Georgia 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: Introduced Bipartisan · 3 R · 2 D cosponsors

SB 498 — Georgia Charter School Facilities Authority; establish

Last action — House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute

  1. 1
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been introduced in the Senate. Introduced February 11, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee referral and hearing.

Odds of enactment

Low chance

Based on the sponsor, cosponsors, and committee posture, this bill has a low chance of becoming law.

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A statistical estimate from our own model of past outcomes — an insight, not a guarantee. Policymaking is volatile.

Prognosis

Advancing 52% · moderate confidence

  • Introduced

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 5 sponsors

    1 primary, 4 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (3 R · 2 D) — cross-party backing.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Based on stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes, and cross-state momentum — a description of the observable signals, not a prediction.

Summary

A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Article 31B of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the O.C.G.A., relating to charter school capital finance, so as to establish the Georgia Charter School Facilities Authority for the purpose of enabling charter schools to obtain revolving loan funds and other public financing assistance for purposes of constructing, renovating, and rehabilitating educational facilities for such schools;to amend Article 2 of Chapter 17 of Title 50 of the O.C.G.A., the "Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission Act," so as to provide for the issuance of general obligation bonds by the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission to provide for educational facilities for charter schools; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute

  2. House Second Readers

  3. House First Readers

  4. Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute

  5. Senate Third Read

  6. Senate Taken from Table

  7. Senate Tabled

  8. Senate Engrossed

  9. Senate Read Second Time

  10. Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute

  11. Senate Read and Referred

  12. Senate Hopper

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 4 co-sponsors · 242 not signed on · 21 voted No

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (4)

Not signed on (242)

242 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 242 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

PASSAGE BY SUBSTITUTE

Passed 49 Yea · 3 Nay · 4 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Republican 28103
Democrat 21200
Unaffiliated 0001
Total 49304
% of votes cast 88%5%0%7%
How each member voted (56)
Member Party Vote
VACANT — Not Voting
David Lucas Democrat Yea
Derek Mallow Democrat Yea
Donzella James Democrat Yea
Ed Harbison Democrat Yea
Elena Parent Democrat Yea
Emanuel Jones Democrat Yea
Freddie Powell Sims Democrat Nay
Gail Davenport Democrat Yea
Harold Jones II Democrat Yea
Jaha Howard Democrat Yea
Josh McLaurin Democrat Yea
Kenya Wicks Democrat Yea
Kim Jackson Democrat Yea
Michael 'Doc' Rhett Democrat Yea
Nabilah Parkes Democrat Yea
Nan Orrock Democrat Yea
Nikki Merritt Democrat Nay
RaShaun Kemp Democrat Yea
Randal Mangham Democrat Yea
Sally Harrell Democrat Yea
Sheikh Rahman Democrat Yea
Sonya Halpern Democrat Yea
Tonya Anderson Democrat Yea
Ben Watson Republican Yea
Bill Cowsert Republican Yea
Billy Hickman Republican Yea
Blake Tillery Republican Nay
Bo Hatchett Republican Not Voting
Brian Strickland Republican Yea
Carden Summers Republican Yea
Chuck Hufstetler Republican Yea
Chuck Payne Republican Yea
Clint Dixon Republican Yea
Drew Echols Republican Yea
Ed Setzler Republican Yea
Frank Ginn Republican Yea
Greg Dolezal Republican Yea
Jason Anavitarte Republican Yea
Jason T. Dickerson Republican Yea
John Albers Republican Yea
Kay Kirkpatrick Republican Yea
Larry Walker, III Republican Not Voting
Lee Anderson Republican Yea
Marty Harbin Republican Yea
Matt Brass Republican Yea
Max Burns Republican Yea
Mike Hodges Republican Yea
Randy Robertson Republican Yea
Rick Williams Republican Yea
Russ Goodman Republican Yea
Sam Watson Republican Not Voting
Shawn Still Republican Yea
Steve Gooch Republican Yea
Steven McNeel Republican Yea
Timothy Bearden Republican Yea

Official roll call →

MOTION TO ENGROSS: SB 306, SB 465, SB 498, SR 668

Passed 31 Yea · 22 Nay · 3 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Republican 31001
Democrat 02201
Unaffiliated 0001
Total 312203
% of votes cast 55%39%0%5%
How each member voted (56)
Member Party Vote
VACANT — Not Voting
David Lucas Democrat Nay
Derek Mallow Democrat Nay
Donzella James Democrat Nay
Ed Harbison Democrat Nay
Elena Parent Democrat Nay
Emanuel Jones Democrat Nay
Freddie Powell Sims Democrat Nay
Gail Davenport Democrat Nay
Harold Jones II Democrat Nay
Jaha Howard Democrat Nay
Josh McLaurin Democrat Nay
Kenya Wicks Democrat Nay
Kim Jackson Democrat Nay
Michael 'Doc' Rhett Democrat Nay
Nabilah Parkes Democrat Not Voting
Nan Orrock Democrat Nay
Nikki Merritt Democrat Nay
RaShaun Kemp Democrat Nay
Randal Mangham Democrat Nay
Sally Harrell Democrat Nay
Sheikh Rahman Democrat Nay
Sonya Halpern Democrat Nay
Tonya Anderson Democrat Nay
Ben Watson Republican Yea
Bill Cowsert Republican Yea
Billy Hickman Republican Yea
Blake Tillery Republican Yea
Bo Hatchett Republican Yea
Brian Strickland Republican Yea
Carden Summers Republican Yea
Chuck Hufstetler Republican Yea
Chuck Payne Republican Yea
Clint Dixon Republican Yea
Drew Echols Republican Not Voting
Ed Setzler Republican Yea
Frank Ginn Republican Yea
Greg Dolezal Republican Yea
Jason Anavitarte Republican Yea
Jason T. Dickerson Republican Yea
John Albers Republican Yea
Kay Kirkpatrick Republican Yea
Larry Walker, III Republican Yea
Lee Anderson Republican Yea
Marty Harbin Republican Yea
Matt Brass Republican Yea
Max Burns Republican Yea
Mike Hodges Republican Yea
Randy Robertson Republican Yea
Rick Williams Republican Yea
Russ Goodman Republican Yea
Sam Watson Republican Yea
Shawn Still Republican Yea
Steve Gooch Republican Yea
Steven McNeel Republican Yea
Timothy Bearden Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

finance education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does SB 498 do?
A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Article 31B of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the O.C.G.A., relating to charter school capital finance, so as to establish the Georgia Charter School Facilities Authority for the purpose of enabling charter schools to obtain revolving loan funds and other public financing assistance for purposes of constructing, renovating, and rehabilitating educational facilities for such schools;to amend Article 2 of Chapter 17 of Title 50 of the O.C.G.A., the "Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission Act," so as to provide for the issuance of general obligation bonds by the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission to provide for educational facilities for charter schools; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
Who sponsors SB 498?
SB 498 is sponsored by Sonya Halpern (Democrat), Shawn Still (Republican), RaShaun Kemp (Democrat), Billy Hickman (Republican), and Clint Dixon (Republican).
What is the current status of SB 498?
This bill has been introduced in the Senate. Introduced February 11, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track SB 498?
Track SB 498 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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