Georgia First Amendment Foundation

05/30/2026

“At a time when the public is concerned about transparency of the elections and the integrity of the elections process, the total activity of the elections board should be available to the public and that includes hirings" - Richard T. Griffiths, foundation board member.

The Georgia State Election Board hired a rampant voter challenger to investigate allegations of wrongdoing in elections, independent of the secretary of state’s office.

05/13/2026

Two bills with the potential to curb free speech were signed into law this week by Gov. Brian Kemp. Both were on our Legislative Watch list for their aim to criminalize protests in public spaces, and during religious services. https://gfaf.org/legislative-watch-2026/

04/29/2026

“I find it appalling that the state health system hasn’t met since September,” said Richard T. Griffiths, former president of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation.

For the seventh month in a row, the board of the Georgia Department of Public Health will not hold a meeting this month. The board last met in September 2025.

04/25/2026

The governor's deadline to sign, veto or allow bills from the 2026 Legislature to become law is May 12. Check out our panel discussion video of open government priorities:

2026 Gold Dome Recap

04/21/2026

HAPPENING TOMORROW: Gold Dome Recap 2026 — Join us noon-1 p.m., Wednesday, 4/22, to unpack the Georgia General Assembly session. It's FREE, but registration required. bit.ly/GoldDomeRecap26

04/18/2026

Two troubling bills that would criminalize protest activities cleared the 2026 Georgia Legislature. Gov. Brian Kemp has an opportunity to veto these unconstitutional measures before they become law.

04/17/2026

A man blocked from Morrow’s page after posting comments critical of city officials engaged the UGA First Amendment Clinic. A federal ruled Morrow's social media policies were unconstitutional and that city officials violated state law.

04/15/2026

Georgia protesters could face severe penalties under new legislation

On March 28, thousands of Georgians participated in peaceful protests across the state. They marched on public sidewalks and in the streets, places the public has long used to speak freely on issues that matter to them. But under legislation now awaiting Gov. Brian Kemp’s signature, marchers who p...

03/30/2026

Georgia taxpayers paid for greater visibility into policing. Now lawmakers want to block their view.

What started as an attempt to curb the reputational harm of mugshots posted online has morphed into fast-moving legislation that would limit Georgians’ oversight of police activities. Senate Bill 482 would greatly diminish the public’s ability to access footage from police-worn body cameras, das...

03/27/2026

“We’re looking at having to now wrestle with questions around what news providers can have access and are grandfathered in or exempted and leaving out a large swath of organizations that would not be exempt from the various requirements in this current bill” -Nora Benavidez, foundation board member.

The goal of Senate Bill 482 is to prevent businesses lawmakers characterize as exploitative – like websites that publish booking photos or shock sites that show gruesome crime scenes or police shooting videos – from making money off of the tragedy of others.