State Banking Issues

Georgia General Assembly 2026 Session

The Georgia General Assembly convened Jan. 12, 2026, for the second session of a 2-year legislative cycle.
 
GBA is represented throughout each session by our Executive Vice President for Government Relations & Advocacy Elizabeth Chandler, 404.372.7893, Government Relations Consultant Steve Bridges, 404.420.2037,  SVP, Member Services & Advocacy Bo Brannen, 404.420.2014, Tripp Cofield, 404.420.2016, president & CEO of GBA. Contact any of them with questions about legislation, information about your legislator's stance on a particular issue, or to request any other information related to the Georgia General Assembly.

GBA's Georgia General Assembly Legislation Tracker

Below are the banking and financial services bills we are tracking during the 2026 session.

GBA Priority / Supporting

Department of Banking Housekeeping Bill. HB 945 by Rep. Bruce Williamson (R-Monroe) is the annual update to language in Title 7 of the Official Code of Georgia related to all the entities regulated by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance. Of interest to bankers are the provisions in this year’s bill authorizing banks and other institutions to place temporary holds on transactions involving elderly or disabled customers when financial exploitation is reasonably suspected. It establishes procedures for notice, review, documentation, training, and record retention, and provides strong civil, criminal, and administrative immunity when institutions act in good faith, giving banks clearer authority and protection to intervene in fraud scenarios. The bill also creates a comprehensive regulatory framework for virtual currency kiosks (crypto ATMs). The bill imposes strict disclosures, fee caps, transaction limits, refund rights for fraud victims, customer identification, monitoring requirements, and live support obligations on kiosk operators, helping to reduce losses and customer harm. Additionally, the bill clarifies bank merger notification requirements and objection authority for the Department, updates corporate governance rules applicable to banks, modernizes merchant acquirer limited purpose bank rules, and expands regulatory oversight of litigation finance.

Bills Opposed

Debanking. SB 341 by Sen. Blake Tillery (R-Vidalia) is an updated version of the debanking bill that failed in 2025, SB 57. It is very similar to SB 57, however, SB 341 increases the asset threshold for covered banks from $1B to $2B and includes an investigatory role for the State Attorney General’s office. GBA-opposed language establishing a new private right of action remains in the bill. NOTE: Carryover from 2025 Legislative Session

Interchange. HB 431 by Rep. Todd Jones (R-North Fulton) prohibits interchange from being applied on any amount greater than the price a consumer pays for a good or service, effectively prohibiting interchange on the sales tax portion of debit or credit card transactions. NOTE: Carryover from 2025 Legislative Session

Bills Monitoring

Foreclosure Notices. HB 948 by Rep. Beth Camp (R-Concord) would require foreclosure notices to include contact information for entities authorized to negotiate mortgage terms with debtors. It would mandate that notices clearly disclose debtors’ rights to surplus funds following a foreclosure sale, and require deadlines for claiming excess funds to be prominently displayed in bold type and accompanied by the necessary claim forms. It would also extend these notice requirements to tax sale proceedings.

Securities and Commodities Regulation. HB 934 by Rep. Noel Williams (R-Cordele) would transfer regulatory authority over securities and commodities from the Secretary of State to the Department of Banking and Finance. It would establish an advisory board of up to 12 members with expertise in securities and commodities to advise the Banking Commissioner. All existing rules, regulations, and contracts related to securities regulation would be continued under the Department of Banking and Finance, and employees of the Secretary of State currently engaged in securities regulation would be transferred to the Department.

Statewide Homestead Exemption. SB 382 by Sen. Chuck Hufstetler (R-Rome) establishes a mandatory, statewide base-year homestead exemption for all counties and municipalities that levy property taxes. It would remove the requirement that municipalities offer a homestead exemption before calling special district sales tax referendums and permit automatic renewal of homestead exemptions for 2025 for property owners who received an exemption in 2024 and remain eligible.

Timber. HR 1000 by Rep. Chuck Efstration (R-Mulberry) would eliminate ad valorem taxation on standing timber harvested from forest land designated for conservation use. It would require property owners to enter into a 10-year covenant to maintain forest land conservation use. Imposes recapture of prior tax savings, plus penalties, if the covenant is breached within the 10-year period.