Senate committee advances bill to raise district-attorney pay, sets opt-in rules

Chair opened the committee meeting and presented a substitute to Senate Bill 606, a pay overhaul that would create a multi-step state salary schedule for district attorneys and assistant district attorneys across Georgia.

The substitute would set entry and tiered pay levels — the chair described an entry-level district attorney salary at about $78,000 and higher tiers rising into six figures, with senior assistant DAs reaching as high as $160,000 in later steps — and ties total compensation to a cap of 98% of the superior court judges' compensation in each judicial circuit. The bill also preserves local supplements but phases them down by circuit size (examples discussed: up to 10% for small circuits, 15% for medium circuits and 20% for larger circuits) so that total pay cannot exceed the 98% cap.

District Attorney Sherry Boston of the DeKalb Judicial Circuit praised the attention to assistant DAs and asked the committee to reconsider the bill's opt-in timing. "I would ask that there be a consideration of changing that 01/01/2028 to a date in the future," Boston said, noting that retirement consequences make the choice irreversible and that some DAs would prefer a later opt-in so funding and retirement effects are clearer. Boston specifically referenced the house committee's later opt-in proposal (01/01/2034) and suggested 2030 as a compromise.

Senator Tillery and other committee members questioned how the 98% cap and the opt-in structure would operate in practice, particularly during the transition when judges and DAs may be on different pay schedules. The chair and staff said the 98% limit is applied to total compensation (base plus local supplement) and that, as state pay rises, locality supplements would need to be reduced to maintain the cap; that design is intended to preserve parity across circuits over time.

Members also discussed fiscal implications for public defenders and other payroll effects. One senator cautioned that increases for DAs may require matching increases for public defenders, which would multiply the budgetary impact.

After debate the committee voted to pass the substitute to SB606 (committee tally reported as 4 yeas, 1 nay). The substitute will move to the next step in the Senate process.

The bill includes several implementation details that will be finalized as the measure moves forward, including the final opt-in date for DAs and precise mechanics for decrementing locality supplements as state pay increases.