Comprehensive Civil Rights Act (SB 320/HB 670) – SUPPORT
Summary: The Georgia Civil Rights Act of 2025 strengthens protections against discrimination in everyday life. It ensures that people cannot be treated unfairly at work, in housing, or in public accommodations based on their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, familial status, or national origin. The law also takes steps to promote fairness in policing by banning racial profiling and requiring data collection on traffic stops.
Status: Representative Jasmine Clark introduced HB 670 in the House, and Senator Sonya Halpern introduced its companion bill, SB 320, in the Senate. Both measures were assigned to their respective Judiciary Committees and have not yet been scheduled for hearings.
Talking Points:
- Georgia is one of only three states – along with Mississippi and Alabama – without comprehensive civil rights laws barring employers from discriminating on the basis of race or religion.
- Georgia is one of only five states without comprehensive civil rights laws barring race- and faith-based discrimination in public places.
- Texas, Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Mississippi all have more discrimination protections than Georgia.
- This bill ensures that all Georgians enjoy equal protection under the law as guaranteed by the U.S. and Georgia constitutions.
- Georgians lack protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
- Nearly half of LGBTQ Georgians say they have been discriminated against at work.
Librarian Criminalization Bill (SB 74/HB 483) – OPPOSE
Summary: This legislation seeks to criminalize librarians for failing to remove materials that could be considered harmful to minors from public school libraries. It amends Georgia law by removing the current exemption, which prevents public library staff from being charged with the distribution of harmful materials to minors.
Status: SB 74, introduced by Senator Max Burns, cleared the Senate Education and Youth Committee before moving to the House, where it received multiple hearings in the Judiciary Non-Civil Committee but never advanced. Its language was later inserted into HB 483, replacing that bill’s original provisions. The updated HB 483 is now pending a vote before the full Senate.
Talking Points:
- In 2024, a federal district court struck down nearly identical legislation in Arkansas, ruling that it violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments. This bill creates the same legal vulnerabilities and will likely face similar constitutional challenges if passed.
- With thousands of books and digital resources under their care, it is an impossibility for librarians to read every item, let alone remove them. Holding librarians criminally liable puts them at risk for penalties over content they may not even know exists.
- Criminal charges carry long-lasting implications that could follow librarians, impacting their livelihoods, job security, and professional advancement.
- A recent analysis found that many challenged books focus on communities of color, the history of racism in America, and LGBTQ characters.
House Election Omnibus Bill (HB 397) – OPPOSE
Summary: This is an omnibus bill, which refers to a piece of legislation that bundles together many policy changes. While we support provisions that would prohibit the State Election Board (SEB) from passing new rules within 60 days of an election, this bill is ultimately very harmful to Georgia voters. The bill expands the authority of the SEB and limits Saturday voting and absentee ballot drop off options.
Status: HB 397, introduced by Representative Tim Fleming, passed through the House Governmental Affairs Committee and the full House. When it went to the Senate, lawmakers in Senate Ethics and Senate Rules made major changes to the bill. After the Senate approved its version, the bill went back to the House so representatives could decide whether to accept or reject the Senate’s changes. The bill currently sits with the House for this agree/disagree decision. There is an amended version of the bill that was proposed by the Governor at the end of Sine Die but the House has yet to decide to choose to amend the bill. IF they choose to amend HB 397, it will have to again return to the Senate for a final agree/disagree.
Talking Points:
- By allowing the SEB to maintain custody of all reports and communications between the Secretary of State and election superintendents, this bill greatly expands the current duties of the SEB. The SEB does not need to be this involved in election procedure in the counties.
- HB 397 mandates the SEB to create a report on procedures to improve the voter registration system. While a report seems harmless, the political influence of the SEB and lack of election administration knowledge could lead to more harm than good. The SEB is not the governing body that should be making decisions about our voter list maintenance system.
- HB 397 restricts counties from choosing to accept hand-delivered absentee ballots the weekend before an election. Postal delays and possible election office delays make this hand-delivery option important for many voters. Recent changes to the U.S. postal service’s postmark procedures could impact the timeliness of receiving mailed ballots, leaving hand-delivery as the next best option. This option is utilized not just by metro counties but rural counties too.
- In 2024, a college student accidentally packed her absentee ballot and returned to school. That student was able to drive 5 hours to turn in her ballot over the weekend and still have her vote be counted.
Mandatory Minimum for Obstructing Law Enforcement (SB 32) – OPPOSE
Summary: Imposes a mandatory minimum sentence for obstructing law enforcement, which would carry a punishment of 10 to 20 years.
Status: SB 32, introduced by Senator Rick Williams, has been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee but has not yet received a hearing.
Talking Points:
- Increasing the severity of a punishment is ineffective at deterring people from engaging in criminal activity because people aren’t aware of mandatory penalties when they commit a crime.
- Despite stricter mandatory minimums for gang-related offenses, gang activity has actually increased in Georgia, demonstrating the ineffectiveness of such measures.
- Research has consistently shown that laws criminalizing resistance or obstruction of law enforcement disproportionately impact Black people.
- Black people are more likely than their white counterparts to be charged and convicted of offenses that carry mandatory sentences.
- Mandatory minimums force judges to impose severe sentences regardless of the circumstances of an individual case.
- Prosecutors can use the threat of lengthy mandatory minimum sentences to pressure individuals into pleading guilty (‘trial penalty’).
Source: https://www.acluga.org/packthecapinfo/ where you will also find a link to other bills ACLU Georgia will be following