SB 515 Georgia Senate · 2025-2026 Regular Session

"Quality Basic Education Act"; grants for educational programs; provisions relative to the teacher recruitment and retention tax credit program; revise

Summary

A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Part 9 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to grants for educational programs under the "Quality Basic Education Act," so as to revise and streamline provisions relative to the teacher recruitment and retention tax credit program; to provide for definitions; to amend Code Section 48-7-29.23 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to tax credits for teachers in the teacher recruitment and retention program, so as to provide for tax credit amounts; to provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

Bill status passed both 4 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Governor

Introduced Feb 17, 2026 Last action Mar 31, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

As Passed Senate → LC 44 3572S/hrcs · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill text was replaced with a House substitute version that significantly expands the legislation's scope beyond teacher recruitment. While the original bill focused solely on increasing the teacher tax credit cap, the new version adds a comprehensive section on real property conservation tax credits, including new eligibility rules, filing requirements, and a $3 million annual cap for those credits. Additionally, the new text contains formatting errors and incomplete sections, suggesting the document is a work in progress.

Scope change

The bill's scope expanded from exclusively addressing teacher recruitment and retention tax credits to also include a new program for tax credits related to the donation of real property for conservation purposes.

SCOPE

Added a new section regarding tax credits for donating real property for conservation purposes, which was not present in the original Senate version.

FISCAL

Established a $3 million annual limit for the total amount of tax credits allowed under the new conservation provisions.

REQUIREMENT

Introduced new requirements for filings and repealed provisions related to the State Properties Commission.

TECHNICAL

The document structure changed from a Senate-passed bill to a House substitute, but the text includes formatting errors, blank lines, and incomplete sentences indicating it is not yet finalized.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 6, 2026 · House Mar 31, 2026

How they voted

43–1

Passed · 4 other

Total votes 48

Mar 6, 2026

D Democratic19

17 Yea 2

89% Yea

R Republican29

26 Yea 1 Nay 2

89% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 31, 2026

Lower · Passed

House Passed/Adopted By Substitute

lower

Mar 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

House Committee Favorably Reported

lower

Mar 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute

upper

Mar 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate Engrossed

upper

Mar 3, 2026

Upper · Passed

Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute

upper

Feb 18, 2026

Committee

Senate Read and Referred

upper

Feb 17, 2026

Introduced

Senate Hopper

upper

5 primary · 0 co-sponsors