House Regulated Industries Committee advances licensure changes, contractor technical fixes and lottery oversight measure

Members of the Georgia House Regulated Industries Committee voted by voice to advance a package of bills on professional licensure, contractor technical changes and lottery oversight, giving do-pass recommendations on House Bills 148, 232, 34, 187, 185 and 74.

The measures range from revisions to how professions are licensed and tracked to a transparency change for the Georgia Lottery’s coin-operated amusement machine (COAM) division. Committee members said the bills aim to ease workforce bottlenecks, modernize licensing rules and restore administrative oversight where it was unintentionally removed last year.

The committee’s most immediate oversight step addressed the Georgia Lottery’s COAM division. Representative Powell, presenting House Bill 74, said the bill would place the COAM division under the state Administrative Procedures Act so rules and regulatory changes would be advertised for public comment and reported back to the legislature. Powell described the change as correcting a “scrivener’s error” from last year’s rewrite tied to a 5% tax provision and cited past enforcement concerns, including an investigator’s criminal charges in Columbus that he said underscored the need for greater transparency. The committee gave HB 74 a do-pass recommendation by voice vote.

The committee also advanced legislation to modernize dietetics licensure. A sponsor introduced House Bill 185 as an update to the Georgia Dietetics Practice Act (1994), including a clarified definition of “medical nutrition therapy” and a pathway for licensed dietitians and licensed nutritionists to treat and manage disease. Robin Stegall of the Georgia Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics told the committee, “Medical nutrition therapy means the provision of any of the following nutrition care services for the treatment or management of a disease or medical condition,” language the bill adopts to distinguish high-risk clinical care from general nutrition advice. The committee approved HB 185 by voice vote; sponsors noted the bill also authorizes joining an interstate compact to improve license portability for military families and others who move between states.

Representative Silcox presented House Bill 232, which would permit a multi-state licensing pathway for massage therapists. Silcox said the bill would raise required training from 500 to 625 hours, require passing the national licensing exam, and bar applicants convicted of serious crimes such as human trafficking or kidnapping. She also highlighted a provision creating a national data system to track license actions and incidents. The committee approved HB 232 by voice vote.

On accounting, Representative Carson introduced House Bill 148, the “Public Accountancy Act of 2025,” which seeks to add licensure pathways to address an aging workforce in the profession. Carson said the bill would preserve the existing 150-semester-hour requirement as one route to CPA licensure but add alternatives: a pathway combining a four-year degree with two years of supervised experience signed off by a licensed CPA, and a pathway recognizing equivalent graduate-level coursework. Carson said the measure would also allow mobility for out-of-state CPAs to provide assurance services in Georgia consistent with other states’ mobility approaches. The committee gave HB 148 a do-pass recommendation by voice vote.

Representative Washburn presented House Bill 34, which would establish a continuing-education tracking solution for professional licensing boards under the Secretary of State to monitor compliance with continuing-education requirements. Washburn and other members said the change would streamline renewals and reduce paperwork for licensees and agency staff; the committee approved HB 34 by voice vote.

House Bill 187, also presented by Representative Washburn with Lee Lemke available for technical questions, was described as a “cleanup” bill that makes wording and organizational changes for electrical, plumbing, HVAC, low-voltage and utility contractor statutes. Sponsors said the changes are mostly editorial or clarifying and reflect agreement among the industry stakeholders who worked on the bill. The committee approved HB 187 by voice vote.

Votes at a glance

- HB 148 — Public Accountancy Act of 2025 (Representative Carson): Motion for do-pass; voice vote — ayes carried. Key provisions: new licensure pathways (4 years + 2 years experience; master’s/150-hour recognition), mobility for out-of-state CPAs, stakeholder support from Georgia State Society of CPAs and State Board of Accountancy. - HB 232 — Interstate massage-therapy compact (Representative Silcox): Motion for do-pass; voice vote — ayes carried. Key provisions: raise clinical-hour requirement to 625, national exam, criminal-history bars, a national licensing incident data system, compact membership. - HB 34 — Continuing-education tracking for professional boards (Representative Washburn): Motion for do-pass; voice vote — ayes carried. Key provisions: establish an electronic tracking system to verify licensees’ continuing education for boards under the Secretary of State. - HB 187 — Contractor statute cleanup (Representative Washburn): Motion for do-pass; voice vote — ayes carried. Key provisions: editorial and technical changes for electrical, plumbing, HVAC, low-voltage and utility contractor provisions. - HB 185 — Dietetics Practice Act modernization (sponsor not specified in transcript; Robin Stegall, Georgia Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, available to answer questions): Motion for do-pass; voice vote — ayes carried. Key provisions: clarify “medical nutrition therapy,” limit licensed practice to dietitians/nutritionists for clinical disease management, authorize interstate compact for license portability. - HB 74 — Georgia Lottery COAM oversight (Representative Powell): Motion for do-pass; voice vote — ayes carried. Key provisions: restore the COAM division’s coverage under the Administrative Procedures Act to require public notice and comment on rules and reporting to the legislature.

Discussion vs. formal action

Committee discussion included technical and policy questions from multiple members and brief stakeholder comments. Where the transcript recorded formal motions and seconds, the committee resolved by voice vote and did not record roll-call tallies in the transcript. Committee members repeatedly described the bills as bipartisan or industry-supported and noted prior floor or subcommittee activity; sponsors and staff said several measures had passed the House in earlier sessions but had not completed Senate consideration.

Next steps and committee business

Committee leadership said the do-pass recommendations will move the bills to the committee’s next procedural stage and, ultimately, the House floor and the Senate for further consideration. Representative Powell also announced plans to convene a lottery oversight meeting in the coming weeks to question the Georgia Lottery Commission’s leadership about revenue, contracts and COAM industry oversight. He asked committee members to forward any written questions and noted the committee’s annual dinner on March 11 at the Druid Hills Country Club.

Reporting note: quotes and attributions in this report are drawn directly from committee remarks recorded in the meeting transcript; all references to legal requirements are based on language the sponsors cited during committee discussion.