As the Georgia General Assembly wrapped up its 2026 regular session last week, State Senator Chuck Hufstetler of Rome is pointing to early childhood literacy as one of the most important issues addressed by lawmakers.
State Rep. Eddie Lumsden of Armuchee says education remains the largest area of state spending in the Georgia House’s proposed FY 2027 budget, with major investments focused on early literacy, student screenings, pre-K expansion, and additional support for economically disadvantaged students.
State Representative Eddie Lumsden (R-Armuchee), who represents Chattooga County and part of Floyd County, says the Georgia House completed a busy seventh week of the 2026 legislative session as lawmakers approach the important Crossover Day deadline. The week included extensive committee work and the final passage of the Amended Fiscal Year 2026 state budget, which totals about $43.6 billion and includes billions in surplus funding. According to Lumsden, the budget prioritizes taxpayer relief, transportation improvements, expanded mental health services, and investments in the state’s prison system, along with a one-time $2,000 salary supplement for educators and state employees.
The Georgia Department of Education has unveiled a Reading Readiness Dashboard designed to give parents, educators, and community members clear access to statewide data on student literacy.
State officials say the online dashboard makes it easier to view students’ grade-level reading status across Georgia, broken down by grade level and subgroup.
The tool uses the Georgia Milestones assessment’s Grade-Level Reading Indicator, which assigns students a Lexile score based on their performance on reading questions in the English Language Arts assessment. The indicator is aligned with the State Literacy Metric adopted by the State Board of Education, as required by the Georgia Early Literacy Act.
Users can click the “by subgroup” tab to view statewide percentages of students reading at or above grade level, then filter by subgroup or adjust the grade level or course being viewed.
According to the dashboard, 65 percent of Georgia third-grade students are currently reading at or above grade level.
State education leaders say the goal is to ensure transparency and provide families and communities with accessible data to better understand reading readiness and support literacy efforts across Georgia schools.