Georgia lawmakers are taking aim at Atlanta’s squatting crisis with a proposed bill that would make the act a clear criminal offense in the Peach State as neighborhoods around the metro area continue to assess the situation with tied hands.
Approximately 1,200 homes have been taken over by squatters, according to the National Rental Home Council trade group, but with local law enforcement bound by tenant rights laws, homeowners have limited options to reclaim their property.
HB 1017, the Georgia Squatter Reform Act, aims to make that process easier.
“We have to do something about this,” Rep. Devan Seabaugh, a Republican co-sponsoring the bill, told Fox News Digital on Monday.
SQUATTER CRISIS HITS ATLANTA AS PROPERTY OWNERS SEE HOMES MORPH INTO DRUG AND PROSTITUTION DENS
“We’re dealing with criminals… These are people that know exactly what they’re doing, and they’re stealing other people’s most valuable capital, which is their home. I’ve heard from a lot of people. This has caused them to file bankruptcy. They’re mentally harmed by it. It’s a tough situation, and we have to do something. I don’t know how it took us this long to get here… but no more free rides,” he continued.
Seabaugh, a representative from Georgia’s 34th district which houses a region northwest of Atlanta, is co-sponsoring the bill alongside fellow Republican State Reps. Matt Reeves, Deborah Silcox, Bill Yearta, James Burchett and Clint Crowe.
Despite all co-signers aligning with the GOP, Seabaugh said Democrats are on board with the measure as well.
The proposed bill initially sought to amend the state’s…
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