HB1604: HB1604 Quality Basic Education Act; require the task force reviewing the effectiveness of existing program weights to meet every two years rather than every three years

Georgia's Quality Basic Education Act funds public schools using a formula built on program weights that reflect the relative costs of different parts of a student's education, such as teacher salaries and program types. Under current law (O.C.G.A. § 20-2-161), the Governor appoints a task force every three years to review whether those weights still make sense and recommend changes to the General Assembly. This bill shortens that cycle to every two years, tied to the start of each two-year legislative term (a biennium). It also requires the task force to submit a report to the Governor by December 1 of the first year of each biennium, covering how teacher certification and experience relate to actual costs, the correlation between certification, education, experience, and salary, and any recommended changes to the funding formula. The changes would take effect July 1, 2027.

• Shortens the required meeting cycle for the Quality Basic Education task force from every three years to every two years.
• Ties the task force's appointment to the start of each biennium (two-year term) of the General Assembly rather than a three-year cycle.
• Requires the task force to submit a written report to the Governor by December 1 of the first year of each biennium.
• Specifies that the report must analyze how teacher certification and years of experience relate to actual teacher costs and salaries.
• Requires the report to include any recommended changes to the funding formula in O.C.G.A. §§ 20-2-161 and 20-2-874 through 20-2-930.
• Sets the effective date of the changes as July 1, 2027.

The Governor, who appoints the task force; members of the General Assembly and State Board of Education staff who may serve on it; local school system representatives; and, indirectly, public school teachers and districts whose funding depends on the program weights the task force reviews.

By meeting more often, the task force would review the funding formula's cost assumptions, like teacher pay and experience, on a faster schedule, potentially catching outdated weights sooner. The added reporting requirement means the Governor and General Assembly would receive more frequent, structured analysis to inform school funding decisions.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 20-2-161(f) to change the task force's appointment cycle from every three years to every two years, aligned with each legislative biennium.
• Section 1 requires the task force to include members or staff from the General Assembly, the State Board of Education, the Governor's office, and local school systems.
• Section 1 requires a report to the Governor by December 1 of the first year of each biennium covering teacher certification and experience data, salary correlations, and recommended formula changes.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2027.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-31House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-27House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-25House Hopper (House)

• Marvin Lim (D, HD-098)Primary sponsor
• Karen Lupton (D, HD-083)
• David Wilkerson (D, HD-038)

• education funding
• Quality Basic Education Act
• teacher pay
• school funding formula
• task force reporting