Here are the bills Gov. Brian Kemp signed and vetoed for 2025
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp speaks during a February meeting of the Republican Governors Association in Washington. Photo: Samuel Corum AFP via Getty Images
While Gov. Brian Kemp has already signed into law the major bills that dominated headlines during this year's legislative session, the status of a few notable pieces of legislation remained up in the air.
Why it matters: Wednesday was the deadline for Kemp to sign or veto any remaining legislation that passed before Sine Die.
✅ What Kemp signed
HB 123: Helps keep people with intellectual disabilities off death row.
SB 244: Allows President Trump and his co-defendants in the Fulton County election interference case to recoup legal fees.
HB 296: Requires law enforcement agencies to accept digital driver's licenses during traffic stops.
SB 291: Creates Georgia's "America First" speciality license plate.
HB 426: Requires nonpartisan elections for magistrate court judges.
🚫 What Kemp vetoed
HB 308: Allows judges to require people to install an "intelligent speed assistance device" in cars they used for illegal street racing.
HB 433: Gives Georgia Department of Human Services employees the authority to access people's full criminal histories.
SB 238: Changes Rockdale County's governing structure from a countywide elected chairperson and two commissioners to five at-large commissioners who choose their own chair.
What they're saying: Kemp cautioned state lawmakers to use subpoena powers outlined in Senate Bill 255, another bill the governor signed Wednesday, "judiciously and sparingly."
- "Americans of all political leanings have lamented the ineffectiveness of the United States Congress, in no small part due to the abundance of politically motivated 'investigations' which only generate sound bites and distract from important legislation," Kemp wrote in the only signing statement.
- "I sincerely hope that in the future, Georgians do not similarly lament the General Assembly."
Catch up quick: Kemp earlier this year signed into law his wide-ranging civil lawsuit reform package, a bill banning transgender student athletes from playing on teams that match their gender identity and a controversial measure aimed at protecting Georgians' religious beliefs.
- He also gave his stamp of approval to bills codifying access to in-vitro fertilization, banning the use of taxpayer dollars to provide gender-affirming care for transgender inmates and school safety legislation.