2018 Georgia Code Annotated

TITLE 28 GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Chap.

• 1. General Provisions, 28-1-1 through 28-1-17.
• 2. Apportionment of House of Representatives and Senate; Qualifications of Members, 28-2-1 through 28-2-2.
• 3. Administrative Personnel, 28-3-1 through 28-3-25.
• 4. Legislative Services, 28-4-1 through 28-4-9.
• 5. Financial Affairs, 28-5-1 through 28-5-127.
• 6. Interstate Cooperation, 28-6-1 through 28-6-8.
• 7. Prohibited Lobbying Practices, 28-7-1 through 28-7-5.
• 8. Georgia Criminal Justice Improvement Council, 28-8-1 through 28-8-3 [Repealed], 28-8-1 through 28-8-3.
• 9. Code Revision Commission, 28-9-1 through 28-9-5.
• 10. Georgia Rail Passenger Authority Overview Committee, 28-10-1 through 28-10-7.
• 11. Ethics and Efficiency in Government Act, 28-11-1 through 28-11-8.
• 12. Special Joint Committee on Georgia Revenue Structure, 28-12-1 through 28-12-3 [Repealed].
• 13. 2011 Special Council and Committee on Criminal Justice Reform, 28-13-1 through 28-13-4 [Repealed], 28-13-1 through 28-13-4.

Chapter 1. General Provisions, 28-1-1 through 28-1-17.

• 28-1-1. Membership and apportionment of General Assembly.
• 28-1-2. Time and place of meetings.
• 28-1-3. Initial organization.
• 28-1-4. Form and administration of oath of office to members.
• 28-1-5. Commission of members.
• 28-1-6. Powers and duties of President Pro Tempore of the Senate and Speaker Pro Tempore of the House of Representatives.
• 28-1-6.1. Method for determining permanent disability of Speaker of the House of Representatives.
• 28-1-7. Failure of officer to organize emergency session.
• 28-1-8. Salary and allowances of members and officers.
• 28-1-8.1. Failure of members to file state income tax returns.
• 28-1-9. Service in General Assembly to be credited to pension plan of employee of political subdivision.
• 28-1-10. Seals of the General Assembly and of each house.
• 28-1-11. Maintenance of engrossed and enrolled bills and resolutions; Secretary of State to publish enrolled Acts.
• 28-1-12. Election of state officers for whom manner and time of election not provided.
• 28-1-13. Eligibility of elected county or municipal officials for membership in General Assembly.
• 28-1-14. Notice of intention to introduce local bill; copies to governing authorities.
• 28-1-14.1. Local bills proposing annexation by municipalities; providing copies to county governing authority [Repealed].
• 28-1-15. Restrictions on population bills; "population bill" defined.
• 28-1-16. Issuance of subpoenas by Superior Court of Fulton County on behalf of the Committees on Ethics of the Senate and House of Representatives.
• 28-1-17. Prefiling of proposed bills and resolutions prior to each legislative session; administrative procedure.

JUDICIAL DECISIONS Senatorial districts are drawn, so far as possible, along existing county lines. Fortson v. Dorsey, 379 U.S. 433, 85 S. Ct. 498, 13 L. Ed. 2d 401 (1965).

RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. - 25 Am. Jur. 2d, Elections, § 7 et seq. 63C Am. Jur. 2d, Public Officers and Employees, §§ 36, 40, 434, 450, 460, 462.

Chapter 2. Apportionment of House of Representatives and Senate; Qualifications of Members, 28-2-1 through 28-2-2.

• 28-2-1. Apportionment and qualifications for the House of Representatives.
• 28-2-2. Apportionment and qualifications for the Senate.

Chapter 3. Administrative Personnel, 28-3-1 through 28-3-25.

Article 1 General Provisions.

• 28-3-1. Doorkeeper and messenger in House of Representatives; sergeant-at-arms in Senate.

Article 2 Secretary of the Senate and Clerk of the House of Representatives.

• 28-3-20. Election and term of office; procedure for filling vacancies.
• 28-3-21. Bond for discharge of duties [Repealed].
• 28-3-22. Duties when both branches of the General Assembly meet in single chamber.
• 28-3-23. Compensation, expenses, and allowances; travel expenses.
• 28-3-24. Procedure for distributing bills, resolutions, and other documents; fees.
• 28-3-24.1. Public distribution of legislative information in electronic format.
• 28-3-24.2. "Official written communication" defined; electronic format and requirements.
• 28-3-25. Oath of office.

Chapter 4. Legislative Services, 28-4-1 through 28-4-9.

• 28-4-1. Legislative Services Committee; creation; membership; compensation; meetings.
• 28-4-2. General powers and duties of the Legislative Services Committee.
• 28-4-3. Office of Legislative Counsel; creation; qualifications; powers and duties.
• 28-4-3.1. Confidentiality of communications between Office of Legislative Counsel and certain persons.
• 28-4-4. Election of legislative counsel.
• 28-4-5. Attorney General to serve as advisor to legislative counsel.
• 28-4-6. Employment, powers, and duties of legislative fiscal officer.
• 28-4-7. Personnel to assist legislative counsel and legislative fiscal officer; offices and supplies.
• 28-4-8. Merit system for and retirement for personnel; payment of contributions [Repealed].
• 28-4-9. Source of funds for operation of chapter.

Chapter 5. Financial Affairs, 28-5-1 through 28-5-127.

Article 1 General Provisions.

• 28-5-1. Introduction of bills changing compensation for state officials.
• 28-5-2. Fiscal notes for bills changing compensation.
• 28-5-3. Recording of votes on bills or resolutions fixing compensation or allowances of officials.
• 28-5-4. Consideration of general appropriations bill.
• 28-5-5. Budgetary Responsibility Oversight Committee; members; duties; other entities to cooperate with committee; annual report; allowances; performance audits [Repealed].
• 28-5-6. Powers, duties, and responsibilities of the Senate Budget and Evaluation Office and the House Budget and Research Office.

Article 2 Fiscal Affairs Subcommittees.

• 28-5-20. Creation.
• 28-5-21. Selection and term of service of members.
• 28-5-22. Meetings generally.
• 28-5-23. Review of budget requests.
• 28-5-24. Annual report to General Assembly.
• 28-5-25. Joint meetings to review and approve budget unit object class transfers; limitations upon transfers.
• 28-5-25.1. Approval of leases.
• 28-5-26. Allowances for members.
• 28-5-27. Applicability of article to authority of Office of Planning and Budget.

Article 3 Fiscal Bills Generally.

• 28-5-40. Short title.
• 28-5-41. "Retirement bill" defined [Repealed].
• 28-5-42. Introduction of bills having significant impact upon anticipated revenues or expenditures; furnishing of fiscal notes.
• 28-5-43. Preparation of actuarial investigations for inclusion in fiscal notes [Repealed].
• 28-5-44. Attachment of fiscal notes to bills; reading of notes at third reading of bills; distribution of notes relating to bills prior to final votes thereon.

Article 3A State and Local Government Partnership.

• 28-5-47. Short title.
• 28-5-47.1. Legislative intent and purpose.
• 28-5-48. Definitions.
• 28-5-48.1. Applicability to proposed laws for which full funding to affected localities has been appropriated.
• 28-5-49. Analysis of costs of proposed bills and joint resolutions to affected localities; filing of fiscal notes; requests by representatives of local political subdivisions for copies; waiver of requirements.
• 28-5-50. Filing of notes for regulations, rules, or orders; requests by local political subdivisions for copies.
• 28-5-51. Contents of fiscal note.
• 28-5-52. Assistance of other departments and agencies in the preparation of fiscal notes for bills and joint resolutions; required names and signatures.
• 28-5-53. Revision of fiscal note where fiscal effect of bill or joint resolution changed by amendment; waiver of such revision; processing of revised fiscal note.
• 28-5-54. Preservation of copies of fiscal notes and waivers; availability for public inspection; publication in journals for each house of the General Assembly.
• 28-5-55. Exemptions from this article [Repealed].
• 28-5-56. Presumption as to compliance with this article.

Article 4 Claims Advisory Board.

Part 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS.

• 28-5-60. Creation; membership; representation of members by deputies or other designated employees.
• 28-5-60.1. "The state or any of its departments or agencies" defined.
• 28-5-61. Employment of secretarial, investigatorial, and other help.
• 28-5-62. Unlawful compensation.
• 28-5-63. Statement attached to checks issued for payment of claims.

Part 2 CLAIMS AGAINST STATE OR DEPARTMENTS OR AGENCIES.

• 28-5-80. Introduction of compensation resolutions; general requirements as to filing of notice of claim.
• 28-5-81. Notice of possibility of claims to be filed by state departments and agencies; effect of filing of notice and of failure to file notice.
• 28-5-82. Board hearings.
• 28-5-83. Investigation of claims by board; advisory recommendations.
• 28-5-84. Restrictions on passage of resolutions and board powers.
• 28-5-85. Payment of small claims by board.
• 28-5-86. Time for filing notice of claim.

Part 3 Compensation of Persons for Injuries

Sustained While Preventing Crime or Aiding Officers

of the Law. Article 5

• 28-5-100. Recommendations by board as to payment of compensation; procedural rules.
• 28-5-101. Procedure for claims for compensation.
• 28-5-102. Uniform standards for compensation.
• 28-5-103. When compensation may be recommended; factors to be considered in making recommendations as to compensation.
• 28-5-104. When award of compensation not to be recommended generally; limitations on amounts; action by General Assembly upon recommendations.
• 28-5-105. Scope of compensation.
• 28-5-106. Limitations on claims.
• 28-5-107. Reports on claims transmitted to the General Assembly.
• 28-5-108. Subrogation of state to claims of persons compensated; damage actions against persons responsible for injuries or death.

Fair and Open Grants. Cross references. - Powers of General Assembly regarding appropriations, Ga. Const. 1983, Art. III, Sec. IX.

• 28-5-120. Short title.
• 28-5-121. Definitions.
• 28-5-122. Publication of description of grant program by agency as prerequisite to making grants.
• 28-5-123. Written application demonstrating eligibility as prerequisite to awarding of grant; award of grants to be determined independently by state agency.
• 28-5-124. State agencies to compile annual list of grants awarded and disbursed in prior fiscal year; register of lists to be maintained by Secretary of State.
• 28-5-125. Audits of recipients of grants.
• 28-5-126. Grants in violation of article deemed void; effect of void grant on recipient.
• 28-5-127. Separate appropriation for grants in appropriations Acts; appropriation to contain word "grant."

Chapter 6. Interstate Cooperation, 28-6-1 through 28-6-8.

• 28-6-1. Creation of Senate, House, and Governor's committees; membership.
• 28-6-1.1. "Nonpartisan legislative organization" defined.
• 28-6-2. Creation of Georgia Commission on Interstate Cooperation; membership.
• 28-6-3. Functions of commission.
• 28-6-4. Establishment of delegations, committees, and advisory boards by commission.
• 28-6-5. Reports by commission; compensation of members of commission, delegations, and committees.
• 28-6-6. Informal names of committees and commission.
• 28-6-7. Certain nonpartisan legislative organizations declared joint governmental agencies of the state.
• 28-6-8. Appointment of delegates to Article V conventions called by the Congress of the United States for proposing amendments to the Constitution of the United States.

Chapter 7. Prohibited Lobbying Practices, 28-7-1 through 28-7-5.

• 28-7-1 and 28-7-2 [Repealed].
• 28-7-3. Contingent compensation for lobbyists.
• 28-7-4. Presence of certain persons on floor of House or Senate for purpose of privately discussing pending measures.
• 28-7-5. Penalty for violation of Code Section 28-7-3 or 28-7-4.

Chapter 9. Code Revision Commission, 28-9-1 through 28-9-5.

• 28-9-1. Definitions.
• 28-9-2. Creation of the Code Revision Commission; membership, term of office, and vacancies; expenses and allowances; ratification of previous actions and contracts.
• 28-9-3. Powers and duties of commission generally.
• 28-9-4. Commission staff.
• 28-9-5. Publication of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated; authority to make corrections and editorial changes; effect of changes; treatment of multiple amendments; preparation and introduction of legislation reenacting and correcting Code; effect.

Chapter 10. Georgia Rail Passenger Authority Overview Committee, 28-10-1 through 28-10-7.

• 28-10-1. Creation of the Georgia Rail Passenger Authority Overview Committee; membership; term of office; officers.
• 28-10-2. Duties of committee.
• 28-10-3. Availability of services of state auditor and Attorney General; committee employees; employment of professional services.
• 28-10-4. Cooperation of Georgia Rail Passenger Authority; committee reports.
• 28-10-5. Criteria for committee evaluation of Georgia Rail Passenger Authority.
• 28-10-6. Expenses and allowances for committee members.
• 28-10-7. Effect of chapter on responsibilities of the Georgia Rail Passenger Authority.

Chapter 11. Ethics and Efficiency in Government Act, 28-11-1 through 28-11-8.

• 28-11-1. Short title.
• 28-11-2. Legislative findings.
• 28-11-3. Definitions.
• 28-11-4. Availability of instructional classes and courses; payment of and reimbursement of expenses.
• 28-11-5. Georgia General Assembly Training Institute.
• 28-11-6. Supervision of Georgia General Assembly Training Institute.
• 28-11-7. Authority of board to make contracts, leases, or agreements.
• 28-11-8. Report on accomplishments of institute.