pro.stateaffairs.com · September 9, 2026
# State Affairs Georgia
Sep 09, 2026
2025 session recap: Lawmakers pass landmark bills, leave much unsettled
Georgia Capitol. (Credit: Beau Evans)
Beau Evans Apr 07, 2025
The dust has settled on the 2025 legislative session.
Nearly three months of bill wrangling brought Gov. Brian Kemp a series of political wins to kick off his penultimate year in office — and left potential gubernatorial successors primed for 2026 election runs.
As the General Assembly gaveled out on Friday, the fates of many high-profile bills remained undecided and up-for-grabs next year when lawmakers reconvene for the second half of the biennial session.
Here’s where things stand:
### Governor wins big
Kemp notched perhaps the most successful session of his two terms so far as the Legislature pushed through his agenda to lower income taxes, help Georgians hit hard by Hurricane Helene and reshape the state’s civil courts to curb business-crippling lawsuits.
Flush with hefty revenue collections, Kemp tasked House and Senate leaders with passing a $2 billion income tax relief package and substantial emergency aid for hurricane-ravaged farmers and other industries — and they delivered.
Legislators approved a 4% reduction to the state income tax and $250 rebates for each taxpayer. They did so while also packing $867 million into the state’s annual budget for struggling South Georgia communities to keep recovering from the 2024 storm.
The governor’s most resounding win came in a landmark overhaul of Georgia’s lawsuit system — called tort reform — that forced Kemp to put the full power of his office on display.
A former state senator, Kemp leveled threats of a special session and primary challenges to opposing lawmakers from his Republican party to shoulder through tort reform measures in both chambers. He even secured key votes from three Democratic representatives who broke a stalemate on the House floor.
“I know you all know that fight was hard and the debates were fierce,” Kemp told lawmakers on the session’s final day. “But it’s my belief that at the end of the day we have a commonsense, comprehensive piece of legislation that will keep our state moving in the right direction.”
### Sign or veto
Around 400 bills and resolutions cleared the Legislature from Jan. 13 to April 4, most of which now await Kemp’s decision on which to sign into law — and which to veto.
Joking with lawmakers on Sine Die, Kemp said he’s already sharpened his metaphorical pencils for signing or vetoing legislation. “It’s just a matter of which color we’re gonna use,” he said.
To date, the governor has signed several bills including a record $40.5 billion midyear budget to fund state government through June and a contentious religious freedom bill that his successor, former Gov. Nathan Deal, vetoed in 2016.
Kemp has 40 days from the end of session — or by May 15 — to sign or veto legislation. Any bills he does not sign by that deadline automatically become law.
He also has authority to veto specific line items in the $37.7 billion state budget for the 2026 fiscal year, but he will likely proceed with a light touch. Kemp gained approval for several budgetary priorities including $141 million for private school vouchers and $321 million in construction projects funded by cash reserves.
Also on Kemp’s desk are bills that prohibit transgender athletes from playing in girls school sports; ban cell phones and smart devices during school hours for students in kindergarten through eighth grade; expand child care tax credits for Georgia parents; and toughen punishments for fentanyl traffickers.
It remains to be seen whether lawmakers will need to return earlier than next January to retool the state budget amid potential impacts on tax revenues due to the White House’s recent global tariffs.
House Appropriations Chairman Matt Hatchett, R-Dublin, said last week the state’s reserves are “in a good position” to weather possible economic storms from the tariffs. He noted lawmakers could simply revise the 2026 fiscal year budget during the next session to account for any revenue losses.
“I’m not concerned,” Hatchett said. “We can always come back and do what we are charged to do by our constituents, and that’s make sure the state budget is accurate and can be funded.”
### Elections shape session
Lawmakers will return next year with a pile of bills to be decided and strained relationships in need of mending after Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who is weighing a run for governor in 2026, shut down the Senate early last Friday with dozens of measures left unsettled.
The move by Jones sparked a fiery response from House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington, who must now determine whether to patch fractures with his Republican colleagues in the Senate — or flex his muscles as the General Assembly’s most powerful member.
“We’re working for the people of Georgia,” Burns said on Friday after the Senate adjourned. “You can go home if you want to, but I’m going to stay here and ask the members of this chamber to take care of the people’s business.”
With contenders eying 2026 campaigns, House and Senate leaders have the next eight months to iron out the details of several measures that were set for passage last week but stalled amid the Sine Die drama.
Legislators will resume tackling divisive subjects intended to stir grassroots voters ahead of next year’s elections including bills outlawing “diversity, equity and inclusion” policies in schools, punishing librarians who allow children to access “harmful” materials and overhauling election rules to give local officials leeway to opt out of Saturday early voting.
Other bills still alive include a sales tax holiday for gun purchases, a ban on doctors from prescribing puberty-blocking medications to children and a large increase in the potency of the psychoactive chemical in medical marijuana.
New bills will likely arise from several study committees that lawmakers created this session including panels tasked with evaluating insurance rates, proposing more election reforms and determining how to fund modern “next generation” 911 call centers.
Details on when those study committees will meet and which lawmakers will preside over them are expected to roll out in the coming weeks.
Have questions, comments or tips? Contact Beau Evans at beau@stateaffairs.com or on X @beauvans.