The 2026 legislative session marks both an endpoint and the eventual transition to come. As with the 2018 session before it, the final year of the legislative cycle and a term-limited governor will bring the prevailing political order to a close, ultimately altering the proceedings and priorities of the legislature.
An open seat at the top also typically creates additional opportunities down ballot, as statewide officials, state legislators and members of Congress jockey for higher office.
Tensions between the House and Senate, a permanent fixture in Georgia politics even in years without an election, unfold more routinely in public.
“If we’re going to take off every other year for people to run for office, then maybe we just ought to not have a session during an election year,” then-House Speaker David Ralston said ahead of the 2018 session.
As in 2018, we enter the session with a lieutenant governor who has announced his candidacy for governor. Whereas in 2018, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle faced off against Secretary of State Brian Kemp and State Senator Hunter Hill, among others, in the Republican primary, this election will feature Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, Attorney General Chris Carr and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.
Learn more about this in this week’s commentary.
– Kyle Wingfield
Friday’s Freshest 🗞️
Rising property taxes in Georgia continue to dominate kitchen table conversations around the state. As such, expect proposals to rein in property taxes to be at the forefront of the 2026 legislative session.
For over a decade, the push for educational freedom was spearheaded at the state level by advocates and policy makers. The landscape of the school choice movement will change significantly in January 2027, when the first federal tax credit scholarship goes into effect.
Washington remains focused on whether to extend COVID-era Obamacare subsidy add-ons. Democrats demanded these supposedly temporary subsidies be extended, leading to the recent government shutdown.
The 50-year mortgage idea recently floated by the Trump administration grows out of the same motivation of the 30-year mortgage of the 1930s—to make home ownership more accessible to people who would otherwise be renters.But today, the main barrier is not how we finance homes—it’s that we don’t build enough of them.
Here is a simple proposition: If a Georgia public school has an open seat, any Georgia student should be able to take it. This idea isn’t fringe or partisan and shouldn’t require a superintendent’s blessing.
Peach Picks 🍑
With affordability a top concern heading into the elections this year, Georgia’s Senate Republicans are proposing billions of dollars in cuts to the state income tax. A study committee assigned by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, a Republican and advocate for abolishing the 5.19% tax, approved recommendations on Wednesday that would eliminate it for lower-income earners starting in January, eventually abolishing it altogether.
Since the 1980s, the percentage of individuals that move to a different state has dropped from well over 10% to single digit metrics, says the United States Census Bureau. Georgia ranks among the top states for in-migration—but lowest among its neighbors—according to U-Haul’s 2025 Growth Index.
House Speaker Jon Burns is backing a plan to ban cellphone use during the school day for Georgia high school students. The Republican said he expects House lawmakers to pass a measure during the session that begins next week extending Georgia’s K-8 cellphone ban to high school students.
A $3.7 billion project in Spalding County called Wallace Jackson Data Center Campus was outlined Tuesday in a state infrastructure filing. The project is slated to include 10 data center buildings spanning nearly 5 million square feet, which is more floor space than three Lenox Square malls.
Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns (R- Newington) laid out his new priorities as the legislative season set to kick off. Foremost, Burns said, was tackling a literacy crisis that’s seen one in three Georgia students lack reading proficient by the all-important third grade benchmark.
Quotes Of Note 🌟
“One of the great mistakes is to judge policies and programs by their intentions rather than their results.” – Milton Friedman
“After order and liberty, economy is one of the highest essentials of a free government.” – Calvin Coolidge
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” – George Bernard Shaw
One More Fact 💡
When people argue about politics today, it’s easy to forget that the American system was intentionally designed to handle disagreement. One of the primary ways it does so is through federalism—a foundational principle of the American system of government that divides power between the national government and the states. Rather than concentrating authority in a single institution, federalism disperses it, reducing the risk of overreach and protecting individual liberty. This structure reflects a deep skepticism of centralized power and a belief that government works best when it is closer to the people.
Because states vary widely in their cultures, economies, and priorities, federalism allows policies to be tailored to local needs. What works well in one state may not work as well in another, and federalism preserves flexibility while maintaining national unity. As James Madison argued, dividing power creates an additional safeguard against tyranny by forcing different levels of government to check one another.
Federalism also encourages innovation. States can experiment with new policies, learn from one another, and adapt over time. In doing so, federalism strengthens democratic accountability and helps ensure that government remains both limited and responsive.