Georgia Code
Article 2 - Magistrates
§ 15-10-23. Minimum Compensation; Annual Salary; Increases; Supplements

Click to view
The minimum salary for each affected chief magistrate shall be fixed from the table in this subsection according to the population of the county in which the chief magistrate serves as determined by the United States decennial census of 2010 or any future such census; provided, however, that such annual salary shall be recalculated in any year following a census year in which the Department of Community Affairs publishes a census estimate for the county prior to July 1 that is higher than the immediately preceding decennial census. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, unless otherwise provided by local law, effective January 1, 1996, in any county in which more than 70 percent of the population according to the United States decennial census of 1990 or any future such census resides on property of the United States government which is exempt from taxation by this state, the population of the county for purposes of this subsection shall be deemed to be the total population of the county minus the population of the county which resides on property of the United States government.
Population Minimum Salary 0 — 5,999 $ 36,288.19 6,000 — 11,889 49,833.79 11,890 — 19,999 56,451.65 20,000 — 28,999 59,934.60 29,000 — 38,999 64,512.39 39,000 — 49,999 68,547.73 50,000 — 74,999 76,834.09 75,000 — 99,999 82,472.75 100,000 — 149,999 88,109.64 150,000 — 199,999 94,082.74 200,000 — 249,999 102,736.58 250,000 — 299,999 111,523.74 300,000 — 399,999 123,109.97 400,000 — 499,999 128,108.37 500,000 or more 133,106.73
History. Code 1981, § 15-10-23 , enacted by Ga. L. 1983, p. 884, § 2-1; Ga. L. 1988, p. 424, § 1; Ga. L. 1989, p. 426, § 1; Ga. L. 1993, p. 910, § 4; Ga. L. 1995, p. 562, § 1; Ga. L. 1998, p. 1159, §§ 11, 12; Ga. L. 2001, p. 902, § 8; Ga. L. 2002, p. 1088, § 1; Ga. L. 2006, p. 568, § 6/SB 450; Ga. L. 2006, p. 875, § 1/HB 1399; Ga. L. 2009, p. 745, § 1/SB 97; Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 2-14/HB 642; Ga. L. 2021, p. 412, § 1/HB 488.
The 2021 amendment, effective May 4, 2021, substituted “January 1, 2022” for “January 1, 2006” in paragraph (a)(2); modified the minimum annual salaries in the table in paragraph (a)(2); substituted “2010” for “2000” in the undesignated paragraph following the table of paragraph (a)(2); in paragraph (a)(4), substituted “$4,685.00” for “$3,851.46”; in paragraph (a)(5), substituted “$27.07” for “$22.22” near the beginning and substituted “$720.86” for “$592.58” near the end; designated the existing provisions of subsection (c) as paragraph (c)(1); and added paragraph (c)(2).
Code Commission notes.
Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2001, “means, in the case of a chief magistrate, a” was substituted for “means in the case of a chief magistrate means a” in the first sentence of paragraph (a)(1).
Editor’s notes.
Ga. L. 1983, p. 884, § 7-2, not codified by the General Assembly, provides for both the establishment and minimum compensation of officials, including justices of the peace, who become magistrates by operation of law pursuant to other provisions of the Act (see Code Section 15-10-120).
Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 3-1/HB 642, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: “Personnel, equipment, and facilities that were assigned to the State Personnel Administration as of June 30, 2012, shall be transferred to the Department of Administrative Services on the effective date of this Act.” This Act became effective July 1, 2012.
Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 3-2/HB 642, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: “Appropriations for functions which are transferred by this Act may be transferred as provided in Code Section 45-12-90.”
Law reviews.
For annual survey of local government law, see 57 Mercer L. Rev. 289 (2005); 58 Mercer L. Rev. 267 (2006).

Structure Georgia Code