Text of GA HB 736 (2025)

25 LC 28 5002 House Bill 736 By: Representative Jones of the 60th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Code Section 20-2-751.4 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to 1 policies prohibiting bullying and cyberbullying required, enforcement of policies including 2 assignment to alternative school, notice, antibullying training programs and materials, 3 limitation of liability, and noncompliance, so as to add and revise definitions; to revise 4 provisions of school policies regarding the prevention of bullying; to require the provision 5 of certain information regarding antibullying programs; to provide for reports; to provide for 6 related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes. 7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA: 8 SECTION 1. 9 Code Section 20-2-751.4 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to policies 10 prohibiting bullying and cyberbullying required, enforcement of policies including 11 assignment to alternative school, notice, antibullying training programs and materials, 12 limitation of liability, and noncompliance, is amended as follows: 13 "20-2-751.4. 14 (a) As used in this Code section, the term: 15 H. B. 736 - 1 - 25 LC 28 5002 (1)(A) 'Bullying' means an act that is any severe, pervasive, or persistent act or conduct 16 that targets a student, whether electronically, verbally, or physically and may be based 17 on a student's actual or perceived race, religion, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, 18 sexual orientation, gender identity, spousal affiliation, physical or cognitive disability, 19 or any other distinguishing characteristic; or on an association with a person, or group 20 with any person, with one or more of such actual or perceived distinguishing 21 characteristics and includes: 22 (i) Any willful attempt or threat to inflict injury on another person, when 23 accompanied by an apparent present ability to do so; 24 (ii) Any intentional display of force such as would give the victim reason to fear or 25 expect immediate bodily harm; or 26 (iii) Any intentional written, verbal, or physical act which a reasonable person would 27 perceive as being intended to threaten, harass, or intimidate, that: 28 (I) Causes another person substantial physical harm within the meaning of Code 29 Section 16-5-23.1 or visible bodily harm as such term is defined in Code Section 30 16-5-23.1; 31 (II) Has the effect of substantially interfering with a student's education, physical 32 or mental health, or otherwise substantially infringing upon the rights of a student; 33 (III) Is so severe, persistent, or pervasive that it creates an intimidating or 34 threatening educational environment; or 35 (IV) Substantially interferes with a student's academic performance or attendance; 36 (V) Substantially interferes with a student's ability to participate in or benefit from 37 the services, activities, or privileges provided by an agency, educational institution, 38 or grantee; or 39 (IV)(VI) Has the effect of substantially disrupting the orderly operation of the 40 school. 41 H. B. 736 - 2 - 25 LC 28 5002 (B) Except as provided in subparagraph (C) of this paragraph, such term applies to acts 42 which occur on school property, on school vehicles, at designated school bus stops, or 43 at school related functions or activities, including, but not limited to, extracurricular 44 activities, or by use of data or software that is accessed through a computer, computer 45 system, computer network, or other electronic technology of a local school system. 46 (C) Such term includes acts of cyberbullying that originate on school property or 47 involve the use of school equipment, including, but not limited to, acts that occur within 48 a school sponsored online activity. 49 (2) 'Cyberbullying' means bullying that involves the use of electronic communication, 50 including, but not limited to, communication devices and services, including, but not 51 limited to, cellular telephones, cameras, computers, social media platforms, text 52 messages, chat platforms, and internet sites. 53 (3) 'Electronic communication' means, but is not limited to, any transfer of signs, signals, 54 writings, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in whole or in 55 part by a wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or photo-optical system. Such 56 term shall include photographs and video and audio recordings. 57 (4) 'Extracurricular activities' has the same meaning as defined set forth in Code Section 58 20-2-319.6. 59 (5) 'Gender identity' means a student's self-perception, or perception of such student by 60 another, of the student's identity as a male or female based upon the student's appearance, 61 behavior, or physical characteristics that are in accord with or opposed to the student's 62 physical anatomy, chromosomal sex, or sex at birth. 63 (5)(6) 'Parent' means a person who has legal authority to act on behalf of a minor child 64 as a natural or adoptive parent or a legal guardian. 65 (7) 'Physical or cognitive disability' means a physical or cognitive impairment that 66 substantially limits one or more of a student's major life activities. 67 H. B. 736 - 3 - 25 LC 28 5002 (8) 'Progressive discipline' means disciplinary action other than suspension or expulsion 68 from school that is designed to correct and address the basic causes of a student's specific 69 misbehavior while retaining the student in class or in school, or restorative school 70 practices to repair the harm done to relationships and to other students due to the student's 71 misbehavior, and may include: 72 (A) Meeting with the student and the student's parents; 73 (B) Reflective activities, such as requiring the student to write an essay about his or her 74 student's misbehavior; 75 (C) Counseling; 76 (D) Anger management; 77 (E) Health counseling or intervention; 78 (F) Mental health counseling; 79 (G) Participation in skill-building and resolution activities, such as social-emotional 80 cognitive skills building, resolution circles, and restorative conferencing; 81 (H) Community service; and 82 (I) In-school detention or suspension, which may take place during lunchtime, after 83 school, or during weekends. 84 (6)(9) 'School equipment' means any computer or computer networking equipment, 85 technology or technology related device or service, or communication system or service 86 that is operated, owned, leased, and made available to students by a local board of 87 education, local school system, or public school and that is used for transmitting, 88 receiving, accessing, viewing, hearing, downloading, recording, or storing electronic 89 communication. 90 (10) 'Sexual orientation' means heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality, whether 91 actual or perceived. 92 (7)(11) 'Transmit' means to send or broadcast an electronic communication. 93 (b) No later than July 1, 2026: 94 H. B. 736 - 4 - 25 LC 28 5002 (1) Each local board of education shall adopt a policy that prohibits to prevent and 95 prohibit bullying, including, without limitation, cyberbullying, by a student and shall 96 require such prohibition to be included in the student code of conduct for schools in that 97 school system; 98 (2) Each local board policy shall require that, upon a finding by the disciplinary hearing 99 officer, panel, or tribunal of school officials provided for in this subpart that a student in 100 grades six through 12 has committed the offense of bullying for the third time in a school 101 year, such student shall be assigned to an alternative school; 102 (3) Each local board of education shall establish and publish in its local board policy a 103 method to notify the parent, guardian, or other person who has control or charge of a 104 student upon a finding by a school administrator that such student has committed an 105 offense of bullying or is a target or suspected victim of bullying. Such notice shall, as 106 appropriate under the circumstances, include referrals to resources for counseling and 107 other appropriate services for students who have been found to have committed an 108 offense of bullying or are targets or suspected victims of bullying; 109 (4) Each local board of education shall ensure that students and parents and guardians 110 of students are notified of the prohibition against bullying, and the penalties for violating 111 the prohibition, by posting such information at each school and by including such 112 information in student and parent handbooks; and 113 (5) Each local board of education shall establish a process to regularly evaluate and 114 update the use of technology solutions to aid in the prevention of cyberbullying on school 115 equipment, including, but not limited to, monitoring software intended to provide 116 electronic notification when the occurrence of cyberbullying is detected on such 117 equipment. 118 (c) No later than January 1, 2026, the Department of Education shall develop a model 119 policy regarding bullying, that may be revised from time to time, and shall post such policy 120 on its website in order to assist local school systems. Such model policy shall include: 121 H. B. 736 - 5 - 25 LC 28 5002 (1) A statement prohibiting bullying; 122 (2) A requirement that any teacher or other school employee who has reliable 123 information that would lead a reasonable person to suspect that someone is a target of 124 bullying shall immediately report it to the school principal; 125 (3) A requirement that each school have a procedure for the school administration to 126 promptly investigate in a timely manner and determine whether bullying has occurred and 127 to ensure that such investigation is completed promptly after the receipt of any report 128 made; 129 (4) An age-appropriate range of consequences for bullying which shall include, at 130 minimum and without limitation, disciplinary action or counseling as appropriate under 131 the circumstances. The range of consequences shall also include progressive discipline 132 approaches that can result from an identified incident of bullying that are designed to 133 appropriately correct the bullying behavior, prevent another occurrence of bullying or 134 retaliation, protect the target of the bullying, and be flexible so that, in application, the 135 consequences can be unique to the individual incident and varied in method and severity 136 based on the nature of the incident, the developmental age of the student who is bullying, 137 and any history of problem behavior from the student who is bullying. For cyberbullying 138 incidents, the least restrictive means necessary should be used to address the interference 139 with the student's ability to participate in or benefit from the services, activities, or 140 privileges provided by the school; 141 (5) A requirement that each school provide referrals, as appropriate under the 142 circumstances, to age-appropriate interventions and services, including, but not limited 143 to, counseling services, for students who have been found to have committed an offense 144 of bullying or are targets or suspected victims of bullying; 145 (6) A procedure for a teacher or other school employee, student, parent, guardian, or 146 other person who has control or charge of a student, either anonymously or in such 147 person's name, at such person's option, to report or otherwise provide information on 148 H. B. 736 - 6 - 25 LC 28 5002 bullying activity, provided that no formal disciplinary measures shall be taken solely on 149 the basis of an anonymous report; 150 (7) A statement prohibiting retaliation following a report of bullying; and 151 (8) Provisions consistent with the requirements of subsection (b) of this Code section; 152 (9) An appeal process for a student accused of bullying or a student who is the target of 153 bullying who is not satisfied with the outcome of the initial investigation; and 154 (10) A procedure for the development of a student safety support plan for students who 155 are targets of bullying that addresses safety measures the school will take to protect 156 targeted students against further acts of bullying. 157 (d) No later than January 1, 2026, the Department of Education shall develop and post on 158 its website: 159 (1) A list of entities and their contact information which produce antibullying training 160 programs and materials using developmentally and culturally appropriate language and 161 which are deemed appropriate by the department for use in local school systems. Such 162 list shall include at least one entity that provides awareness and training programs relating 163 to cyberbullying. Such list shall also include antibullying training programs and 164 materials in appropriate languages for schools in which a substantial portion of the 165 student population speaks a language other than English at home; and 166 (2) A list of online and in-person providers of counseling and other appropriate services 167 for students who have been found by school officials to have committed an offense of 168 bullying or are targets or suspected victims of bullying. Such list shall include in-person 169 providers available to families in areas throughout the state and who communicate at 170 home in languages other than English. 171 (e) Any person who reports an incident of bullying in good faith shall be immune from 172 civil liability for any damages caused by such reporting. 173 H. B. 736 - 7 - 25 LC 28 5002 (f) Nothing in this Code section or in the model policy promulgated by the Department of 174 Education shall be construed to require a local board of education to provide transportation 175 to a student transferred to another school as a result of a bullying incident. 176 (g) Any school system which is not in compliance with the requirements of subsection (b) 177 of this Code section shall be ineligible to receive state funding pursuant to Code Sections 178 20-2-161 and 20-2-260. 179 (h) Each local school system shall document reports and investigations of bullying and 180 shall maintain such reports for no fewer than four years. Each local school board shall 181 establish procedures for local school systems to report aggregate incidents of bullying 182 under any applicable federal or state law, along with school personnel responses to such 183 incidents, and shall annually report such information to the Department of Education. 184 (i) Following adoption of a bullying prevention policy as provided in this Code section, 185 each local school system shall establish an annual bullying prevention program for its 186 students, provide annual training on bullying prevention to its employees and volunteers 187 who have significant contact with students, and incorporate information on the bullying 188 prevention policy into new employee training. 189 (j) Each local school system shall develop a plan for the manner in which the bullying 190 prevention policy is to be disseminated, including ensuring that such policy and its 191 developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate variants are available on the 192 public website of each such system, identifying a point of contact for bullying related 193 concerns, and, at least annually, informing parents and students about the policy through 194 student handbooks and other resources." 195 SECTION 2. 196 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed. 197 H. 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