§ 46-2-1 - Election of Commissioners; terms of office
O.C.G.A. 46-2-1 (2010)
46-2-1. Election of Commissioners; terms of office
(a) The Georgia Public Service Commission shall consist of five members to be elected as provided in this Code section. The members in office on January 1, 2000, and any member appointed or elected to fill a vacancy in such membership prior to the expiration of a term of office shall continue to serve out their respective terms of office. As terms of office expire, new members elected to the commission shall be required to be residents of one of five Public Service Commission Districts as hereafter provided, but each member of the commission shall be elected state wide by the qualified voters of this state who are entitled to vote for members of the General Assembly. Except as otherwise provided in this Code section, the election shall be held under the same rules and regulations as apply to the election of Governor. The Commissioners, who shall give their entire time to the duties of their offices, shall be elected at the general election next preceding the expiration of the terms of office of the respective incumbents. Their terms of office shall be six years and shall expire on December 31.
(b) In order to be elected as a member of the commission from a Public Service Commission District, a person must have resided in that district for at least 12 months prior to election thereto. A person elected as a member of the commission from a Public Service Commission District by the voters of Georgia must continue to reside in that district during the person's term of office or that office shall thereupon become vacant.
(c) For the purpose of electing the members of the Public Service Commission, the state shall be divided into five Public Service Commission Districts described as follows:
District 001
Appling County
Atkinson County
Bacon County
Baker County
Ben Hill County
Berrien County
Bleckley County
Brantley County
Brooks County
Bryan County
Bulloch County
Calhoun County
Camden County
Candler County
Charlton County
Chatham County
Chattahoochee County
Clay County
Clinch County
Coffee County
Colquitt County
Cook County
Crisp County
Decatur County
Dodge County
Dooly County
Dougherty County
Early County
Echols County
Effingham County
Evans County
Glynn County
Grady County
Irwin County
Jeff Davis County
Lanier County
Laurens County
Lee County
Liberty County
Long County
Lowndes County
Macon County
Marion County
McIntosh County
Miller County
Mitchell County
Montgomery County
Pierce County
Pulaski County
Quitman County
Randolph County
Schley County
Seminole County
Stewart County
Sumter County
Tattnall County
Telfair County
Terrell County
Thomas County
Tift County
Toombs County
Treutlen County
Turner County
Ware County
Wayne County
Webster County
Wheeler County
Wilcox County
Worth County
District 002
Baldwin County
Barrow County
Bibb County
Burke County
Butts County
Clarke County
Columbia County
Crawford County
Elbert County
Emanuel County
Glascock County
Greene County
Gwinnett County
Tract: 504.15
Tract: 504.16
Tract: 504.29
Tract: 504.30
Tract: 505.09
BG: 1
BG: 2
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
BG: 3
BG: 4
Tract: 505.14
BG: 1
1000 1001 1002 1003 1004 1005 1006 1007 1008 1009 1010 1011 1012 1013
1014 1015 1017 1018 1019 1020 1021 1039 1040
BG: 2
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2011 2012 2013 2014
2015 2042 2043 2057 2058 2999
Tract: 505.16
BG: 1
BG: 2
2000 2001 2002 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
2027 2028 2029 2030
BG: 5
Tract: 505.20
BG: 1
1000
BG: 2
2033 2034 2035
Tract: 505.21
BG: 3
3000 3001 3002 3003 3004 3005 3006 3007 3008 3009 3010 3011 3012 3013
3014 3015 3016 3017 3018 3019 3020 3022 3023 3024
BG: 4
4006 4007 4008
Tract: 505.22
Tract: 506.02
Tract: 506.03
BG: 2
2010 2011 2038 2039 2040 2041 2042 2043 2044
Tract: 506.04
BG: 1
BG: 2
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2051 2052
2053 2060 2061 2062 2063 2064 2065 2066 2067 2068 2069 2070 2071 2072
BG: 3
Tract: 507.04
Tract: 507.05
Tract: 507.09
Tract: 507.13
Tract: 507.14
Tract: 507.15
Tract: 507.16
Tract: 507.17
Tract: 507.18
Tract: 507.19
Tract: 507.20
Tract: 507.21
Hancock County
Houston County
Jackson County
Jasper County
Jefferson County
Jenkins County
Johnson County
Jones County
Lincoln County
Madison County
McDuffie County
Monroe County
Morgan County
Newton County
Oconee County
Oglethorpe County
Peach County
Putnam County
Richmond County
Rockdale County
Screven County
Taliaferro County
Taylor County
Twiggs County
Walton County
Warren County
Washington County
Wilkes County
Wilkinson County
District 003
Clayton County
DeKalb County
Fulton County
District 004
Banks County
Bartow County
Catoosa County
Chattooga County
Cherokee County
Dade County
Dawson County
Fannin County
Floyd County
Forsyth County
Franklin County
Gilmer County
Gordon County
Gwinnett County
Tract: 501.03
Tract: 501.04
Tract: 501.05
Tract: 501.06
Tract: 502.02
Tract: 502.04
Tract: 502.05
Tract: 502.06
Tract: 502.07
Tract: 503.04
Tract: 503.06
Tract: 503.07
Tract: 503.08
Tract: 503.09
Tract: 503.10
Tract: 503.11
Tract: 503.12
Tract: 503.13
Tract: 503.14
Tract: 503.15
Tract: 503.16
Tract: 504.03
Tract: 504.10
Tract: 504.11
Tract: 504.17
Tract: 504.18
Tract: 504.19
Tract: 504.20
Tract: 504.21
Tract: 504.22
Tract: 504.23
Tract: 504.24
Tract: 504.25
Tract: 504.26
Tract: 504.27
Tract: 504.28
Tract: 505.07
Tract: 505.09
BG: 2
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
Tract: 505.10
Tract: 505.11
Tract: 505.12
Tract: 505.13
Tract: 505.14
BG: 1
1016 1022 1023 1024 1025 1026 1027 1028 1029 1030 1031 1032 1033 1034
1035 1036 1037 1038
BG: 2
2010 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028
2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 2037 2038 2039 2040 2041 2044
2045 2046 2047 2048 2049 2050 2051 2052 2053 2054 2055 2056 2059 2060
2061
Tract: 505.15
Tract: 505.16
BG: 2
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2031
2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 2037 2038 2039 2040 2041 2042 2043 2044 2045
2046 2047
Tract: 505.17
Tract: 505.18
Tract: 505.19
Tract: 505.20
BG: 1
1001 1002 1003 1004 1005 1006 1007 1008 1009 1010 1011 1012 1013 1014
1015 1016 1017 1018 1019 1020 1021 1022 1023 1024 1025 1026 1027 1028
BG: 2
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027
2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2036 2037 2038 2039 2040 2041 2042 2043 2044
2045 2046 2047 2048 2049 2050
Tract: 505.21
BG: 3
3021
BG: 4
4000 4001 4002 4003 4004 4005 4009 4010
BG: 5
Tract: 506.03
BG: 1
BG: 2
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2012 2013 2014 2015
2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029
2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 2037
Tract: 506.04
BG: 2
2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 2037 2038 2039
2040 2041 2042 2043 2044 2045 2046 2047 2048 2049 2050 2054 2055 2056
2057 2058 2059
Tract: 507.12
Habersham County
Hall County
Hart County
Lumpkin County
Murray County
Pickens County
Rabun County
Stephens County
Towns County
Union County
Walker County
White County
Whitfield County
District 005
Carroll County
Cobb County
Coweta County
Douglas County
Fayette County
Haralson County
Harris County
Heard County
Henry County
Lamar County
Meriwether County
Muscogee County
Paulding County
Pike County
Polk County
Spalding County
Talbot County
Troup County
Upson County
(d) The first members of the commission elected under this Code section shall be elected thereto on the Tuesday next following the first Monday in November, 2000, from Public Service Commission Districts 3 and 5, shall take office on the first day of January immediately following that election, and shall serve for terms of office of six years and until the election and qualification of their respective successors. Those members of the commission elected thereto on the Tuesday next following the first Monday in November, 2002, from Public Service Commission Districts 1 and 4 shall take office on the first day of January immediately following that election and shall serve for terms of office of six years and until the election and qualification of their respective successors. The member of the commission elected thereto on the Tuesday next following the first Monday in November, 2004, from Public Service Commission District 2 shall take office on the first day of January immediately following that election and shall serve for a term of office of six years and until the election and qualification of his or her respective successor. All future successors to members of the commission whose terms of office are to expire shall be elected at the state-wide general election immediately preceding the expiration of such terms, shall take office on the first day of January immediately following that election, and shall serve for terms of office of six years.
(e) For purposes of this Code section:
(1) The terms "Tract" and "BG" (Block Group) shall mean and describe the same geographical boundaries as provided in the report of the Bureau of the Census for the United States decennial census of 2000 for the State of Georgia. The separate numeric designations in a Tract description which are underneath a "BG" heading shall mean and describe individual Blocks within a Block Group as provided in the report of the Bureau of the Census for the United States decennial census of 2000 for the State of Georgia.
(2) Except as otherwise provided in the description of any Public Service Commission District, whenever the description of any Public Service Commission District refers to a named city, it shall mean the geographical boundaries of that city as shown on the census maps for the United States decennial census of 2000 for the State of Georgia.
(3) Any part of the State of Georgia which is not included in any Public Service Commission District described in subsection (c) of this Code section shall be included within that district contiguous to such part which contains the least population according to the United States decennial census of 2000 for the State of Georgia.
(4) Any part of the State of Georgia which is described in subsection (c) of this Code section as being included in a particular Public Service Commission District shall nevertheless not be included within such Public Service Commission District if such part is not contiguous to such Public Service Commission District. Such noncontiguous part shall instead be included within that Public Service Commission District contiguous to such part which contains the least population according to the United States decennial census of 2000 for the State of Georgia.