Georgia’s current constitution was adopted in November 1982, and became effective July 1983. The 1983 Georgia Constitution was Georgia's tenth constitution.
Prior to having a formal constitution, Georgia was governed under the Charter of 1732 issued King George II of England, and the 1776 Rules and Regulations of the Colony of Georgia.
The following book provides background information on the creation of the 1983 Georgia Constitution.
The Georgia State Constitution
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The current 1983 Georgia Constitution is available in Volume 2 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A.) and Volumes 2 and 3 of the West's Code of Georgia Annotated (Ga. Code Ann.).
Volume 41 of O.C.G.A. provides tables comparing various provisions of the 1877, 1945, 1976 and 1983 constitutions. Volume 41 of the O.C.G.A. is the only source of this information.
Article X of the 1983 Georgia Constitution stipulates amendment procedures. Proposed amendments passed during a specific General Assembly session are located in the corresponding edition of the session laws, titled Georgia Laws. Proposed amendments become part of the Constitution if ratified by the voters.
To find proposed amendments in Georgia Laws, researchers will need to identify the General Assembly session that passed the proposed amendment, and then find that session’s corresponding Georgia Laws edition. Researchers can use the Tabular Index in Georgia Laws to locate the text of the proposed constitutional amendments.
The General Assembly did not codify provisions of the 1983 Constitution as sections in the O.C.G.A. Therefore, whether locating the Constitution via a print or online source, researchers must cite to the constitution in the following format: Ga. Const. art. I, § II, para. III.
