Representative Bill Werkheiser
House District 157 · Republican
Industry and Labor (Chairman), Appropriations, Energy, Utilities & Telecommunications, Judiciary Juvenile, Public Safety and Homeland Security, Special Committee on Resource Management, State Properties
The Record
Georgia Prisoners’ Speak publishes the record, not a grade. Every line below is a roll-call vote or a bill filing you can verify against the General Assembly’s own records.
Voting Record on GPS-Tracked Bills
Voted GPS’s position on 3 of 6 tracked bills where the chamber was divided.
| Bill | Description | GPS Position | Vote | Aligned? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SB 185 (2025) | Inmate Gender Treatment Ban — Transgender Prisoner Healthcare | oppose | YEA | ✗ |
| SB 159 (2024) | Cell Phone Ban in Prisons | oppose | YEA | ✗ |
| SB 63 (2024) | Bail Reform — Expanded Cash Bail Requirements | oppose | YEA | ✗ |
| HB 272 (2022) | Raise Juvenile Court Jurisdiction to 18 | support | YEA | ✓ |
| SB 174 (2022) | Unsecured Judicial Release | support | YEA | ✓ |
| SB 441 (2022) | Reducing Barriers to Reentry Act | support | YEA | ✓ |
Also On The Record
Reform bills that passed without opposition. These are not scored — they do not distinguish one legislator from another — but they are part of the record.
| Bill | Description | Vote | Chamber margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| HB535 (2025) | Penal institutions; credit for time served regarding probation revocation sentencing; provide | YEA | H 178-0; S 53-0; H 160-0 |
| HB1201 (2024) | Criminal procedure; vacating of sentences of victims of trafficking; provisions | YEA | H 167-0; S 51-0; H 169-0 |
| HB909 (2024) | Georgia Bureau of Investigation; restriction and seal of First Offenders Act; provide | YEA | H 155-0 |
Bills Sponsored
GPS-tracked reform bills this legislator put their name on. Most post-conviction bills die in committee without a recorded vote, so sponsorship is often the only public evidence of where a legislator actually stood.
| Bill | Session | Role | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| HB334 | 2023-2024 | Co-sponsor | Favorably reported then killed by recommittal |
| HB909 | 2023-2024 | Co-sponsor | Passed House 155-0; died Sine Die |
Advocacy Directed at This Legislator
2 response(s) recorded from this legislator.
District Prison Data
5 GDC facilities in this district. 101 deaths documented since 2020.
Response History
Bernard, I couldn’t agree more. I have authored and co-sponsored legislation that would create oversight and it always gets blocked. Last year, we tried a broader approach by removing the exception that the DOC has regarding legislative oversight. We got it passed in the House and the Senate did not take it up. I had a meeting just this past Monday on this very issue getting someone up to speed so that the effort will continue. My time in the legislature is almost up as I will not be returning in January. Keep Pushing and thanks for caring.Bill WerkheiserGA House of RepresentativesDistrict 157Georgia State CapitolSuite 218-AAtlanta, GA 30334Office: 404-656-5132Cell: 912-237-0145bill.werkheiser@house.ga.gov________________________________
Leon,As I just told Bernard, I couldn’t agree more. I have authored and co-sponsored legislation that would create oversight and it always gets blocked. Last year, we tried a broader approach by removing the exception that the DOC has regarding legislative oversight. We got it passed in the House and the Senate did not take it up. I had a meeting just this past Monday on this very issue getting someone up to speed so that the effort will continue. My time in the legislature is almost up as I will not be returning in January. Keep Pushing and thanks for caring.Bill WerkheiserGA House of RepresentativesDistrict 157Georgia State CapitolSuite 218-AAtlanta, GA 30334Office: 404-656-5132Cell: 912-237-0145bill.werkheiser@house.ga.gov________________________________