Agenda Item
a. Legislative Update ~ Updated 3.7.2025
Summary: Presented by: Mr. Dan Baskerville, Senior Policy Director, Dentons
Dan Baskerville Dentons US LLP
Senior Policy Director 303 Peachtree Street, NE
Suite 5300
dan.baskerville@dentons.com Atlanta, GA 30308
D +1 404-527-8539 United States
dentons.com
MEMORANDUM
To: DeKalb County School Board Members
Superintendent Horton
From: Dan Baskerville and Dentons Public Policy Team
Date: 3/5/25
Subject: Legislative Update
As you know from the weekly updates we provide, there are numerous education related Bill's that have
been introduced this session. Since that list is too long to discuss this afternoon, we will focus on the
Bill's of might be most significant interest, and do that by category. Please note that because this memo
was requested by March 5, the status of several bills below may change by next week.
.
1) Speed Cameras in School Zones
House Bill 225 - This bill relates to speed detection devices by repealing all laws related to the
enforcement of speeding violations in school zones through the use of automated traffic enforcement
safety devices and prohibits a local governing body or law enforcement agency from entering into or
renewing a contract that provides for enforcement of laws relative to speeding violations in school zones
through the use of automated traffic enforcement safety.
Sponsor: Washburn
Status: Passed the House; pending Senate committee assignment
House Bill 651– This bill mandates improved signage standards requiring larger, more visible signs that
include real-time speed displays and flashing lights to warn drivers. Additionally, it establishes a
structured allocation of collected fines, directing 50% toward local law enforcement and public safety
initiatives and 50% toward school safety programs.
Sponsor: Powell
Status: Passed the House; pending Senate committee assignment
Senate Bill 75 - This bill defines school zone, school zone speed limit, and hours of operation for one
hour twice a day at the discretion of the school, modeled after Decatur’s policy. The bill also requires
signage at the half-mile marker or as close as possible before a school zone.
Sponsor: Burns
Status: Passed the Senate Public Safety Committee; pending in Senate Rules
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2) School Safety and Security
House Bill 268 - creates a statewide student information database run by the Georgia Emergency
Management and Homeland Security Agency (GEMA) to improve information sharing between school
systems, law enforcement, and mental health professionals. Specifically, in short it:
• Creates an Office of Safe Schools within the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland
Security Agency (GEMA/HS)
• Requires a sending school to transfer a student’s entire academic and disciplinary record to the
receiving school within five days
• Provides that a student’s education records must be provided to parents within 3 business days
• Requires local school districts to have behavioral threat assessment teams and use an anonymous
reporting app for potential threats
• Creates the Student School Safety (S3) database under GEMA, high-level school administrators,
and behavioral threat assessment teams will have authorized access to the S3 database
• Creates qualified behavioral health coordinator positions and grants to fund them
• Creates a process to remove students and place them in a virtual school while behavioral threat
assessments are being completed
• Creates tax incentives for firearm storage equipment
• Requires the Office of Safe Schools in conjunction with the State Board of Education and the
Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities to develop a process for a student,
or his/her parent or legal guardian, to request the closure of a student’s case.
Sponsor: Persinger
Status: Passed the House; pending Senate committee assignment
Senate Bill 17 - This bill would require local school systems to implement a mobile panic alert system
connecting disparate emergency services technologies to ensure real-time coordination between multiple
state and local first responder agencies in the event of a school security emergency. It also requires each
local school system to procure school mapping data for each public and private school within its boundaries.
Sponsor: Anavitarte
Status: Passed the Senate Education and Youth Committee; pending in Senate Rules
Budget Funding: In addition to the ongoing school safety grants in the state budget, the AFY25 budget
included an additional $50 million of one-time school safety funds ($158.9 million total, or $68,760 per
school, for school safety).
3) Update QBE Funding Formula
House Bill 42 - This bill deals with the program weights and funding requirements under QBE to revise
provisions for the calculation and distribution of funds by the State Board of Education to local units of
administration for student transportation programs.
Sponsor: V. Davis
Status: Pending in the House Education Committee
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House Bill 245 - This bill relates to QBE by adding a program for students living in poverty to the table of
quality basic education instructional programs with weights and student-teacher ratios.
Sponsor: Olaleye
Status: Pending in the House Education Committee
House Resolution 68 - This resolution supports revising the Quality Basic Education (QBE) and Full-Time
Equivalent (FTE) funding formulas.
Sponsor: Glaize
Status: Pending in the House Education Committee
Budget: In the proposed FY26 budget, an increase of $10,313,902 for funds for pupil transportation formula
grants to reflect updated bus counts and operating expenses
4) Expand Childhood Education and Literacy
House Bill 307 – this bill adds “dyslexia” and characteristics of dyslexia to HB 538/Early Literacy Act (2023
session). The bill specifically states that “three-cueing” curriculum and instructional materials cannot be
considered high-quality instructional materials as part of the “Science of Reading.”
Sponsor: Ballard
Status: Passed the House; pending in the Senate Education and Youth Committee
Budget: In the FY 26 proposed budget, an increase of $339,799 funds to sustain supplements for school
literacy leads at all 1,343 K-3 schools
5) Mental Health and Counseling Services
House Bill 59 - This bill would provide state funding for one school counselor for every 250 full-time
equivalent students.
Sponsor: Glaize
Status: Pending in the House Education Committee
House Bill 81 - This bill would allow the state to enter into the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists
so that school psychologists from other states would be able to work in Georgia with an out-of-state license.
Sponsor: Ballard
Status: Passed the House; passed the Senate Education and Youth Committee; pending in Senate Rules
House Bill 554– This bill enacts the "APEX Now Program,” to provide support for mental health services
to students and school personnel experiencing incidents of violence, threats of violence, natural disasters,
and other crises. It provides for such program to be established within the Department of Behavioral Health
and Developmental Disabilities, provides for the development and promulgation of a mental health crisis
plan, and provides for a 24-hour online and telephonic hotline.
Sponsor: Townsend
Status: Pending in the House Education Committee
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Budget: The AFY25 budget included $872,000 as part of QBE to reduce the student-to-school psychologist
ratio.
6) School District Governance
Senate Bill 4 - Strikes “micromanage” in state statute, and provides for public complaints with the Georgia
Professional Standards Commission by residents 18+ alleging ethics code violations by members of local
boards of education. It also gets rid of required school board training beyond the 15 hours when first
elected. It outlines required and prohibited topics in training programs for local board of education members
and provides for a sanction for school board trainers who do not comply. Training cannot encourage
lobbying of the legislature and cannot include statements, recommendations, or suggestions “that are for
or against current, pending, past, or future legislation affecting local school systems.”
Sponsor: Dolezal
Status: Passed the Senate, but motion made to reconsider
Senate Bill 36 - The Georgia Religious Freedom Restoration Act, which would require the state government
and all political subdivisions, including public schools, to allow for free and unburdened exercise of religion.
Sponsor: Setzler
Status: Passed the Senate; awaiting House Committee assignment
Senate Bill 74 - This bill relates to the sale or distribution of harmful materials to minors by repealing an
exemption for libraries and librarians, so that any violation of the Code section is a misdemeanor of a high
and aggravated nature when committed knowingly and providing for a defense for librarians who make
good faith attempts to identify and remove material harmful to minors.
Sponsor: Burns
Status: Passed the Senate; pending in the House Non-Civil Judiciary Committee
Senate Bill 82 (HB 202) - The Local Charter School Authorization and Support Act of 2025, provides for
local boards of education to reconsider the denial of local charter school petitions and requires the Office
of Charter School Compliance to prepare guidelines for local boards of education to evaluate charter school
petitions. If a local board denies a petition, it must provide a written statement of denial to the charter
petitioner, the State Board of Education, and the Office of Charter School Compliance, specifically stating
the reasons for denial and listing all deficiencies within ten days. A school district with 60,000 or more
students that denies three or more local charter petitions that are subsequently approved by the State
Charter Commission will lose its flexibility contract. A district will receive capital outlay credits and a
$250,000 per year incentive for three years on August 1 for each locally approved charter.
Sponsor: Dixon
Status: Passed the Senate Education and Youth Committee; pending in Senate Rules
Senate Bill 120 - This bill provides that public schools, local education agencies, and public postsecondary
institutions shall not promote, support, or maintain any programs or activities that advocate for DEI
Sponsor: Harbin
Status: Passed the Senate Higher Education Committee; pending in Senate Rules
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Senate Bill 295 - requires local school systems to maintain and publish a registry of all contracts worth
more than $10,000.00 involving the use of any state funds, requires such information to be included on the
contract registry, and requires local boards of education to adopt policies and to provide for enforcement.
Sponsor: Anavitarte
Status: Passed the Senate Education and Youth Committee; pending in Senate Rules
7) Homestead Tax Bills
House Bill 92 - The current version of the bill, includes a provision the requires local governments, including
school boards that have opted out to complete the three public hearings and pass a resolution annually to
remain opted out.
Sponsors: Blackmon
Status: Passed the House; pending in the Senate Rules Committee
House Bill 370– This bill relates to ad valorem property tax bill form to require the property tax bill for any
school district that opts out of the state-wide base year homestead exemption to state the total amount of
the school district's reserve funds.
Sponsor: Gaines
Status: Passed the House Ways and Means Committee; pending in House Rules
8) School Vouchers/Private School Scholarships
House Bill 328– This bill increases the annual aggregate limit from $120 million to $200 million for tax credits
available for certain contributions to student scholarship organizations.
Sponsor: Carpenter
Status: Passed the House Ways and Means Committee; pending in House Rules
Senate Bill 152– This bill expands SB 233 (2024 session) to allow biological or adopted children of
individuals who have been foster parents in the last ten years to qualify for vouchers regardless of their
school attendance zones. Foster children will not qualify.
Sponsor: Dolezal
Status: Passed the Senate; pending in House Education Committee
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