Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
House updates Georgia code to remove references to U.S. Department of Education if federal agency is eliminated
Summary
The House passed Senate Bill 154 to revise 25 code sections that reference the U.S. Department of Education, adding language to reference "its successor" and to take effect only if the federal agency is eliminated; vote was 144–15.
The Georgia House on Friday passed Senate Bill 154, a package of statutory updates that replaces explicit references to the U.S. Department of Education with language such as “or its successor” across multiple code sections.
The measure’s sponsor, Chairman Dubnick, told the chamber SB 154 “is a truly simple bill that amends 25 different code sections in our code by adding ‘or its successor’…just simply updates outdated language to bring FAFSA and to modernize our code.”
Why it matters: supporters said the change is precautionary, intended to avoid disruptions to licensing and other state processes if the federal agency’s authority were to be altered. Representative David Wilkerson, who spoke in favor, said the House amendment that makes the change effective only “if the Department of Education goes away” reduced potential disruption and offered stability for professionals and programs that depend on federal recognition.
Opponents and concerns: Representative Vermont, the lone registered opponent who spoke from the floor, urged caution about broader federal uncertainty and warned against having to respond to federal actions that she described as “illegal,” arguing a president cannot unilaterally abolish an agency. “Not only are we going to be seeing a dismantling of the Department of Education, which is illegal, I want to be very clear. A president cannot unilaterally get rid of an agency,” Vermont said, framing the vote as a response to federal turmoil and underscoring uncertainty for families and borrowers.
Process and votes: The House adopted a committee substitute and then passed SB 154 on a roll-call vote. The clerk announced the tally as 144 yeas and 15 nays; the House declared the bill passed.
What the bill does and limits: The sponsor said the bill updates roughly 25 statutory references (titles 20, 35 and 43 were cited in the caption) to avoid regulatory or licensing disruption should the federal agency be removed or renamed. The bill does not itself abolish any federal agency and, as amended, takes effect only if the U.S. Department of Education were to be eliminated or replaced.
Next steps: With passage in the House, the bill continues through the legislative process per normal procedures.
