State Level Legislator Fact Sheet · Georgia House of Representatives · District 159

Jon Burns

Party Republican

In Office 2005 – present

House Role Speaker of the House

Scope of This Review 2019 – 2026

Jon Burns is the 75th Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives, elected to the post in January 2023 and re-elected for 2025–26. He has held the District 159 seat (Screven and parts of Effingham and Bulloch counties) since 2005 and served as Majority Leader from 2015 to 2023. As Speaker he is the most powerful member of the chamber — and, as the presiding officer, one who by custom rarely casts a recorded floor vote. So the accountability story here isn't a tally of yeas and nays; it's the money behind him and his control over which bills reach the floor at all.

PresidesAs Speaker, Burns presides over the House and by custom casts a recorded floor vote only rarely — he voted on just one of the ten scorecard bills below (the 2019 Heartbeat Bill, before he rose to Speaker in 2023). A Speaker's power isn't the vote; it's deciding which bills reach the floor.

Methodology. Each vote is Rep. Burns'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.

Follow the Money

$1M+ raised · $238,700 regifted

For a presiding officer, the accountability story is the money and the gavel, not a vote count. Burns has raised more than $1 million while facing virtually no opposition, and redistributed $238,700 to 108 fellow Republican House candidates — a legal “regifting” practice critics say multiplies a leader’s grip on the caucus. See the finance section ↓

Riley Gaines Act

SB 1 · 2025 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 100–64
Status: Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Tort Reform

SB 68 · 2025 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Immediately Transmit), 2025 session — 94–77
Status: Became law — Gov. Kemp's signature 2025 priority
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Religious Freedom Restoration Act

SB 36 · 2025 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 96–70
Status: Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Gender-Affirming Care Ban (Minors)

SB 140 · 2023 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Immediately Transmit), 2023 session — 97–74
Status: Became law (2023 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Heartbeat Bill (Abortion Ban)

HB 481 · 2019 Session

YEA

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. Burns' Vote: Voted YEA — with the chamber majority, on a party-line vote. Cast in 2019 as Majority Leader, before becoming Speaker.

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

Right to IVF

HB 428 · 2025 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 172–0
Status: Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

State Income Tax Cut

HB 111 · 2025 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Passage), 2025 session — 110–60
Status: Became law (2025 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Property Tax Relief (LHOST)

SB 33 · 2026 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Agree to Senate Amend to House Sub), 2026 session — 97–72
Status: Became law (2026 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Homelessness Enforcement

HB 295 · 2026 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Agree to Senate Amend as HAm), 2026 session — 93–76
Status: Became law (2026 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Medical Cannabis Expansion

SB 220 · 2026 Session

DID NOT VOTE

Floor Vote: House vote (Agree to Senate Amend to House Sub), 2026 session — 144–21
Status: Became law (2026 session)
Rep. Burns' Vote: Did not vote on this bill.

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

Constituent Access

Town Halls

Public meetings with constituents · 2005–2026

As Speaker of the House, Burns's public role is largely statewide; in the district he engages through Effingham/Bulloch/Screven civic and chamber networks.

Documented Record

No recurring open constituent town-hall series in the district surfaced in local press for the review period. As the Speaker of the House, Burns's public schedule is dominated by statewide leadership duties; locally he works through the Effingham County Chamber and Bulloch/Screven community networks.

State legislative leaders' constituent-event records are thin and locally reported; this section will be updated as events are documented. Constituents with records of an open Burns town hall are encouraged to submit a correction via the contact link.

Sources

Campaign Finance

Who's funding the Speaker · recent cycles

Pinned — The “Regifting” Machine

$238,700 → 108 candidates

Beyond his own race, Burns redistributed $238,700 from his campaign to 108 fellow Republican House candidates over five years (about $1,320 each) — a legal “regifting” practice that lets a leader route money past Georgia’s $3,300-per-candidate limit and deepen the caucus’s dependence on him. A money-in-politics researcher warned the practice makes contribution limits “more difficult to enforce.” (The Current, 2020)

Top Contributors

Burns has raised more than $1 million while facing virtually no opposition, and reporting found his donor base concentrates in healthcare, insurance, and pharmaceuticals (a combined $221,600 over five years, per The Current). His maxed-out recent contributors below — each at Georgia's $3,300 per-election limit — run to gaming, motorsports, and rental-car interests.

#	Contributor	Total
1	Apollo Behavior Services LLC (Suwanee, GA)	$6,600.00
2	Autism Providers of Georgia Inc (Suwanee, GA)	$6,600.00
3	Norfolk Southern Corporation (Atlanta, GA)	$6,600.00
4	GUCA Political Action Committee (Forest Park, GA)	$6,000.00
5	Georgia Bankers Association PAC (Atlanta, GA)	$5,100.00
6	FORESTPAC Georgia Forestry Association (Forsyth, GA)	$5,000.00
7	Georgia Highway Contractors Association PAC (Alpharetta, GA)	$5,000.00
8	Georgia Food Industry Association Food Industry for Good Government (Smyrna, GA)	$5,000.00
9	Directv LLC (El Segundo, CA)	$5,000.00
10	Intralot USA (Duluth, GA)	$5,000.00

$467,763 raised · $675,501 cash on hand — as of May 18, 2026 (GA Ethics latest filing).

Source: the Georgia Ethics Commission (Georgia campaign-finance filings) and reporting by The Current. These are reported maxed-out 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

Verification Resources

Vote positions are Rep. Burns'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.

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