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Twenty-fifth legislative day - Thursday, February 26, 2026
Crossover Day is Friday, March 6, the date by which legislation must have passed out of the chamber of its origination to be eligible for consideration by the other chamber
Next week is the qualifying period for candidates for statewide, legislative,
and Congressional candidates for the November 2026 election
GAE Day at the Capitol is Thursday
GAE endorses in 14th Congressional District special election
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Bill would judge Education Preparation Programs
(EPPs) based on academic achievement
data of their alumni's students
HB 1107 - "The Excellent Teacher Preparation Act" - passed the House of Representatives today 166-0. The bill concerns educator preparation for EPPs. The bill would require the state Board of Education, the state Department of Education, the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, and the Office of Student Achievement develop performance measures that evaluate the performance of each EPP. Such EPP performance measures are to focus on the preparedness and performance of EPP graduates. Included in the list of measures of EPP programs is information about student performance data for the first three years after EPP completion.
House also approves bill to require audit
of schools and the Georgia Department of Education
HB 1164, which passed today 103-68, would require State Board of Education to appoint an audit committee and would revise provisions for financial audits of local school systems.
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Senate passes education bills today
The Georgia state Senate today passed legislation pertaining to public education.
SB 472 relates to the suspension and removal of local school board members upon potential loss of accreditation and in districts at financial risk. The bill passed the Senate 40-8.
SB 513 - the "Every Day Counts Act" - addresses chronic student absenteeism by allowing the suspension of students from extracurricular activities for excessive absenteeism. The bill also contemplates the revocation of a student's drivers license. The bill passed the Senate 46-1.
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House Ed committee hears bills
The House Education Committee took up several bills today. Among them were:
HB 1045, by Rep. Tangie Herring, D-Macon, will require, if enacted, public schools that issue student identification badges to include certain information about the 9-8-8 crisis response hotline. The bill passed without objection.
HB 1284 would allow for the issuance of a high school diploma for a student who are at the end of life. The bill was favorably voted out of committee without objection.
HB 1402 calls for vision and hearing screening for all public school students enrolled in pre-kindergarten through third grade. The bill passed the committee.
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| GAE DAY AT THE CAPITOL NEXT WEEK
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Senate Education Committee chair, Billy Hickman
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House Education Committee chair, Chris Erwin
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Ranking Democrat, House Education Committee, Doreen Carter
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Longest serving member of the House and GAE member, Gerald Greene
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Youngest member of the House and author of bill to prohibit waivers for duty-free lunch and teacher planning periods, Akbar Ali
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State School Superintendent, Richard Woods
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GAE/NEA endorses in 14th Congressional special
GAE and NEA announced today that they have recommended Shawn Harris as their endorsed candidate in the 14th Congressional District election on March 10. The seat was vacated by former U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in early January.
Early voting has already begun. The 14th Congressional District includes Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Murray, Paulding, Polk, Walker and Whitfield counties as well as portions of Cobb County.
Harris is a Brigadier General with 30 years of service, a cattle farmer in Polk County, former 7th grade math and science teacher, and NEA member. GAE encourages a vote for Harris.
For more information, visit his web site at: https://www.shawnforgeorgia.com/
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|  | ENDORSED CANDIDATE IN THE
14th CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
SHAWN HARRIS
WHICH INCLUDES CATOOSA, CHATTOOGA, DADE, FLOYD, MURRAY, PAULDING, POLK, WALKER and WHITFIELD counties as well as portions of COBB COUNTY.
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Early voting underway in several districts
Many voters in Georgia can now vote in several in-person, early voting special elections, including:
Senate District 53 (Chattooga, Dade, Walker, and portions of Catoosa and Floyd counties) for the seat previously held by Colton Moore;
House District 94 (DeKalb and Fulton counties) GAE finds both Audrey Lux and Venola Mason as acceptable candidates;
House District 130 (Richmond County) GAE has endorsed Sha'Qunta Calles in this race;
and the 14th Congressional District in northwest Georgia, in which race NEA - based on the recommendation of the Georgia Association of Education - has endorsed Shawn Harris. Harris is a Brigadier General, cattle farmer, former 7th grade math and science teacher, and NEA member.
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Join us for an update on the
legislative session on March 3
The GAE Legislative Contact Team (LCT) next meets March 3, for a special briefing on the 2026 legislative session. Please join us at 6:30 p.m. and register here.
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Clarification
In yesterday's report, we reported that one educator organization appeared to call for a study committee in lieu of the passage of HB 1244, a bill to limit the circumstances that school districts can waive duty-free lunch and planning periods. The spokesperson for the group instead was calling for a study complementary to the passage of the bill.
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The next Legislative Alert will be Tuesday, March 3
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