HB 915: Law enforcement officers and agencies; authorize county and municipal law enforcement agencies to employ civilian personnel to assist in certain investigations

Currently only sworn police officers handle traffic accident and property crime investigations in Georgia. This bill would add a new position, a civilian community responder, that local law enforcement agencies could hire to assist with traffic accident investigations, property crime reports, public education about laws, and searches for missing people. These civilian responders could not carry weapons issued by the agency, could not wear police-style uniforms or badges, and could not drive vehicles marked as police cars or equipped with blue lights. The bill requires the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council to create a training program of at least four hours plus four weeks of field training. It also makes it a misdemeanor to obstruct or retaliate against a civilian responder doing their job, and it updates Georgia's traffic law so drivers must obey a civilian responder's traffic directions and so civilian responders use the same accident report forms as police officers.

• Creates a new position called civilian community responder that county and municipal police agencies may hire to assist with traffic accident and property crime investigations.
• Bars agencies from using these civilian hires to reduce or replace sworn officers, and bars the responders from having arrest power or agency-issued weapons.
• Requires responders to wear uniforms clearly different from police uniforms, carry no badge, and use vehicles without police markings or blue lights.
• Directs the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council to build a required training program of at least four hours of instruction plus four weeks of field training.
• Makes it a misdemeanor to obstruct, resist, or retaliate against a civilian community responder performing their duties.
• Requires civilian responders to use the same statewide uniform accident report forms and procedures as police officers, and lets drivers be directed by them in traffic.

County and municipal law enforcement agencies that may hire these workers, the civilian employees themselves, the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council which must build the training program, and members of the public involved in traffic accidents, property crime investigations, or missing person searches.

If enacted, some routine investigative work now done only by sworn officers could shift to lower-cost civilian staff, potentially freeing up police time. Georgians involved in minor accidents or property crimes could increasingly deal with these unarmed civilian responders instead of police, and obstructing them would carry criminal penalties.

• Section 1 adds new Code Section 35-1-24 defining civilian community responder and setting limits: no arrest power, no agency-issued weapons, no badge, no police-marked vehicles or blue lights.
• Section 1 also requires responders to instruct drivers in accidents to exchange contact, license, and insurance information, mirroring standard accident procedures.
• Section 1 makes it a misdemeanor to willfully obstruct, resist, or retaliate against a civilian community responder carrying out an investigation.
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 35-8-7 to direct the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council to establish a uniform training program for these responders.
• Section 3 amends O.C.G.A. § 40-6-2 so drivers must obey lawful traffic directions from a civilian community responder, just as they must for police.
• Section 4 amends O.C.G.A. § 40-6-278 so civilian community responders use the same statewide uniform accident report forms as police officers.

1. 2026-01-12House Second Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
2. 2025-04-04House First Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
3. 2025-04-02House Hopper (Cámara de Representantes)

• Karen Lupton (D, HD-083)Patrocinador principal
• Marvin Lim (D, HD-098)

• law enforcement staffing
• traffic accident investigations
• police reform
• public safety training