Lawmakers Huddle: On help for Georgia home renters and a new U.S. Treasurer

While many state lawmakers are finally taking a well-deserved break after the intense final days of the 2025 General Assembly, one legislator is gearing up for a big move to Washington, D.C.

Sen. Brandon Beach is stepping into a new role as U.S. Treasurer, and GPB's Lawmakers host Donna Lowry had a great chat with him about this exciting new chapter.

Lowry also caught up with Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver to discuss some important legislative support for renters feeling squeezed by out-of-state landlords. These are Donna's topics in this week's Lawmakers Huddle.

TRANSCRIPT

Donna Lowry: Here’s a scenario: You’re renting a house or an apartment and your roof leaks in several places, with water damaging your furniture and flooring. Or maybe your HVAC system is out, so you have no air conditioning on hot Georgia days.

Your landlord doesn’t live in this state.

Democratic State Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver of Decatur says that’s a significant problem.

Mary Margaret Oliver: And if you are in a home, the water heater goes out and your only option to make a complaint is through a portal to somebody out of state, then you're probably in trouble.

The focus of [House Bill] 399 is particularly on single family homes purchased by out-of-state investors and how we can take some steps to make them accountable to the tenant they're renting to.

Donna Lowry: Rep. Oliver is the lead sponsor of HB 399, one of five bills introduced in the recent session looking to get a handle on the problem with so-called hedge fund investors.

Mary Margaret Oliver: We have a professor at Georgia State who has done mapping of where single-family homes are owned by out-of-state investors in a significant percentage. [In] Paulding County, available single-family homes are owned by out-of-state investors by 78%. In DeKalb County, and my — specifically in my district, the available single-family home rental market is over 40% owned by out-of-state investors.

Donna Lowry: Her legislation would do two things – make sure there is an in-state property manager — and the landlord uses a local broker.

Mary Margaret Oliver: And what that means is: We're going to have a better access to knowing who are owning these properties, because there's multiple LLCs, multiple kinds of corporate structures that frequently hide the identity of that owner.

Donna Lowry: The legislation passed in both chambers overwhelmingly and Rep. Oliver is optimistic the governor will sign the bill into law.

Mary Margaret Oliver: I've been in touch with the governor's office. This bill was a No. 1 priority of the Georgia Realtor Association. It was a top priority of the Georgia Municipal Association.

Donna Lowry: The other four bills on the same topic remain in play in the next legislative session. And when that session begins in January 2026, Republican Sen. Brandon Beach of Alpharetta won’t be there for the first time in more than a decade. President Donald Trump has appointed him U.S. Treasurer.  I talked to him about it on Sine Die.

Caption

State Sen. Brandon Beach, newly appointed U.S. Treasurer

Donna Lowry: You are on your way to Washington. How does it feel today on this last day of Sine Die?

Brandon Beach: Well, first off, now, I thank you for all you've done being down here. Lawmakers. We appreciate all the hard work you've done to really cover the Legislature and the General Assembly. So thank you. It's great. It's bittersweet, to be honest with you. I've been down here 13 years. I love the Senate as an institution. I love my fellow senators, and it's been a great run, and we've gotten a lot accomplished, and I can tell you, we're not the No. 1 state to do business 11 years in a row by accident. It's because of good policy that comes out of this General Assembly.

Donna Lowry: You told me earlier there's something you feel really special about in this position.

Brandon Beach: The Treasury of the United States has been around since 1775 — a year before our country was really founded — and I'm the first Georgian to hold this seat, and I'm very proud to go represent Georgia and serve our country in the Trump administration.

Donna Lowry: Let's talk a little bit about having your name on money.

Brandon Beach: Yeah, that's pretty impressive, isn't it? I — I am honored for that. I mean, it's — I've never really paid attention to whose name it is, but I will now, and I know my grandkids will like that, so that's gonna be — that's gonna be nice. 

Donna Lowry: In addition to overseeing the production and distribution of money, Beach will manage the nation’s finances. For Lawmakers Huddle, I’m Donna Lowry.