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Horse owners ask Cobb commissioners to restrict fireworks near equine facilities after new state law allows local controls
Summary
Several equine facility owners urged Cobb County to restrict fireworks within 200 yards of horse operations, citing injuries and deaths to horses; speakers pointed to Georgia House Bill 614 and asked the county to consider permitting limits and penalties like those adopted in nearby jurisdictions.
Owners and operators of horse facilities told the Cobb County Board of Commissioners on June 24 that fireworks are causing repeated harm to horses and asked the county to consider local restrictions following a change in state law.
Julie Mabry Stevens, who operates Mabry Farm Equestrian Center in Marietta, said her operation—part of a family farm established in 1904—boards 16 horses and faces frequent fireworks detonations that cause horses to panic, run through fences and sometimes suffer severe injuries. Stevens urged the commission to "sit consider taking action to ban fireworks within 200 yards of any equine facility as Cherokee County and the city of Milton did this past week" after the Georgia General Assembly passed House Bill 614, which she said authorizes local jurisdictions to regulate fireworks use near horses.
Stevens said some owners must sedate animals using veterinarian‑prescribed medication that lasts about two hours, a management burden when fireworks are used unpredictably or for multiple nights. "There have been many cases where horses are severely injured and even killed due to the chaos that fireworks create for horses," she said.
Jennifer Buck, another equine owner and a former veterinary technician, echoed Stevens and described lost boarding business and safety risks. She said fireworks displays have endangered buildings in nearby neighborhoods and that enforcement would be easier if the county required permits and penalties for noncompliance.
Commissioner Burrell later referenced state law on fireworks and county ordinance restrictions: he cited Georgia Code section OCGA 25‑10‑2 regarding fireworks and noted county ordinance 90‑63 prohibits pyrotechnics at county parks. County staff did not present a specific regulatory proposal at the meeting; speakers asked the board to consider local rules that would include permitting, time limits and penalties to protect animals, veterans, children and residents with special needs.
