Georgia committee advances House Bill 663 to raise emissions-testing fees and allow DNR board CPI adjustments

A Georgia House panel on environmental quality advanced House Bill 663 on a unanimous voice vote, raising the statutory ceiling for a vehicle inspection/submission fee and giving the Department of Natural Resources board authority to adjust the fee tied to the Consumer Price Index.

Representative Derek McCollum's measure, identified in committee as HB663 (LC394980S), would increase the maximum fee charged under the relevant code section to $35 and set the statute to allow the DNR board to adjust that rate up or down based on the CPI. The bill sponsor told members the fee “hasn't changed since '92” and said the increase is intended to reflect rising costs for small testing businesses.

Why it matters: The change affects the fee schedule for regulated testing stations and provides an administrative mechanism for the DNR board to update the fee without returning to the legislature each time. Committee members said the measure was vetted with the Environmental Protection Division and described the impacted stations as small businesses, including minority-, women- and veteran-owned operations.

Representative McCollum summarized the bill for the full committee and confirmed the measure’s two key elements: raising the fee to a $35 cap and giving the DNR board discretion to tie future adjustments to the CPI. Committee member Lauren McDonald moved to pass the bill quickly; the motion was seconded and the full committee registered a unanimous voice vote in favor.

The committee’s record as provided in the hearing did not include a roll-call tally or a list of individual votes; the clerk reported the subcommittee had also forwarded HB 663 “unanimously.” The committee chair noted time constraints and moved the body on to a scheduled briefing.

Next steps: The bill was reported from the subcommittee to the full committee and was advanced by the full committee during the same hearing. The committee did not record a roll-call vote in the transcript; the measure proceeds according to normal committee scheduling.

Quotes from the hearing

“This is, HB663 LC394980S … it means the code section dealing with the fee charge … provides a fee … a minimum of $10 and a maximum of $35. It hasn't changed since '92,” the bill presenter said, describing both the increase and the CPI provision.

Clarifying details and provenance

The measure was introduced to the subcommittee at SEG 005; the sponsor’s explanation and the subcommittee discussion occur across SEG 035–063; the subcommittee motion and vote are recorded at SEG 075–085; the presenter summarized again for the full committee and the full committee voice vote is recorded at SEG 134–145.

Ending

The committee advanced HB 663 by unanimous voice vote and moved on to an EPD briefing; committee staff did not record a roll-call tally in the provided transcript.