End Of 2026 Legislative Session Kicks Off Bill Signing Season In Georgia

By Maya Homan, Georgia Recorder

April 9, 1016

Georgia’s 2026 legislative session has come to a close, but all bills passed by state lawmakers this year have one final hurdle to clear before they can take effect: Being signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp.

Kemp has 40 days after the Legislature adjourns to sign or veto the measures passed by state lawmakers this session. At the end of the 40 days, which falls this year on May 12, any bills remaining will automatically become law.

This year marks Kemp’s eighth and final term as governor, but at the beginning of this year’s session, he hinted at the power his vetoes have to shape state policy.

“For those who may think I’m a lame duck, well, I still have a big red pen,” Kemp told lawmakers during his final state of the state address in January. Last year, Kemp vetoed a total of seven bills.

Among the more controversial bills awaiting Kemp’s signature are House Bill 369, which would make certain elected positions in five metro Atlanta counties nonpartisan, including the office of district attorneys.

Cobb County District Attorney Sonya Allen, who spoke out against the bill during a press conference last week, said she would join a lawsuit to challenge the legislation if it gets signed into law.

“This bill is not constitutionally sound,” she told reporters, adding that any amendment to the state Constitution would need to be approved by voters through a constitutional amendment. “There’s a process for that, and that process has been totally skipped over and manipulated.”

House Bill 295, which would allow property owners to sue their local governments for failing to enforce laws around homelessness and immigration, also has some opponents calling for a veto.

In a statement, Press Secretary Carter Chapman said the governor’s office “will analyze all the bills that passed the General Assembly, as well as the consequences of those that did not pass.”

In the meantime, at least one state lawmaker is openly urging Kemp to veto a bill.

State Rep. Scott Holcomb, an Atlanta Democrat, sent a letter to the governor Monday arguing that Senate Bill 33, which was originally about hemp but was later replaced with language focused on reining in rising property taxes, is unconstitutional because it originated in the state Senate.

Under the Georgia Constitution, he wrote, “All bills for raising revenue, or appropriating money, shall originate in the House of Representatives.”

The bill gained final passage in the House shortly before lawmakers adjourned on sine die.

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