by Ty Tagami | Apr 3, 2026 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — The youngest and oldest people in Georgia to whom the state owes a financial responsibility got something extra in the 2027 fiscal year budget that lawmakers sent to Gov. Brian Kemp Thursday night.
State retirees could get a bump in their pensions after the state House and Senate agreed to add at least $65 million in state money to their pension fund.
And children in grades kindergarten through third grade could learn how to read with the help of literacy experts hired with $70 million in state funds.
That is more money than the House had initially budgeted as a downpayment on hiring more than 1,300 literacy coaches.
The compromise budget also puts the money into a recurring fund whereas the Senate had proposed a one-time grant.
Grants must be renewed annually, so the House wanted the money engraved in the school funding formula.
The compromise puts the money into the Quality Basic Education funding formula, so it will be there year after year.
“I think QBE is usually a more consistent formula for our schools,” said Sen. Blake Tillery, R-Vidalia, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. That should give schools more confidence in hiring employees, an ongoing expense, he said.
“I think there’s a lot more acceptance by the local school systems that it will be consistent whereas our non-QBE grants sometimes are one of the first to go in recessionary times,” he said.
Rep. Matt Hatchett, R-Dublin, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, called it “a conservative and fiscally sound budget.” And he said it would help state pensioners who “put in years of hard work only to see inflation decimate” their income, with the first cost of living increase in recent history of over 2%.
The approvals by the House and Senate to House Bill 974 sends the $38.5 billion budget to Kemp who has line-item veto authority.
by Mark Niesse | Apr 2, 2026 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — Birth control medications will be provided at pharmacies across Georgia without needing a prescription, according to a bill that won final approval from the General Assembly on Thursday.
Lawmakers said the bill makes contraceptives more available to women, especially in the 82 of Georgia’s 159 counties without an obstetrician.
“We talk a lot about prevention and improving outcomes for women’s health, and this is a way to do this without a mandate,” said Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, R-Marietta.
The legislation, House Bill 1138, authorizes licensed pharmacists to dispense a three-month supply of birth control medication the first time a patient obtains the drug, and up to a 12-month supply afterward. Pharmacists aren’t required to dispense birth control if they choose not to.
Georgia bans abortions once a doctor can detect fetal cardiac activity, which typically occurs around six weeks after conception and before many women know they’re pregnant.
The Senate voted 49-1 to pass HB 1138, and the House voted 158-11. The measure now advances to Gov. Brian Kemp for his approval or veto.
by Mark Niesse | Apr 2, 2026 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — Victims of childhood sexual abuse can’t be silenced by nondisclosure agreements in legal settlements, according to a bill that cleared the Georgia General Assembly on Thursday.
The Senate voted unanimously to approve the bill, which is called Trey’s Law in memory of Trey Carlock, a former Atlanta-area resident who was sexually abused at a Missouri camp along with other victims.
Carlock settled a lawsuit against the camp, but a nondisclosure agreement prevented him from talking about what happened to him.
“These NDAs silence survivors or sexual abuse in civil settlement agreements and force victims to choose between compensation and their voice,” said Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, R-Marietta. “The purpose of the law is so that survivors can speak openly about the abuse that they suffered.”
The bill makes lawsuit settlements unenforceable if they require secrecy about childhood sexual abuse.
Gov. Brian Kemp said during his State of the State address that Trey’s Law is a priority of First Lady Marty Kemp and the Georgians for Refuge, Action, Compassion, and Education Commission, which was created to combat human trafficking.
House Bill 1187 now advances to Kemp for his signature.
by Ty Tagami | Apr 2, 2026 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — People in Georgia who get injured badly enough to need an ambulance ride could worry less about the shock to their pocketbook if they have insurance and if Gov. Brian Kemp signs House Bill 506 into law.
The Georgia General Assembly sent Kemp the “Surprise Billing Consumer Protection Act” on Thursday, the final day of this year’s legislative session.
It would cap insurance costs for any ambulance ride requested by a first responder, with the amount indexed to a multiple of Medicare.
The same copayment, coinsurance or deductible charge would apply to ambulance rides whether or not they are in the insurer’s network. And the ambulance company would directly bill the insurance company.
“If someone has private insurance, that will be billed rather than self-pay on an ambulance ride,” said Sen. Shawn Still, R-Suwanee, who was responsible for overlaying HB 506 with the ambulance language.
The injured are not in a position to negotiate the cost of an ambulance ride, he said, so regulation is needed.
The underlying bill started out last year as a tobacco cessation measure. It passed the House in that form a year ago, then the Senate retrofitted it as a vehicle for the ambulance billing language.
The Senate passed the new measure unanimously Tuesday, and the House agreed to the changes Thursday, after passing a similar measure, House Bill 961, early last month.
“If I have a heart attack, I’m not going to negotiate,” said Rep. Alan Powell, R-Hartwell, the chief sponsor of HB 961, before it passed with just one vote in opposition. “Get me to the hospital quick!”
After HB 961 sped through the House, it stalled in the Senate.
HB 506 moved more slowly but made it to the finish first. It will go into effect Jan. 1 if Kemp allows it to become law.
by Mark Niesse | Apr 2, 2026 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — You could soon leave pennies at home when you go shopping in Georgia.
The Georgia House gave final approval to a bill Thursday that rounds in-person cash transactions to the nearest nickel.
The change is a response to the Trump administration’s decision last year to stop making new pennies, which will lead to their gradual disappearance from circulation.
The legislation calls for Georgia businesses to round down transactions that end in a 1, 2, 6, or 7. Prices that end in a 3, 4, 8, or 9 would be rounded up. And items with costs that end exactly in a 0 or 5 would stay the same.
The rounding requirement applies to in-person purchases made with cash. Transactions with credit cards wouldn’t need to be rounded.
The House voted 163-4 to approve House Bill 1112 on Thursday, sending it to Gov. Brian Kemp for his approval or veto.
