Will Georgia lawmakers revive any bills left unfinished in 2025?

That bill remains on the table for review. Here are other notable measures that are still viable in a Republican-controlled Legislature.

Housing

Affordability is the top issue for both parties this session, and housing will be a large factor in addressing those concerns. A bipartisan set of bills filed in 2025 sought to curb out-of-state hedge funds that have bought up real estate in Georgia.

Two of the bills, which were sponsored by Republican House members, passed out of House committees but did not receive full votes before the House before the end of session. One of the measures prohibits any business from owning more than 2,000 single-family residential properties. The other would require local governments to create a housing management database and note properties owned by designated foreign adversaries.

Safe gun storage

House Republicans, with Democratic support, want to require guns to be safely secured in locked storage devices, as part of a larger response to the deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Barrow County in 2024. Together, they passed a bill last year, but the effort stalled in the Senate.

School safety measures will be a continued priority next year, the House speaker’s office said.

Contraceptives access

Fourteen Republican women in the House signed onto legislation at the end of last year’s session that declared “females have the right to the use of any means of contraception” that is used before conception.

The bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Sharon Cooper, did not have enough time before the end of session to get it heard before a House committee, but it will be a priority next year, according to the House speaker’s office.

After codifying the right to access in vitro fertilization treatment, Republicans are keen to show support for reproductive care — five years after they restricted access to abortion in the state.

Guest workers

Many industries in Georgia rely on temporary, guest workers from foreign countries to provide labor and services that American workers don’t fulfill.

One Republican-led bill in the House would give Georgia businesses a formal voice to communicate their employment needs to the federal government. The legislation needed more work before moving to a vote, the bill’s sponsor and some lawmakers agreed. It could be further refined this year but comes amid President Donald Trump’s crackdown on all immigration and a raid at a Georgia Hyundai factory where Korean nationals were working.

Diversity, equity and inclusion

Just before midnight on the penultimate day of the 2025 legislative session, Senate Republicans forced through legislation that aims to ban public K-12 schools and colleges from promoting or discussing topics Republican lawmakers say fall under the umbrella of “diversity, equity and inclusion.”

The legislation’s future is unclear since it was tacked on to a bill that increases the number of sick days teachers can take. It was sent to the House, but since that chamber didn’t take any action on the bill, it goes back to committee, where House members can opt to amend the legislation back to its original form.

Sports betting

A new company has waded into the world of sports betting, getting around state laws that ban the activity — like in Georgia. Kalshi, a prediction market, has enabled Georgians to wager on the outcome of sports events across the country after the company successfully argued in court in 2024 that only the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission can regulate the company.

Sports betting legislation has had a number of false starts since 2019, and this may be the last chance lawmakers will get to regulate and tax the activity as Kalshi gets more popular. It’s unclear if anyone is willing to use their political capital to push a bill through in an election year where every seat is up for grabs.

Republican state Rep. Marcus Wiedower, who has since resigned from office, sponsored two related efforts, but they didn’t reach a full vote before the House before session ended. The bills must be refiled under a new sponsor.

Subscription reform

In a bipartisan quest to address the cost of living, one Republican-led bill flew under the radar. It would give consumers the option of manually renewing service contracts, like subscriptions, rather than having them renew automatically.

That bill passed the House and is awaiting Senate action this year.