# Deborah Silcox (GA House D-53) — Legislator Fact Sheet · The GA Files > Deborah Silcox (R, House District 53 — Buckhead/Sandy Springs/Roswell), one of Georgia's few genuinely competitive seats: her votes (including her breaks from her party), constituent access, and who funds her — a state-level legislator fact sheet. *Source: https://thegafiles.com/DeborahSilcox.html · The GA Files (thegafiles.com)* --- State Level Legislator Fact Sheet · Georgia House of Representatives · District 53 # Deborah Silcox Party Republican In Office 2017–2020; 2023 – present House Role Member · competitive seat Scope of This Review 2019 – 2026 Deborah Silcox represents House District 53 — Buckhead, western Sandy Springs, and southern Roswell — one of the only **genuinely competitive** districts in the Georgia legislature. She won re-election in 2024 by just **1,377 votes**, and analysts rate the affluent, highly educated district as the state's most flippable. A competitive seat tends to produce a more independent record, and Silcox's is exactly that: mostly with her party, but with notable breaks. 7 / 10Silcox votes with the Republican majority on most bills, but breaks from it more than almost any GOP colleague here: she voted **NO on the Religious Freedom Restoration Act**, **NO on the 2019 Heartbeat abortion ban**, and was excused on the gender-affirming-care ban — a record shaped by her swing district. **Methodology.** Each vote is Rep. Silcox's actual position from the official Georgia roll call (legis.ga.gov), transcribed into a verified vote database and cross-checked against the published Yea/Nay totals. The chamber tally and final status (became law / died in House) are noted per bill. 01 ## Riley Gaines Act SB 1 · 2025 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 100–64 Status Became law (2025 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Bars transgender women and girls from competing on female school and college sports teams and requires K–12 and college sports, locker rooms, and restrooms to be designated by sex assigned at birth. Supporters framed it as protecting fairness and safety in women's sports; opponents — including LGBTQ advocates and some parents — said it stigmatizes transgender students and invites invasive enforcement. #### Sources - [LegiScan — SB 1 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB1/2025) 02 ## Tort Reform SB 68 · 2025 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Immediately Transmit), 2025 session — 94–77 Status Became law — Gov. Kemp's signature 2025 priority Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Overhauled Georgia's civil-litigation rules — limiting when businesses and property owners can be sued (notably for negligent-security claims), changing how juries are told about medical damages, and allowing trials to be split into liability and damages phases. Backers said it would lower insurance costs and curb runaway verdicts; trial lawyers and consumer advocates warned it makes it harder for injured Georgians to recover full damages. #### Sources - [LegiScan — SB 68 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB68/2025) 03 ## Religious Freedom Restoration Act SB 36 · 2025 Session NAY Floor Vote House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 96–70 Status Became law (2025 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **NAY** — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. One of the few Republicans to vote against the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Georgia's Religious Freedom Restoration Act bars state and local government from “substantially burdening” a person's exercise of religion without a compelling interest. Supporters called it a long-sought protection mirroring the 1993 federal law; opponents — including civil-rights groups and some businesses — warned it could be used to justify discrimination, particularly against LGBTQ Georgians, since the state has no statewide anti-discrimination law. #### Sources - [LegiScan — SB 36 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB36/2025) 04 ## Gender-Affirming Care Ban (Minors) SB 140 · 2023 Session EXCUSED Floor Vote House vote (Immediately Transmit), 2023 session — 97–74 Status Became law (2023 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Excused — did not vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Prohibits hormone therapy and surgical gender-affirming care for transgender minors in Georgia, with limited exceptions. Supporters said it shields children from irreversible decisions; major medical associations and families of transgender youth opposed it, arguing it overrides parents and doctors and strips away evidence-based care. #### Sources - [LegiScan — SB 140 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB140/2023) 05 ## Heartbeat Bill (Abortion Ban) HB 481 · 2019 Session NAY Floor Vote House vote (Agree to Senate Substitute), 2019 session — 92–78 Status Became law (2019); took effect in 2022 after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **NAY** — against the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. Cast in 2019 as District 52 (pre-redistricting) — a rare Republican vote against the Heartbeat Bill. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Bans most abortions once embryonic cardiac activity is detected — around six weeks, before many people know they are pregnant — with narrow exceptions. Blocked by courts for years, it took effect in 2022 after _Dobbs_. It sharply curtailed abortion access in Georgia and has reshaped how doctors manage pregnancy complications across the region. #### Sources - [LegiScan — HB 481 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB481/2019) 06 ## Right to IVF HB 428 · 2025 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 172–0 Status Became law (2025 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a bipartisan vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Establishes a state right to access in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and protects providers — one of the rare bipartisan votes in this set. It followed national alarm after an Alabama court ruling threatened IVF, and aimed to reassure Georgia families pursuing fertility treatment that the procedure would remain legal and available. #### Sources - [LegiScan — HB 428 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB428/2025) 07 ## State Income Tax Cut HB 111 · 2025 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 110–60 Status Became law (2025 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Accelerated Georgia's move to a lower flat income tax, cutting the rate ahead of schedule (to 5.19%). Supporters said it returns surplus money to taxpayers; critics cautioned that flat-rate cuts deliver the largest dollar benefits to higher earners and reduce the revenue available for schools, health care, and public services. #### Sources - [LegiScan — HB 111 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB111/2025) 08 ## Property Tax Relief (LHOST) SB 33 · 2026 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Agree to Senate Amend to House Sub), 2026 session — 97–72 Status Became law (2026 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Authorizes a local-option homestead sales tax and related homestead relief, letting communities offset rising property-tax bills driven by climbing home values. Supporters framed it as relief for homeowners squeezed by reassessments; critics noted sales taxes are regressive and that any relief depends on each community choosing to adopt it. #### Sources - [LegiScan — SB 33 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB33/2026) 09 ## Homelessness Enforcement HB 295 · 2026 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Agree to Senate Amend as HAm), 2026 session — 93–76 Status Became law (2026 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Restricts unsanctioned public camping and sleeping and presses local governments toward enforcement and state-directed approaches to homelessness. Supporters said it keeps public spaces safe and orderly; homeless-services advocates warned it criminalizes poverty and can push people away from services without adding any housing. #### Sources - [LegiScan — HB 295 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB295/2026) 10 ## Medical Cannabis Expansion SB 220 · 2026 Session YEA Floor Vote House vote (Agree to Senate Amend to House Sub), 2026 session — 144–21 Status Became law (2026 session) Rep. Silcox's Vote Voted **YEA** — with the chamber majority, on a bipartisan vote. ### Impact on Everyday Georgians Expands Georgia's low-THC medical cannabis program — broadening the qualifying conditions and access for registered patients — and passed with bipartisan support. It widened eligibility for Georgians managing chronic and serious illnesses under the state's tightly regulated program. #### Sources - [LegiScan — SB 220 bill text, history & roll calls](https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB220/2026) Constituent Access ## Town Halls Public meetings with constituents · competitive HD-53 Silcox's affluent, politically engaged district draws unusually contested campaigns — her 2024 race was among the most expensive in the state — but no recurring open constituent town-hall series is documented in local press. ## Documented Record - **Competitive, closely contested district.** The 2024 Silcox–Greenberg race was one of the costliest House contests in Georgia, fought over abortion, the economy, gun-violence prevention, and public safety before a large Buckhead/Sandy Springs electorate. No recurring open constituent town hall in the review period is documented in local press. State legislators' constituent-event records are thin and locally reported; this section will be expanded as events are documented. Corrections with documented events are welcome via the contact link below. ## Sources - [AJC — inside the competitive HD-53 race](https://www.ajc.com/politics/silcox-greenberg-are-pitching-themselves-on-abortion-guns-and-israel-in-competitive-house-race/S3LWADYDBNDYVDOG52II2CBDUY/) - [Deborah Silcox — Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Deborah_Silcox) Campaign Finance ## Campaign Finance Who's funding a swing-seat Republican · recent cycles Pinned — A North-Metro Network Shared donors with HD-48 Several of Silcox’s maxed-out donors — including **David Howard** and **Debra Pettinato Ross** — also max out to fellow north-metro Republican **Scott Hilton (HD-48)**, a glimpse of the small individual-donor network that funds the suburban GOP. Her largest institutional backer is the **Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce**. ## Top Contributors Silcox's largest reported contributors from the Georgia Ethics Commission (PeachFile) — a business-and-individual mix typical of an affluent swing district. | # | Contributor | Total | | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | Ross, Debra Pettinato (Franklin, NC) | $9,900.00 | | 2 | Georgia General Assembly Fiscal Office (Atlanta, GA) | $6,939.87 | | 3 | Efstration, Chuck (Dacula, GA) | $6,600.00 | | 4 | The Georgia Medical Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA) | $3,300.00 | | 5 | Evans, Olivia (Sandy Springs, GA) | $3,300.00 | | 6 | The Southeast Permanente Medical Group (Atlanta, GA) | $3,300.00 | | 7 | Metro Atlanta Chamber Political Action Committee (Atlanta, GA) | $3,300.00 | | 8 | Competitive Georgia Action Inc (Griffin, GA) | $3,300.00 | | 9 | Georgia Orthopaedic Society PAC Acct (Peachtree City, GA) | $3,300.00 | | 10 | Georgians for Tomorrow Inc (Gainesville, GA) | $3,300.00 | **$971,142** raised · **$376,397** cash on hand — as of **Jun 3, 2026** (GA Ethics latest filing). Source: the Georgia Ethics Commission (Georgia campaign-finance filings). Reported top donors, not a full sector breakdown; Georgia does not produce OpenSecrets-style sector/industry rollups, and the Georgia Ethics Commission holds the official itemized filings. ## Sources - [Georgia Ethics Commission (PeachFile) — campaign finance](https://peachfile.ethics.ga.gov) - [Georgia Ethics Commission — official filings](https://media.ethics.ga.gov/search/Campaign/Campaign_ReportLog.aspx) - [OpenSecrets — Georgia state](https://www.opensecrets.org/states/GA) ## Verification Resources - [Georgia General Assembly — House roll-call votes](https://www.legis.ga.gov/votes/house) - [Deborah Silcox — Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Deborah_Silcox) - [Deborah Silcox — Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deborah_Silcox) - [Open States — Georgia legislators & votes](https://openstates.org/ga/legislators/) - [Georgia Ethics Commission — campaign finance](https://media.ethics.ga.gov/search/Campaign/Campaign_ReportLog.aspx) Vote positions are Rep. Silcox's actual recorded votes from the official Georgia roll calls (legis.ga.gov), transcribed into a verified vote database and cross-checked against the published Yea/Nay totals. Campaign-finance figures are pulled live from the Georgia Government Transparency & Campaign Finance Commission (PeachFile) and are current to the committee's most recent filed disclosure report; Georgia does not produce OpenSecrets-style sector/industry rollups. [← All Legislators](https://thegafiles.com/legislators.html)