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1. March 17, 2026 · Senate Insurance and Labor Committee · 39 min

   Senate Insurance and Labor Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee unanimously recommended passage of HB 987, which the sponsor described as a voluntary way for independent contractors to set aside earnings for benefits without changing their worker classification. Members asked about taxes, account ownership and responsibility for unpaid premiums. Three witnesses spoke in support, and none spoke against it. The chair also announced that a subcommittee would handle HB 250, HB 1262, HB 1263, HB 1274 and HB 344. Those bills received no substantive discussion or votes.

2. March 17, 2026 · House Regulated Industries Committee · 44 min

   House Regulated Industries Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved substitutes for four bills by voice vote: SB 254, addressing coin-operated amusement machines; SB 501, addressing fire safety administration and fireworks sales; SB 553, revising construction-trade licensing; and SB 89, allowing licensed liquor stores to sell certain hemp beverages. The fireworks provisions incorporated into SB 501 came from HB 1095. Members approved an amendment specifying ownership and operating requirements for fireworks distributors. Questions focused mainly on licensing experience, military families, continuing education and business continuity after a licensed contractor dies. The committee also discussed the removal of an administrative-procedure provision from the licensing substitute. No numerical vote counts were stated.

3. March 17, 2026 · House Retirement Committee · 47 min

   House Retirement Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved four bills: SB 452, to increase retirement savings contributions for certain state law enforcement officers; SB 489, to change funding for probate judges’ retirement; SB 216, to allow the director of the Prosecuting Attorneys Qualifications Commission to join the Judicial Retirement System; and SB 23, with investment language drawn from HB 1347. The committee also held a hearing on SB 150, which would extend and expand a program allowing retired teachers to return to classrooms while receiving retirement benefits. Members questioned the teacher bill’s eligibility rules and projected lack of cost to the retirement system. Education organizations supported continuing the program. No vote was taken on that bill.

4. March 17, 2026 · House Public and Community Health Committee · 59 min

   House Public and Community Health Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved substitutes for SB 500, which would expand health care workforce data collection, and SB 395, which would change reporting requirements related to the Low THC Oil Patient Registry. Both passed by voice vote. The committee also reviewed SB 440, a Department of Public Health update bill, after a provision concerning pharmacist distribution of ivermectin was added. Members questioned the provision’s scope, dosage limits and safety implications. The chair adjourned without a vote on that bill and said the committee would seek clarification before considering it again.

5. March 17, 2026 · Senate Education and Youth Committee · 46 min

   Senate Education and Youth Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved HB 971, which the sponsor said would expand access to college and career academies for home-study and private-school students, and unanimously approved HB 907, concerning access to completion schools for students at risk of dropping out or who have already left school. The committee also discussed HB 1220, which the sponsor said would ease scholarship eligibility requirements for certain students and allow larger individual awards without increasing the program’s overall tax-credit cap. Members raised concerns about accountability and the balance between larger awards and serving more students. A motion to recommend against passage tied 5-5 and failed. The acting chair then left the bill without further action for possible consideration at a future meeting.

6. March 17, 2026 · House Governmental Affairs Committee · 2 h 16 min

   House Governmental Affairs Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee considered a substitute for SB 214 that would move Georgia toward ballots printed on demand, marked by voters and counted by scanners, with full implementation by January 1, 2028. Members and witnesses discussed training, funding, accessibility, equipment security and transferring a ballot-image audit pilot to the State Election Board. Local election officials and several advocacy organizations supported the longer transition, while opponents sought earlier changes or hand-counting. The committee adopted three amendments and rejected three others concerning audit authority or timing. The committee approved the substitute as amended by voice vote, with opposition heard but no final vote count stated.

7. March 17, 2026 · Senate Children and Families Committee · 53 min

   Senate Children and Families Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee advanced three bills: HB 181, allowing certain internationally adoptive families to obtain a Georgia Certificate of Foreign Birth without another court process; HB 1118, adding three weeks of maternal birth leave for eligible state employees and teachers; and HB 1009, extending school-day restrictions on personal electronic devices to high school students. The committee unanimously approved a substitute for HB 181 and approved HB 1118 with no opposition heard. After testimony from a student, education groups, a policy organization and the state school superintendent, the committee unanimously approved HB 1009.

8. March 17, 2026 · House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee · 3 h 13 min

   House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee heard testimony on changes to self-defense immunity under SB 572, increased penalties for blocking transportation routes under SB 443, an animal-cruelty database under SB 587, sex-offender reporting and risk classifications under SB 468, and AI-generated obscene images under SB 398. Witnesses raised questions about arrest powers, protest rights, supervision resources, protections for teenagers, and liability for AI companies. The chair repeatedly reported that the committee lacked a quorum, and no votes were taken before adjournment. The chair also announced that SB 499 had been removed at the sponsor’s request and would return the next day.

9. March 17, 2026 · Senate Retirement Committee · 28 min

   Senate Retirement Committee, March 17, 2026

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The Senate Retirement Committee considered HB 438, which the sponsor said would extend earlier retirement eligibility and certain line-of-duty disability benefits to additional sworn officers in the Department of Public Safety. Members asked how the change would affect officers’ existing retirement plans and pension costs. The committee approved the bill by voice vote, with no opposition heard, and adjourned.

10. March 17, 2026 · Senate Veterans, Military, and Homeland Security Committee · 35 min

    Senate Veterans, Military, and Homeland Security Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved three bills: HB 979, allowing the state to accept jurisdiction over cases arising on federal installations, with an amendment limiting the measure to people under 18; HB 1087, waiving permit fees for qualifying disabled veterans’ home modifications; and HB 985, clarifying military cemetery eligibility and extending eligibility to certain Hmong veterans. Members debated the scope and need for HB 979, including how military, federal and state courts handle cases. Opposition was voiced in the vote on that bill, but no vote counts were announced. The other two bills passed by voice vote without audible opposition.

11. March 17, 2026 · Senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee · 1 h 21 min

    Senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee considered four bills. Members voted on a recommendation to pass HB 948, which would add information about claiming leftover foreclosure-sale money to foreclosure notices, but the chair did not explicitly announce the result. The committee unanimously recommended passing HB 1024, which would increase the home equity people may keep in bankruptcy and adjust the limits for inflation. Members also approved HB 1134 with an amendment after discussing personal belongings in repossessed vehicles and protections against wrongful repossession. The committee held a hearing only on HB 1272, concerning state licensing and oversight of payment stablecoin issuers. Members asked about reserves, payments, privacy, revenue and theft risks. The chair said that bill would return to a later meeting, with no date announced.

12. March 17, 2026 · House Rules Committee · 45 min

    House Rules Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved SR 23, which requests a convention to propose congressional term limits, after debate about whether a convention could be limited and whether term limits would address problems in Congress. The chair said it would be available for Rules consideration Thursday. A member also presented HR 1522, proposing a study of the Department of Community Health, with no decision announced. The committee returned SB 440 and SB 555 to their subject committees and placed six bills on the next day's floor calendar: SB 293, SB 383, SB 399, SB 427, SB 523 and SB 551.

13. March 17, 2026 · House Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Committee · 58 min

    House Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee held a hearing on a new substitute for SB 33, concerning consumable hemp products. The sponsor and chair described restrictions on synthetic cannabinoids and provisions intended to align Georgia rules with federal changes. Members questioned enforcement, testing and reliance on federal policy. Public witnesses described health concerns, defended existing regulations and warned of harm to hemp businesses and growth in illegal sales. No vote was taken. The chair adjourned with some witnesses still waiting to speak and said another meeting might be held.

14. March 17, 2026 · House Technology and Infrastructure Innovation Committee · 1 h 11 min

    House Technology and Infrastructure Innovation Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved SB 470 after adopting an amendment to distinguish signal jamming from shielding, and sent it to Rules. Members also approved a substitute for SB 444 addressing human oversight of artificial intelligence in insurance coverage reviews, sending it to Rules. The committee discussed but did not vote on SB 594, which would create a digital identity fraud offense and set deadlines for online platforms to respond to reports. Members raised concerns about enforcement, political speech and the proposal’s scope. The chair asked for more work on narrowing that bill and adding an election-related exception before the next meeting.

15. March 17, 2026 · Senate Natural Resources and the Environment Committee · 58 min

    Senate Natural Resources and the Environment Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved all five bills it considered: HB 1182 on soil-amendment storage and handling, HB 1133 on loans for solar installations on closed landfills, HB 320 on solar-panel recycling, HB 1266 on motor restrictions along part of the Ogeechee River, and HB 946 on feral-hog hunting. The chair announced unanimous approval for four bills. For HB 1133, the chair counted seven votes in favor and no opposition was voiced. Members discussed recycling costs for existing solar facilities, engineering safeguards for landfill solar projects, and whether river safety restrictions should be handled through state law or agency rules.

16. March 17, 2026 · Senate Science and Technology Committee · 35 min

    Senate Science and Technology Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved HB 147 by substitute, with no opposition heard on the voice vote. The substitute narrowed the proposed state agency artificial intelligence inventory to systems that inform or materially support agency conclusions, decisions or judgments. It also included software licensing provisions intended to let agencies choose where to run purchased software. The committee heard from the sponsor, the Georgia Technology Authority and a witness for the Coalition for Fair Software Licensing before voting.

17. March 17, 2026 · House Judiciary Committee · 3 h 40 min

    House Judiciary Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee held hearings on SB 406, concerning homeowners and condominium associations, and SB 463, concerning large investors’ ownership of single-family homes. On SB 406, members and witnesses discussed state registration, access to records, a lower-cost complaint process and foreclosure protections. The chair requested a revised version rather than voting on individual amendments. On SB 463, supporters described competition between investors and homebuyers, while opponents raised concerns about rental supply, construction financing and legal challenges. Members requested proposed changes and clarification of exceptions. Neither bill received a vote. The chair expected both to return Thursday, with additional testimony planned for SB 463.

18. March 17, 2026 · Senate Regulated Industries and Utilities Committee · 2 h 07 min

    Senate Regulated Industries and Utilities Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved substitutes for HB 1254 and HB 232, with both votes described as unanimous. Discussion of HB 1254 focused on licensing changes, particularly disagreements over combining hearing aid dispensers with the audiology and speech-language pathology board. The substitute for HB 232 replaced most massage compact provisions with construction-trade licensing changes and retained a massage training requirement. The committee also held a hearing on HB 641, which the sponsor said would require electric suppliers to have written policies addressing disconnections for customers with life-threatening conditions. No vote was taken on that bill. The chair scheduled it and HB 1027 for Thursday afternoon.

19. March 17, 2026 · House Motor Vehicles Committee · 48 min

    House Motor Vehicles Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved SB 569, which would allow certain tow operators to obtain red emergency-light permits after required training. The version considered also included towing-notification provisions from HB 184, supported by representatives of the towing and rental-car industries. Members asked about training costs, eligibility and penalties for misuse of emergency lights. The committee also approved SB 384, which would offer optional five-year vehicle registration while keeping annual emissions requirements where applicable. Members discussed upfront fees, tag transfers, emissions enforcement and excluded vehicles. Both measures passed by voice vote, with no opposition heard.

20. March 17, 2026 · House Banks & Banking Committee · 1 h 30 min

    House Banks & Banking Committee, March 17, 2026

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee heard a presentation and public testimony on SB 424, which would recognize gold and silver as legal tender and establish a state-supervised system for storing and spending them. Members questioned costs, taxes, consumer protections, private competition and whether more study was needed. Witnesses offered opposing views on government involvement and safeguards. The chair announced that the bill would be tabled until the following week so members could seek more answers. No counted vote was stated.

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