Public School Property and Facilities; outdoor learning spaces pilot program; provide
Summary
SB 148 makes several changes to Georgia’s K-12 education laws. It authorizes local school boards, beginning in the 2026-2027 school year, to offer hunting safety instruction in grades 6 through 12, with state content standards to be adopted by the State Board of Education and curriculum based on Department of Natural Resources hunter education courses. The bill also directs the Department of Education to create a pilot program, starting in the 2025-2026 school year, to study outdoor learning spaces on school property and report on the program’s effectiveness after three years.
The bill further revises school health and personnel provisions. It removes the requirement that a licensed physician be involved in automated external defibrillator programs, while still requiring schools to maintain AEDs, train staff, create emergency action plans, and conduct drills. It also increases the amount of accumulated sick leave that teachers and other school personnel may use for personal or professional reasons from three days to five days per school year, subject to prior approval and local policy limits.
Impact
SB 148 amends multiple sections of Title 20 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, affecting school curriculum authority, school facilities programming, emergency preparedness requirements, and employee leave rules. It gives local boards new optional authority to offer hunting safety instruction, creates a state-run pilot for outdoor learning spaces, updates AED program oversight requirements in schools, and expands the amount of sick leave that school personnel may use for personal or professional reasons. The bill primarily affects local school systems, the Department of Education, the State Board of Education, school employees, and students in Georgia public schools.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have broad support overall. It passed the Senate 53-1, the House 165-0, and later the Senate agreed to the House substitute 48-0, indicating strong bipartisan approval and little recorded opposition. The voting history suggests the package of education, safety, and personnel changes was generally viewed favorably by both chambers.
Contention
The most notable points of potential contention are the hunting safety instruction provision and the change to AED program oversight. Hunting safety in public schools may raise questions about appropriateness, curriculum scope, and local control, though the bill makes the instruction optional for local boards. The AED section removes the explicit requirement for a licensed physician in the program, replacing it with broader oversight language tied to compliance and training; this could be seen as reducing a medical oversight requirement while still preserving safety standards. The sick leave increase may also matter to school districts because it expands employee flexibility while potentially affecting staffing and substitute costs, but the near-unanimous votes suggest these issues did not generate major legislative conflict.