Bill > HB86

This bill revises the provisions for calculating and setting salaries for certain state judicial officials in Georgia. Specifically, the bill removes the previously fixed dollar amounts for Justices of the Supreme Court, Judges of the Court of Appeals, and the Judge of the Georgia State-wide Business Court, and instead establishes a new method for determining their salaries. The new approach ties judicial salaries to the base salary of federal district court judges in the Northern District of Georgia, with specific percentage caps: Supreme Court Justices at 100 percent of the base salary, Court of Appeals Judges at 99 percent, and the State-wide Business Court Judge at a percentage to be determined. The bill also adds a provision for a Tax Court Judge's salary. The legislation is set to take effect on June 1, 2025 (or July 1, 2025 if necessary funds are not appropriated), with Section 2 of the bill specifically becoming effective on July 1, 2026. This change provides more flexibility in setting judicial salaries by linking them to a reference point rather than fixed amounts, while ensuring they remain within a reasonable range of federal judicial salaries in the region.

Justice

https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69425