The Georgia Senate Public Safety Committee held another hearing for House Bill 61, known as the “Georgia Anti-Squatting Act of 2026”, which aims to hasten the removal of unauthorized occupants from residential properties, including hotels and cars, allowing immediate lockouts and treating nonpayment as criminal trespass.
The bill was passed by the committee (7-2) in March 2025, which sets up a process for requiring law enforcement officers to remove people accused of illegally staying at a residential property. However, a “zombie bill” resurfaced that would make it easier for extended-stay hotels to evict long-term residents on the spot.
Under House Bill 61, people who stay in residential properties, hotels, or cars without the owner’s express permission are guilty of misdemeanor unlawful squatting. Any person violating the law would be subject to having law enforcement officers remove them from the property within 10 days of notification.
Section 5 of HB 61 says if an extended-stay resident fails to pay the hotel fee (or the hotel refuses to accept payment), they can immediately be denied access to the room, their personal property can be seized, and held until any past-due fees are paid, and law enforcement can be summoned to arrest them if they do not immediately vacate the property).
Housing rights advocates argue it harms low-income, long-term residents in extended-stay hotels, especially with children. The bill would change how long-term residents of extended-stay hotels are treated under Georgia law by:
· Allowing immediate lockouts
· Requiring removal without a court process
· Treating nonpayment as criminal trespass
· Reversing the Georgia Supreme Court’s 2023 Efficiency Lodge decision, which recognized long-term residents as tenants entitled to judicial eviction
Many working families, including families with children, use extended-stay hotels as a last housing possibility. These changes could result in removal without sufficient time or legal process to secure alternative housing. Families often pay more than traditional apartment rents for these rooms. Other research shows many residents stay in these settings for extended periods, often years.
A 2026 Georgia State University study found that in DeKalb County alone, over 4,600 people, including 1,635+ children, live in extended-stay hotels as “shelters of last resort”. Families spend an average of 77% of their income on rent, with 45% of households staying for 1-5 years, and 16% staying over five years.
Last year, senate republicans implanted the extended-stay eviction provisions from a failed bill, HB 183, into HB 61, which regulates license plates for hearses and ambulances, so the altered HB 61 never passed through any House committee.
Additionally, over 8,800 Georgia kids live in extended-stay hotels, according to Marietta Republican Representative Devan Seabaugh (District 34).
“House Bill 61 is a targeted, balanced, public safety and property rights measure that closes critical loopholes in Georgia law that have been exploited by squatters, fraudsters, and individuals unlawfully occupying property,” he said.
“Importantly, House Bill 61 creates a new felony offense for presenting a fake lease deed or rental agreement to remain in possession of a property. This address is one of the most common tactics used to delay removal,” he said. “This bill is carefully balanced and preserves due process, protects legitimate tenants with valid leases, provides civil remedies for wrongful removal, and includes clear safeguards for both property owners and law enforcement officers.”
House Bill 61, Seabaugh said, is not about eviction reform, but is about addressing situations where no lawful tenancy exists, where property is being occupied through trespass or fraud, and where public safety and property rights are at risk for these reasons.
“House Bill 61 stands for a necessary refinement of Georgia’s squatting laws that reflects the input of law enforcement and industry stakeholders and provides clear constitutional tools to address a growing problem,” he said.
Senator Rick Williams says his concern is about some families living in hotels because they cannot pay the first or last month’s rent.
“They may have been evicted before, they are in hard times, and they have small children,” Williams said. “I would hate to see an innkeeper put a family out with small children during this extremely freezing weather, and these people have nowhere else to go. These are people who are helpless, so how do we help them without hurting them?”
CEO of Explore Gwinnett, Lisa Anders, says in her experience, most people they are currently struggling with are individuals who are systematically abusing the system because they are aware they can.
“We have some support with nonprofit organizations, and I’ve got a lot of hotels that, out of their compassion, work with their families because they know their paycheck to paycheck,” she said. “They let them pay weekly, but the problem children, as we’ll call them, are the ones who know the system doesn’t really offer an opportunity for the hotels to force them to leave, and they are primarily male individuals. That’s our consistent demographic.”
The Senate Public Safety Committee voted 7-2, and the motion was passed to go forward for due process to the Senate Rules Committee.
How to Act:
· Contact Key Lawmakers: Focus on members of the Georgia Senate Public Safety Committee, which is reviewing the bill.
· Voice Concerns: Argue the bill does not distinguish between criminals and tenants/residents struggling with rent, risking homelessness for vulnerable families.
· Monitor Legislative Activity: The bill was recently under consideration in early 2026, meaning prompt action is necessary to influence its progress.
No public comments or testimonies were made during this hearing.
The post Georgia Senate Public Safety Committee holds Anti-squatting Act hearing appeared first on The Atlanta Voice.
Donnell Suggs
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