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Committee tables bill to lower school-bus-passing fines after emotional testimony from victim’s family
Summary
Georgia House committee heard hours of debate and emotional testimony about a substitute to House Bill 344 that would change penalties for passing a stopped school bus; the committee voted to table the bill after family members of a child killed by a driver urged lawmakers to retain Addie’s Law.
Representative Don Parsons introduced a substitute for House Bill 344, proposing changes to penalties for drivers who pass stopped school buses with stop‑arms deployed. The substitute would set a civil penalty and moving‑traffic penalty range of not less than $500 and not more than $1,000 and direct civil penalty revenue toward “school safety.”
The bill’s proponents said the change restores judicial discretion after a 2024 law set a flat $1,000 civil penalty that they say left judges no flexibility for payment plans or probation. Representative Mitchell Scoggins said the…
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