ATLANTA – State Representative Carl Gilliard (D- Garden City) today announced that the Georgia House of Representatives gave final passage to House Bill 79, or the “Blind Bill,” on Tuesday, April 2. This measure would prevent government agencies and local authorities from discriminating against parents and legal guardians who are blind.
“This is one of Georgia’s best bills of this legislative session, which gives blind parents the right to be a parent, caretaker or foster parent, and this bill makes Georgia the 22nd state in the nation to do so,” said Rep. Gilliard “There are thousands of blind residents in Georgia and hundreds of blind parents that deserve the right to parent. These citizens currently experience unfair societal biases that deny children their right to belong in a loving home with their family. This bill would ensure that these citizens have the same basic rights that are afforded to all parents in our state. This is Georgia’s bill.”
House Bill 79 seeks to prevent discrimination against blind citizens while protecting the best interests of children that are parented by blind individuals. This bill would prevent courts, the Department of Human Services and any child-placing agency from denying child placement, custody, visitation, guardianship or adoption to an individual because the individual is blind. Further, the bill would mandate that the Department of Human Services circulate and implement these new rules throughout the state by the end of the year.
For more information on HB 79, please click here.
Representative Carl Gilliard represents the citizens of District 162, which includes portions of Chatham County. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2016 and currently serves on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Economic Development, and on the Insurance, Interstate Cooperation, State Properties and Transportation committees. He is also a member of the Working Group on Creative Arts & Entertainment.
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