Panel narrows school-zone bill to hours and warning signage, advances measure out of committee

The Senate Public Safety Committee voted to advance a narrower version of Senate Bill 75 that refocuses the measure on hours of enforcement and warning signage in school zones.

Senator Burt Burns, the bill sponsor, told the committee the substitute returns the bill to its “two original intents” — defining school-zone hours and setting signage requirements — and removes other provisions previously considered. “On line 19, we define school zone. On line 23, we define school zone speed limit. And on line 26, we define the hours of operation,” Burns said.

Burns said the measure was negotiated with the Georgia Department of Transportation and the Georgia Department of Public Safety, and that signs will comply with federal requirements. “At the end of the day, this was negotiated with DOT and Georgia Department of Public Safety, and it pairs this bill back down to its original intent,” he said.

A motion to pass the bill was seconded in committee; the transcript records member voting by raised hands. The committee chair announced the result as passed with three members raising hands in favor and two opposed; the transcript does not contain a formal roll-call list of names tied to those votes.

Committee discussion emphasized clarity in how hours and signage would be implemented and compliance with federal standards for warning signs; the sponsor and subcommittee chair said the revised language reflects those negotiations. The bill now moves to the Rules Committee and remains eligible for further amendment on the floor.