'Lawmakers' Day 30: House OKs budget; Senate hears first House bills; Loeffler and Rollins visit

Caption

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins speaks on the Georgia House floor March 10, 2026.

Credit: Georgia House of Representatives

On Tuesday at the Capitol, lawmakers were paid a visit by two Trump administration officials, and the House took on its only constitutionally required duty. 

The House kicked off the day with a visit from Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler. 

After passing the supplemental budget two weeks ago, the House was at it again, this time presenting House Bill 974, the fiscal year 2027 budget. 

The $38.5 billion budget is 2% higher than last year's budget, and includes more money for literacy coaches in public elementary schools. 

"We funded $60.8 million related to literacy in this budget," House Appropriations Chair Rep. Matt Hatchett (R-Dublin) said. "This is a massive down payment on historic investment that will get our kindergarten to third graders reading on grade level, effectively moving them from learning to read to reading to learn. HB 1193 provides for a literacy coach at 1,313 elementary schools. These positions will be funded through the QBE program, just like teachers, counselors, and principals."

The state's correctional facilities are also receiving investment. 

"We've made great strides in proving our correctional officer workforce, and this budget provides $34.9 million to continue the hiring trajectory to reduce the inmate-to-correctional officer ratio to 1 to 12 in FY27 with a goal of 1 to 11 by the FY28 budget cycle," Hatchett said. "This budget also provides $70 million to the department to continue providing for the physical, mental, dental and pharmaceutical needs of a prison population that has increased to over 50,500 inmates this fiscal year." 

Legislators also penciled in more funds for health care and autism therapy and included money for infrastructure improvement and feral hog eradication programs. 

HB 974 was passed and immediately transmitted to the Senate.

In the Senate, the first House bills were debated and voted on today. 

HB 945 was a banking cleanup bill. A new provision would protect the elderly and people with mental disabilities from financial exploitation by putting a hold on financial transactions suspected to be fraudulent. 

"The financial institution may reach out to what this bill refers to as a trusted contact," Sen. Mike Hodges (R-Brunswick) said. "That would be an adult designated by the account holder and notify this trusted contact of the suspected financial exploitation. Once a transaction hold has been placed, the financial institution must initiate an investigation. If the results of the investigation do not indicate financial exploitation, the institution may consummate the transaction." 

The bill would also create more stringent guardrails around virtual currency kiosks. The bill passed unanimously. 

HB 115 would require abandoned boats and other watercraft to be registered with the Department of Natural Resources and hold owners responsible for the cost of derelict watercraft cleanup. 

"This establishes the ability of DNR to board the vessel, just to check out from a safety standpoint, label it abandoned, they search it in the computers and see if there is an owner, and the owner has about 30 days to remove the vessel," Sen. Ben Watson (R-Savannah) said.

The bill was passed unanimously. 

HB 244 allows extensions for local governments to provide financial audits and changes the monetary requirements before audits would be required by state auditors to receive state funds. 

That passed 48 to 2. 

Senate Resolution 771 would create a study committee to look at the financial costs incurred by families during the adoption process. 

"What we need to do now is establish an adoption process here in Georgia that is affordable and transparent so that the children who want to be adopted or who, their mother and father want to put them up for adoption, have the opportunity to move into a loving family," Sen. Randy Robertson (R-Cataula) said. "And those who choose to adopt should understand the process much better. I'm hoping that this study committee will also address the affordability of adoption and the responsibility of adoption."

House Resolution 1008 would ratify amendments to a statewide water management plan for the state's 10 water councils. 

Both resolutions were passed. 

At a midday press conference, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins spoke about the supplemental block grants that Georgia farmers can apply for to help with recovery efforts from Hurricane Helene. Loeffler, House Speaker John Burns, and Gov. Brian Kemp joined the secretary for the announcement. 

"Thanks to your agriculture commissioner's incredible work under the leadership of your governor, a new block grant for your farmers here in Georgia of about $561 million," Rollins said. "That will open up officially for applications this next Monday, March the 16th. Applications will close April the 27th."

And finally, the annual Gold Dome Kickball Championship took place yesterday at Georgia State University. 

The House beat the Senate for the second year in a row, 9-3, in a hard-fought, injury-ridden game.

The House and Senate will be back on Thursday for Day 31, which is also Technology Demo Day at the Capitol.

GPB's Lawmakers returns for Day 31 on Thursday, Mar. 12 at 7 p.m. on GPB TV.