HR1860: HR1860 House Study Committee on Comprehensive Services and Long-term Outcomes for Individuals with Disabilities; create

This resolution creates the House Study Committee on Comprehensive Services and Long-term Outcomes for Individuals with Disabilities. The five-member committee, appointed by the Speaker of the House, would study why Georgians with disabilities and their families struggle to access programs spread across multiple state agencies, including problems with complicated applications, long waits for Medicaid waiver programs like NOW and COMP, workforce shortages among caregivers and therapists, and gaps in services when students leave school and enter adulthood. The committee would also look at long-term planning issues like housing, guardianship, special needs trusts, and what happens when parents or caregivers can no longer provide support. It can hold meetings, receive standard legislative allowances for up to five days of work, and must file any findings or recommended legislation before it is automatically abolished on December 1, 2026.

• Creates a five-member House Study Committee on Comprehensive Services and Long-term Outcomes for Individuals with Disabilities, appointed by the Speaker of the House.
• Directs the committee to study access barriers, Medicaid waiver waiting lists, workforce shortages, and interagency coordination affecting people with disabilities.
• Requires the committee to examine school-to-adulthood transition gaps and coordination between agencies like the Department of Education and Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.
• Authorizes members to receive standard legislative per diem allowances (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8) for up to five days unless more are approved.
• Requires the committee to file a report with any legislative recommendations before it is abolished, or file meeting minutes if no report is approved.
• Automatically abolishes the committee on December 1, 2026.

People with disabilities and their families in Georgia, state agencies including the Department of Education, Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, Department of Community Health, and the Georgia Vocational Rehabilitation Agency, service providers, direct support professionals, and members of the House of Representatives appointed to the committee.

The committee's findings could shape future legislation on Medicaid waiver waiting lists, school transition support, caregiver burdens, and long-term care planning, all issues families currently navigate with limited coordination among Georgia's disability service agencies.

• Paragraph (1) creates the House Study Committee on Comprehensive Services and Long-term Outcomes for Individuals with Disabilities.
• Paragraph (2) sets committee membership at five House members appointed by the Speaker, who also names the chairperson.
• Paragraph (3) lists ten topic areas the committee must study, including access barriers, Medicaid waivers (NOW and COMP programs), workforce shortages, family support, long-term planning tools like ABLE accounts and special needs trusts, and educational integration.
• Paragraph (5) ties member pay to existing legislative allowances (O.C.G.A. § 28-1-8), capped at five days unless extended, funded through House appropriations.
• Paragraph (6) requires any approved findings or proposed legislation to be filed as a report with the Clerk of the House before abolishment, or minutes filed if no report is approved.
• Paragraph (7) sets the committee's abolishment date as December 1, 2026.

1. 2026-03-31House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
2. 2026-03-27House Second Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-25House First Readers (House)
4. 2026-03-23House Hopper (House)

• Scott Hilton (R, HD-048)Primary sponsor
• Katie Dempsey (R, HD-013)
• Deborah Silcox (R, HD-053)
• William Werkheiser (R, HD-157)
• Jesse Petrea (R, HD-166)
• Devan Seabaugh (R, HD-034)

• disability services
• Medicaid waivers
• special education
• caregiver support
• long-term care planning