GSSA Capitol Report, Legislative Day 27
March 4, 2026
The full House of Representatives met and considered the following:
HR 1114 (Blackmon-R): “Quality Basic Education Act”; revises the date by which a child must attain a certain age to be eligible for enrollment in kindergarten or first grade. RECOMMITTED
Motion was made to reconsider, approved 97-68 and the bill was recommitted. It will sit on the House General rules Calendar and can be pulled off and sent back to the House floor at the discretion of the Rules Committee. HB1284 (Silcox-R): Provides for the awarding of high school diplomas to high school students who are at the end of life PASSED 172-0
HB 1302 (Gambill – R) Education and Workforce Strategy Act PASSED 172-2
Reorganizes State Apprenticeship responsibilities and reconstitutes the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement (GOSA) as Office of Student Achievement as the Office of Education and Workforce Strategy.
HB 1402 (Hagan – R) Requires vision and hearing screening for all public-school students enrolled in pre-kindergarten through third grade.
$15,000 grant for each school district for supplies and implementation
HB 1000 (Gambill – R) Enacts Governor Kemp’s proposal to provide tax refunds to Georgians totaling $250 for individual filers, $375 for heads of household, and $500 for married filing jointly. PASSED 172-0
HB 1220 (Ballard – R) Exempts students with an IEP, a Section 504 plan, or a diagnosis of dyslexia, autism spectrum disorder, speech language delay and disorder or other identified condition from the requirement to attend a public school for six weeks to be eligible for a private school voucher awarded by a Student Scholarship Organization (SSO). Students whose parents are active military personnel stationed in Georgia would also be exempt from the requirement. PASSED 106-63
HB 1379 (Gaines – R) Foreign Funding Transparency and Accountability Act: requires all Georgia public education institutions to submit semiannual reports detailing funding received from foreign sources. Makes these reports publicly available through the Department of Accounts and Audits website with personal information redacted. PASSED 139-16
The full Senate met and considered:
SB 552 (Watson – R) “True Patriotism and Universal Student Access (TPUSA) Act:” establishes equal access rights for students to engage in political activities and expression in Georgia public schools. Requires schools with limited open forums to provide the same opportunities for partisan and nonpartisan political groups as other noncurricular student organizations PASSED 46-7
SB 523 (Goodman – R) Requires public schools and postsecondary institutions to treat antisemitism as religious discrimination under existing anti-discrimination policies. Creates state-wide Title VI Coordinators for K-12 and higher education to investigate discrimination complaints and enforce compliance. PASSED 50-2
SB 425 (Harbin – R) Requires all state-funded schools with grades three through five to provide cursive handwriting instruction by third grade. Allows schools to incorporate cursive instruction within existing coursework rather than creating separate classes. PASSED 43-9
House Education Committee meets tomorrow, Thursday, March 5 AT 1 p.m. – – Committee Workday
The agenda as currently presented:
HB 1257 (Rice – R) Revises provisions for incentive grants for local boards of education to approve charter school petitions
HB 1281 (Momtaham – R) Requires child care learning centers to carry certain amounts of liability insurance coverage and proof of such coverage
HB 1056 (Townsend – R) Replaces the term auto-injectable epinephrine with epinephrine and consolidates provisions relating to epinephrine and schools
HB 669 (Meeks – R) Awards low-wealth capital outlay grants to qualifying local school systems that award certain contracts for roofing improvements to suppliers that meet certain criteria
HB 1232 (Cheokas – R) Provides that Girl Scouts/Boy Scouts be excused from school for participating in certain officially sanctioned visits to the State Capitol (Back in Committee)
Day 28 is Friday, March 7, 2026, Crossover Day.
*** The Governor signed the mid-term/supplemental budget (HB973) on Legislative Day 26. The final version included the $2,000 supplement to eligible employees.
