05 LC
14 9173
House
Bill 717
By:
Representatives Lindsey of the
54th
and Wilkinson of the
52nd
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Chapter 35 of Title 36 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, "The
Municipal Home Rule Act of 1965," so as to change provisions relating to the
amendment of ordinances, resolutions, and regulations by petition and election;
to provide that in the case of an amendment that has as its purpose the fixing
of the hours of sale of alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises in
less than all of the territory of the municipal corporation, only the electors
residing in the area in question shall be eligible to sign the petition or vote
in the election; to provide for conditions, limitations, and other related
matters; to provide for the manner of changing hours of sale so established; to
repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Chapter
35 of Title 36 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, "The Municipal Home
Rule Act of 1965," is amended in Code Section 36-35-3, relating to home rule
adoption, amendment, and repeal of charters, ordinances, resolutions, and
regulations, by adding at its end a new subsection (d) to read as
follows:
"(d)
An amendment to the ordinances, resolutions, or regulations of the governing
authority that has as its purpose the fixing of the hours of sale of alcoholic
beverages for consumption on the premises may be carried out in the general
manner provided in paragraph (2) of subsection (b) of this Code section.
However, with respect to a proposed amendment which proposes to so fix hours of
sale in less than all of the territory of the municipal
corporation:
(1)
The percentage of voters required to sign the petition shall be determined
according to the number of registered voters who reside in the area in which the
proposed hours of sale will apply, so that if the population of such area
is:
(A)
Five thousand or less, the signatures of at least 25 percent of the electors
residing in the area shall be required;
(B)
Five thousand but not more than 100,000, the signatures of at least 20 percent
of the electors residing in the area shall be required; and
(C)
More than 100,000, the signatures of at least 15 percent of the electors
residing in the area shall be required; and
(2)
Only the registered voters residing in the area in which the proposed hours of
sale will apply shall be eligible to sign the petition and vote in the election
for the approval or rejection of the amendment.
No
amendment may be proposed or enacted under the procedure specified in this
subsection unless the area in which the proposed hours of sale will apply
contains at least 10 percent of the population of the municipal corporation. The
petition shall clearly and distinctly describe the area in which hours of sale
are to be established, and such area must consist only of one or more whole
municipal voting precincts, with no municipal voting precinct being divided. Any
hours of sale established by the procedure specified in this subsection may be
changed only through the procedure specified in this subsection or the procedure
specified in paragraph (2) of subsection (b) of this Code
section."
SECTION
2.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.