ATLANTA — Georgia Gov. Brian P. Kemp has signed House Bill 297 into law, a measure to streamline Georgia’s transportation governance structure by dismantling the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority and reconstructing the Atlanta-region Transit Link Authority into a single entity.
HB 297 renames the consolidated authority as the Georgia Transportation Efficiency Authority and streamlines more than 70 sections of state law. The legislation also reduces the size of statutory transportation boards from 31 members to 13 members, eliminates duplicative oversight structures and modernizes operational requirements.
“This legislation will restore accountability and eliminate unnecessary government overreach in our transportation sector,” Senate Majority Leader Jason Anavitarte, R-Dallas, said in a release. “For years, these authorities held sweeping powers that were far broader than what was ever truly necessary. These powers had the authority to force eminent domain on local communities like Paulding County, along with forcing transit plans to expand MARTA. HB 297 reins in those powers while preserving the transportation functions that are actually working for Georgia taxpayers.”
The legislation removes several dormant and overly broad powers previously granted to authorities, including the ability to override local zoning and land-use decisions, to pressure local governments to increase taxes, and to withhold state funding from local governments.
“Georgia families expect government to operate efficiently and stay within its proper role,” Anavitarte said. “This law ends a bloated system that has been in place since the late 1990s and protects local communities from heavy-handed mandates coming from unelected transportation authorities. I appreciate Governor Kemp for signing this important reform into law.”
The legislation preserves key state transportation functions, including oversight of regional transportation spending plans, administration of federal transit funds, and operation of Xpress transit services in currently served counties. The bill also establishes new reporting requirements for transit performance metrics related to safety, efficiency and customer satisfaction.
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