Politics
Politics

Bill to help victims escape violent homes passes Georgia Legislature

3/29/18 - Atlanta - Rules committee members vote on bills to add to the rules calendar during a late afternoon rules meeting. Thursday was the 40th and final day of the 2018 General Assembly. BOB ANDRES /BANDRES@AJC.COM

Credit: Bob Andres

Credit: Bob Andres

3/29/18 - Atlanta - Rules committee members vote on bills to add to the rules calendar during a late afternoon rules meeting. Thursday was the 40th and final day of the 2018 General Assembly. BOB ANDRES /BANDRES@AJC.COM
By
March 29, 2018

A bill that would allow victims of domestic violence to break their leases without having to pay a penalty won final approval Thursday.

The Georgia House of Representatives voted 166-0 to pass House Bill 834, which is designed to help family violence victims escape their abusers.

Legislators say victims shouldn't be trapped in a violent relationship just because they can't afford to move out.

The measure would allow a tenant to terminate a residential lease 30 days after providing a landlord written notice when a judge has issued a protective order in a family violence case.

The bill now advances to Gov. Nathan Deal for his signature.

Never miss a minute of what's happening in Georgia Politics at PoliticallyGeorgia.com.

About the Author

Mark Niesse is an enterprise reporter and covers elections and Georgia government for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and is considered an expert on elections and voting. Before joining the AJC, he worked for The Associated Press in Atlanta, Honolulu and Montgomery, Alabama. He also reported for The Daily Report and The Santiago Times in Chile.

Follow Mark Niesse on twitter
More Stories

Keep Reading

The Georgia state Capitol in Atlanta. (Bob Andres/AJC)

Credit: Bob Andres/AJC

Judge says hormone replacement therapy for some inmates can continue, for now

A federal judge suspended parts of a new Georgia law that bans gender-affirming medical care for transgender inmates in Georgia prisons.

Kemp sending 300 Georgia Guard troops to D.C. amid Trump’s crackdown

Georgia joins six GOP-led states in deploying Guard troops to D.C. amid Trump’s push for expanded federal policing in Democratic-led cities.

OPINION

An unexpected salute to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene took on her party and her president this week to make the Jeffrey Epstein files public. Don't expect other Georgia Republicans to join her.

The Latest

The Georgia state Capitol in Atlanta. (Bob Andres/AJC)

Credit: Bob Andres/AJC

Judge says hormone replacement therapy for some inmates can continue, for now

Kemp sending 300 Georgia Guard troops to D.C. amid Trump’s crackdown

LIVE UPDATES

The latest from the Georgia 2026 campaign trail

Featured

The Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America is seen on March 26, 2025, in Ellabell, Ga. (Mike Stewart/AP)

Credit: AP

Hundreds detained in immigration raid at Georgia’s Hyundai Metaplant site

Federal immigration agents Thursday conducted an operation at the Hyundai Motor Group factory site near Savannah.

Words of Muscogee (Creek) take prominent perches on Macon street signs

Phonetic Muscogee translations of English words now appear on street signs in Macon, Georgia, near Ocmulgee Mounds National Historic Park.

The Atlanta airport Plane Train’s employees have voted to unionize

Employees who operate Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport's Plane Train said in a statement that their group is interested in better pay and benefits.