of the chief judge's compensation, whichever is greater.
• Section 2 delays the Act's effective date until the solicitor-general fully complies with Clayton County's required county-wide audits for 2024, 2025, and 2026 under O.C.G.A. § 36-81-7(c.1).
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-05-12Act 705
2. 2026-05-12Senate Date Signed by Governor (Senate)
3. 2026-04-10Senate Sent to Governor (Senate)
4. 2026-04-02Senate Agreed House Amend or Sub (Senate)
5. 2026-03-31House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House)
6. 2026-03-31House Third Readers (House)
7. 2026-03-31House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
8. 2026-03-25House Second Readers (House)

• Kenya Wicks (D, SD-034)Primary sponsor
• Elena Parent (D, SD-044)
• Gail Davenport (D, SD-017)
• Yasmin Neal (D, HD-079)

1. PassedSenate voteMarch 20, 2026

   44 yea, 0 nay (5 not voting, 5 absent)

   Local Consent Calendar: Senate Vote #761

2. PassedHouse voteMarch 31, 2026

   161 yea, 3 nay (5 not voting, 7 absent)

   Local Calendar : House Vote #803

3. PassedSenate voteApril 2, 2026

   50 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 1 absent)

   Agree To House Substitute: Senate Vote #968

• Clayton County government
• solicitor-general salary
• local courts
• county audits