# Georgia SB 146: Health, Local Government, and Property; regulations and protections of cemeteries and burial grounds; provide Georgia SB 146, Health, Local Government, and Property; regulations and protections of cemeteries and burial grounds; provide, is a 2025-2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by John Albers (Republican), Russ Goodman (Republican), Bo Hatchett (Republican) and 4 others; status signed, last action 2026-07-01 (Effective Date); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB146-2025-2026 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Georgia SB 146 - State: Georgia - Session: 2025-2026 Regular Session - Title: Health, Local Government, and Property; regulations and protections of cemeteries and burial grounds; provide - Status: signed - Chamber: Senate - Introduced: 2025-02-11 - Last action: 2026-07-01, Effective Date - Sponsors: John Albers (Republican), Russ Goodman (Republican), Bo Hatchett (Republican), John F. Kennedy (Republican), Derek Mallow (Democrat), Randy Robertson (Republican), Rick Williams (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Regulated Industries, Regulated Industries and Utilities, General Bill - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 2 (209 yes, 2 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 13 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Descendants gain court access to graves: benefit, low. Descendants denied entry to graves on private land can ask the county’s superior court for access to visit or provide care. People denied investigative entry can also seek access when they reasonably believe they descend from someone whose remains may be there. Courts can allow searches for remains… - New rules for family burial plots: cost, high. Beginning July 1, 2026, new family burial plots need a county or city permit and proof of ownership or owner consent. Plots must cover at least one-half acre, stay outside flood plains, and sit at least 100 feet from water wells. They need permanent access rights for local government, immediate fam… - Unpermitted family plots bring costly penalties: cost, high. Creating a family burial plot without the required permit can bring a civil penalty up to $5,000 per violation. A county or city can bring an enforcement case in superior court. The court can order the plot brought into compliance. If that is impossible, it can order remains moved, reburied, or oth… - Grave violations bring lawsuits and penalties: mixed, high. Knowing cemetery-law violations are high and aggravated misdemeanors, with fines up to $5,000 per disturbed grave site for knowing noncompliance. A knowing violation of the law’s disturbance restrictions carries up to six months in jail and at least $5,000 per disturbed grave site. Descendants can… - Burial protections limit land disturbance: mixed, medium. Cemetery protections cover Georgia land and structures dedicated to and used for burial, entombment, or placement of remains in urns. Unless otherwise legally authorized, owners and occupiers need a disturbance permit before knowingly disturbing known burial sites, remains, or burial objects. Permi… - Local cemetery protection can charge owners: mixed, medium. Counties and cities can protect local cemeteries that are abandoned or not maintained by the person legally responsible. They can spend public money and, when local ordinances allow, bill responsible people or recover costs against their property. They can also use eminent domain to acquire needed… - Permit applicants pay capped review fees: mixed, medium. Counties and cities can charge for reviewing disturbance permit applications, including legal, archaeological, and surveying help. Fees cannot exceed $2,500 or the local government’s allowed processing and review costs, whichever is lower. If local application procedures are missing, applicants can… - Descendants get notice before burial work: mixed, low. Disturbance permit applicants must carry out descendant identification and notification plans no later than the application date. Notices must explain the site, applicant, planned work, protection and removal plans, local contacts, and descendants’ rights to contest abandonment. Local officials can… - Moving remains requires permits and professionals: mixed, low. Removing remains requires a local registrar’s permit, except when they are removed and reburied within the same cemetery. Applications need identifying and location details, plus authorized consent, a disturbance permit, or a court order. A licensed funeral director must supervise, monitor, or perf… - Burial permit appeals pause planned work: mixed, low. Applicants and descendants can appeal disturbance permit decisions to the site’s county superior court within 30 days. Permitted work must wait until that period ends or any appeal is finally resolved. The same wait applies before seeking a separate permit to remove and rebury remains. Earlier acti… - Public review shapes burial permit decisions: mixed, low. Local governments must accept qualifying applications even without preservation programs, hold public hearings, and favor leaving burial sites undisturbed. The usual hearing deadline is 45 days after reasonable descendant notification efforts are complete; advertisements run weekly for four consecu… - Finding remains triggers reporting and pauses: mixed, low. Anyone who knows or reasonably suspects unauthorized disturbance of buried remains must immediately notify local law enforcement. Accidental discovery or exposure also requires immediate reporting; legally authorized work without a permit is exempt from the disturbance-reporting duty. Further land… - Special court routes for burial work: mixed, low. Superior courts have exclusive authority over disturbance permit applications from Georgia state agencies, authorities, and local governments. Georgia’s transportation department needs a disturbance permit only when relocating human remains. It must still obtain an archaeologist’s report confirming… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: John Albers (Republican), Senate - Sponsor: Russ Goodman (Republican), Senate - Sponsor: Bo Hatchett (Republican), Senate - Sponsor: John F. Kennedy (Republican), Senate - Sponsor: Derek Mallow (Democrat), Senate - Sponsor: Randy Robertson (Republican), Senate - Sponsor: Rick Williams (Republican), Senate - Cosponsor: Jesse Petrea (Republican), House ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-03-27 | House | PASSAGE | pass | 163 | 2 | 9 | | 2026-02-09 | Senate | PASSAGE BY SUBSTITUTE | pass | 46 | 0 | 7 | ## Actions (19) - 2026-07-01: Effective Date - 2026-05-11: Senate Date Signed by Governor (Senate) - 2026-05-11: Act 486 - 2026-04-10: Senate Sent to Governor (Senate) - 2026-03-27: House Third Readers (House) - 2026-03-27: House Passed/Adopted (House) - 2026-02-24: House Committee Favorably Reported (House) - 2026-02-11: House Second Readers (House) - 2026-02-10: House First Readers (House) - 2026-02-09: Senate Third Read (Senate) - 2026-02-09: Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate) - 2026-01-28: Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate) - 2026-01-12: Senate Taken from Table (Senate) - 2026-01-12: Senate Recommitted (Senate) - 2025-03-06: Senate Tabled (Senate) - 2025-02-26: Senate Read Second Time (Senate) - 2025-02-24: Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate) - 2025-02-12: Senate Read and Referred (Senate) - 2025-02-11: Senate Hopper (Senate) ## Bill text - SB 146/AP* (v9): [PDF](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/248173) ## Related bills - SB 160: Reckless Stunt Driving; a motor vehicle involved in a second offense of reckless stunt driving; replace the forfeiture penalty (signed) - SB 384: Motor Vehicle; optional five-year motor vehicle registration and revalidation for certain motor vehicles; provide (signed) - SB 76: License Plates; specialty license plate benefitting the Georgia Veterans Service Foundation; establish (signed) - SB 406: "Georgia Property Owners' Bill of Rights Act"; enact (signed) - HB 1391: Specialty license plates; honor public safety officers; establish (signed) - HB 1344: Georgia Insurance Affordability and Claims Integrity Act; enact (signed) ## Sources - [SB 146/AP* (v9) (PDF)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/248173) ## Related - [SB 160: Reckless Stunt Driving; a motor vehicle involved in a second offense of reckles…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB160-2025-2026) - [SB 384: Motor Vehicle; optional five-year motor vehicle registration and revalidation f…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB384-2025-2026) - [SB 76: License Plates; specialty license plate benefitting the Georgia Veterans Servic…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB76-2025-2026) - [SB 406: "Georgia Property Owners' Bill of Rights Act"; enact](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB406-2025-2026) - [HB 1391: Specialty license plates; honor public safety officers; establish](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1391-2025-2026) - [HB 1344: Georgia Insurance Affordability and Claims Integrity Act; enact](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1344-2025-2026) - [Georgia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/georgia/bills) - [Georgia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/georgia) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB146-2025-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).