PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA EDUCATORS

The 2025 legislative session is 50% complete. Though the 20th legislative day was lean on education-related floor action, multiple education bills moved through afternoon committee meetings. The PAGE legislative team was glad to see PAGE board member Amy Carter who visited the Gold Dome while her daughter paged. Check out more information about the House and Senate page programs if your child or student is interested in serving as a page. House Floor Session Senate Fl

Please note that due to the volume of activity under the Gold Dome yesterday, the Day 18 report was in two parts. Today’s Day 19 report also contains the remainder of Day 18 action. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Day 19: House Ed Subcommittee Approves 'Riley Gaines Act' This afternoon, the House Education Policy Subcommittee heard from several trans rights advocates who urged them not to approve HB 267 , the Riley Gaines Act, before amending and passing the measure

Please note that due to the volume of action under the Gold Dome today, the Day 18 report will be in two parts. The Day 19 report tomorrow will contain the remainder of Day 18 action.   The House passed HB 92 , which pushes back the date by which local communities may opt out of a floating homestead exemption passed by the legislature in 2024. HB 92, sponsored by Rep. Shaw Blackmon (R-Bonaire), now moves to the Senate for consideration in the context of an ongoing policy deba

Week Five of the 2025 Legislative Session ended eventfully. Multiple education-related bills passed both chambers, including a PAGE-supported measure to establish an interstate compact for school psychologists and another to double the state payment awarded to educators who are killed while on the job. Important bills were also heard in committees, including the House's comprehensive school safety bill. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session House Ed Subcommittee Passes Com

The Capitol was crowded and bustling today, but Day 16 was lean on education activity with the exception of publication of a notice for tomorrow's hearing on HB 268 by Rep. Holt Persinger (R-Winder), which addresses school safety issues. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session House Education Subcommittee to Hear Comprehensive School Safety Legislation Tomorrow Tune in tomorrow at 1 p.m. for a hearing on House leadership's comprehensive school safety bill. The PAGE-supp

Presentations were the order of the day today. The Senate Children & Families Committee heard presentations from Marietta City Schools and others on the impact of cell phones in schools. The Senate Education & Youth Committee discussed return-to-work legislation, Georgia's largest alternative teacher preparation program, Reading Corps and Math Corps, and information presented by new Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) Executive Secretary Jody Barrow. Neither com

As of today, the 2025 legislative session is one-third complete. The House Education Committee met and passed its first bills of the session. These include two measures supported by PAGE: one to establish an interstate compact for school psychologists and another to double the state payment awarded to educators who are killed while on the job. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session House Ed Hears from Woods and Passes PAGE-Supported Bills The meeting opened with an address

Floor action and committee work intensified today as education legislation progressed on the concluding day of week four. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session House Approves AFY2025 Budget The AFY2025 budget (HB 67) passed the House by a vote of 166-3. The most notable education-related House addition to Gov. Brian Kemp's initial budget proposal is $3 million in startup funding for a school threat assessment tracking system. This addition aligns with HB 268 , the House's

PAGE visited with the Georgia Association of School Counselors at the Capitol today. The Legislative staff took the photo, below right, of Gov. Brian and Marty Kemp with the counselors. PAGE Legislative Specialist Josh Stephens, left, and Director of Legislative Services Margaret Ciccarelli met with Kevin Keve who serves on the PAGE Legislative Advisory Committee. Keve is a former school resource officer and current school counselor in Thomas County Schools. House Floor Sessi

It was a busy day under the Gold Dome. The Georgia Association of School Psychologists and Decoding Dyslexia advocated on education issues, and PAGE visited with both groups throughout the day. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Speaker Burns Announces 'Riley Gaines Act' House Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) and other House GOP members held a news conference to announce the introduction of the "Riley Gaines Act," sponsored by Rep. Josh Bonner (R-Fayetteville). The b

The fourth week of the legislative session featured two key school-focused events: House Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) held a press conference on upcoming House school safety legislation, and a joint meeting of the House and Senate education committees included presentations on school safety and literacy. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Speaker Burns Announces School Safety Legislation Burns and other members of the House held a news conference to unveil a major

While floor sessions in both the House and Senate remain short and light, committee meetings are being held with increasing frequency. During this early part of the legislative session, the vast majority of actual work will be handled in committees. Bills will be considered and modified, and it will likely be several more days before either chamber votes on significant bills. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Senate Ed Passes Fair and Safe Athletic Opportunities Act I

Neither chamber had significant activity today. However, many committees have begun meeting. Bills are expected to soon begin moving through the legislative process. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session PAGE Legislative Team Hosts Webinar on AFY25 and FY25 Budgets After wrapping up work at the Capitol, the PAGE Legislative Team hosted a PAGE member webinar, Investing in Public Schools: State Funding Proposals for AFY 2025 & FY 2026, in which they discussed Gov. Brian Kemp

This morning, the House and Senate held short floor sessions, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court provided his State of the Judiciary Address. Committees began meeting in earnest this afternoon. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Joint Retirement Committee Learns about TRS & PSERS After briefly discussing their respective committee rules, the House and Senate retirement committees convened in a joint session to hear presentations by the Teachers Retirement Syste

After cancellation of joint appropriations hearings last week due to winter weather, the House and Senate conducted short floor sessions today and began ramping up scheduled committee meetings. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Education Budget Hearings Tomorrow; Register for PAGE's Jan. 29 State Budget Webinar to Learn More Register for the PAGE Budget Webinar at no cost HERE . The House is conducting hearings this week to review Gov. Brian Kemp's proposed budgets. Se

Friday's closing gavel in House and Senate chambers marked the end of the fifth legislative day and the first week of the 2025 Legislative Session. It was an uneventful legislative day. Both chambers will remain in recess next week to conduct hearings on the state budget. House Floor Session Senate Floor Session Budget Hearings Next Week, Register for PAGE's Jan. 29 State Budget Webinar to Learn More Register for the free Budget Webinar HERE . The House and Senate will hold j

Gov. Brian Kemp delivered the State of the State Address this morning to a joint session of the House and Senate. Key themes included a review of the challenges Georgia has successfully faced during Kemp's administration, tort reform, hurricane recovery efforts with a nod of thanks to both President Joe Biden and President-Elect Donald Trump, and state support for mental health and anti-gang and anti-human-trafficking efforts. The governor's references to education were brief

The third day of the 2025 Legislative Session was relatively uneventful. Both chambers are in the process of assigning members to committees and other administrative tasks. It is unlikely that major legislative action will begin before joint appropriations hearings conclude next week. House Floor Session Video Senate Floor Session Video Senate Education & Youth Committee Members Named Committee Chair Sen. Billy Hickman As previously reported by PAGE, Se

State constitutional officers, legislators, business leaders, and hundreds of other Georgians gathered at the Georgia World Congress Center for the Georgia Chamber of Commerce's annual Eggs & Issues breakfast, While economic and business issues dominated policymakers' remarks, adjacent policy areas including K-12 education were mentioned. In his comments, House Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) emphasized school safety and literacy and predicted the House would take action to a

As the morning sun shone off melting snow, the Georgia General Assembly officially convened for the 2025 Legislative Session. This year represents a reset since it is the first year of a two-year biennium. Several new legislators begin their first terms following November elections. And, all legislation that failed to pass in 2024 must be refiled anew and restart the legislative process. Both chambers' business was light and primarily administrative. Perhaps the most notable