Between the start of the 2019 legislative session and its adjournment on April 2, several bills and resolutions that received final passage were signed by the governor and put into effect. Upon adjournment, even more pieces of legislation were signed; however, not all bills have been put into effect.
Many bills become effective at the start of our fiscal year calendar, which is July 1, and below I have shared with you some of the legislation that will become effective on this date.
• Senate Bill 60 will require the Department of Education to post guidelines and relevant information on the nature and warning signs of sudden cardiac arrest on its website for students participating in interscholastic athletic activities, their parents or guardians and coaches.
Additionally, a student who passes out while participating in or immediately after an interscholastic athletic activity who is known to pass out or faint during or after such activity must be removed at that time until they are cleared in writing by a healthcare provider.
• House Bill 12 will require public schools, including local and state charter schools, to post a sign containing the toll-free telephone number for the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) of the Department of Human Services to report child abuse or neglect at any time. The sign must be posted in a clearly visible location in a public area of the school.
• House Bill 530 will require the Georgia Department of Education to provide a declaration of homeschooling to local school districts. Under HB 530, if a child is withdrawn from school without filing a declaration and the student stops attending school for 45 days, the school would be required to inform the Department of Family and Children Services.
• House Bill 62 will require healthcare facilities that conduct mammograms to notify the patient when their results show dense breast tissue.
• House Bill 218 will extend the time period students are eligible to receive the HOPE scholarship to 10 years from a student’s graduation from high school. The bill allows for an exception for students who serve in the military during the 10-year time period.
• House Bill 228 will increase the minimum age an individual can get married from 16 to 17.
• House Bill 282 requires that in cases where a victim reports a sexual assault to law enforcement, the investigating law enforcement agency will be required to maintain all physical evidence that contains biological material for 30 years from the date of arrest, or seven years from the completion of the sentence, whichever occurs last. If no arrests are made, the evidence must be maintained for 50 years.
• House Bill 346 outlines actions a tenant may take against their landlord relating to the safe occupancy of a property. Landlords will have three months to remedy tenants’ complaints and a list of prohibited retaliatory actions a landlord can take against a tenant are outlined. The bill also specifies the circumstances in which a landlord would not be liable for retaliation claims.
While these are not all of the bills that will become effective on July 1, 2019, they are some I believe to be worth noting. If you have questions regarding these bills or any others that were passed this year, please reach out to my office and I would be happy to help.
For the full list of bills signed by the governor, please follow this link: https://gov.georgia.gov/signed-legislation/2019.
[Sen. Marty Harbin represents the 16th Senate District which includes Lamar, Spalding and Pike counties and a portion Fayette County. He may be reached at 404-656-0078 or by email at marty.harbin@senate.ga.gov.]
