County Line Disputes

O.C.G.A. § 36-3-1 et seq.

36-3-1
Whenever one or more citizens of any county desire to have the boundary line of the county changed, they shall file in the offices of the judges of the probate courts of the counties to be affected a petition in writing, setting forth the exact character of the change desired to be made, specifying particularly the situation, direction, and existing marks and monuments, if any, of the original line, and describing particularly the direction, location, and length of the proposed new line, and setting forth the reasons for the change. The person or persons applying for the change shall also give notice of the intention to apply for the change by publishing the same for at least 30 days next preceding the term of the superior court or courts to be held in the counties to be affected, which term shall be that next occurring after the filing of the petition with the judges of the probate courts:

   (1) By publishing the notice in a public newspaper having general circulation in each of the counties to be affected by the change; and

   (2) By posting the notice at the door of the courthouse in each of the counties and at three public places in every militia district adjacent to the line to be changed.

36-3-2
It shall be the duty of the judges of the probate courts of the counties whose dividing line is sought to be changed to lay before the grand juries of their respective counties, on the first day of the next term of the superior courts after the publication of the notice and the filing of the petition provided for in Code Section 36-3-1, the original petition, together with all maps, plats, and other papers that may have been filed therewith. If such grand juries, by a two-thirds' vote of their respective bodies, approve the change applied for, they shall so declare in their general presentments. This action of the grand juries shall be certified at once by the clerks of the superior courts to the county governing authority in the counties to be affected, who shall, within 30 days from the date of the certification, approve or disapprove the application and certify their action to the judges of the probate courts of their respective counties. When the judges of the probate courts have satisfactory evidence of the concurrent approval of the grand juries and of the county governing authority in the counties to be affected, they shall cause an official notice of concurrent approval and a description of the line approved to be published for at least 30 days in a public newspaper having general circulation in their respective counties.

36-3-3
When all the proceedings have been had in the manner prescribed in Code Sections 36-3-1 and 36-3-2 and when the same have been fairly recorded by the judges of the probate courts on the minutes of their respective courts, the new line or lines shall be held to have been established in lieu of the original line or lines.

36-3-4
The entire costs of advertising and recording the petition, descriptions, and all other papers and proceedings relating to the proposed change in the boundary line of a county shall be paid by the person or persons applying there for.

36-3-5
When all proceedings have transpired pursuant to this article, three copies of the survey and plat evidencing a change in county lines and a copy of a resolution from the governing authority of each county evidencing approval of the change shall be filed jointly by the judge of the probate court of each county with the Secretary of State. Upon receipt of the copies of the survey and plat and the resolutions provided above, the Secretary of State shall certify the survey and plat and send a certified copy thereof to the clerk of the superior court of each county affected by the change in county lines. The clerk of the superior court shall record the survey and plat in the same book in which other plats of the county are recorded. The Secretary of State shall retain one copy of the survey and plat, such copy of the survey and plat to be filed in his office.

36-3-20
When the boundary line between two or more counties is in dispute and the grand jury of either county presents that the boundary line needs to be marked out and defined, it shall be the duty of the clerk of the superior court in the county where the presentments were made to certify the presentments to the Governor. The Governor shall appoint some suitable and competent land surveyor, who shall not reside in either county, to survey, mark out, and define the boundary line in dispute and to return the survey with plat to the Secretary of State's office to be recorded in a book to be kept for that purpose.

36-3-21
Before the land surveyor proceeds to make the survey, he shall give the authorities having charge of the revenues of the counties at least ten days' notice of the time and place intended to commence the survey. The notice shall be given by mail or in person.

36-3-21.1
(a) At any time after certification of the grand jury presentment to the Governor and prior to a final determination by the Secretary of State under Code Section 36-3-24, the governing authorities of the affected counties may by mutual agreement determine where the boundary line shall be located. Any such agreement shall be evidenced by the adoption of an appropriate concurrent unanimous resolution by the governing authority of each affected county; and each such resolution shall incorporate or incorporate by reference an agreed upon plat, description, or other means of definitely ascertaining the boundary line.

(b) The resolutions of the affected counties shall be filed with the Secretary of State and the Department of Community Affairs, together with the agreed upon plat, description, or other means of definitely ascertaining the county line. If the Secretary of State finds that:

   (1) Such resolutions meet the requirements of this Code section;

   (2) The agreed upon plat, description, or other means adequately defines the boundary line;

   (3) The surveyor, if appointed, has been adequately compensated for services performed to date or adequate arrangements have been made for the payment of such compensation; and

   (4) The agreement is otherwise proper to terminate the boundary dispute,
 
then the Secretary of State may enter a written determination that the disputed boundary line has been determined by agreement as authorized by this Code section. Such written determination, the concurrent resolutions of the affected counties, and the plat, description or other means of definitely ascertaining the boundary line shall be recorded in the same manner and with the same effect provided for in Code Section 36-3-25.

36-3-22
The land surveyor appointed by the Governor to survey, mark out, and define the boundary line in dispute shall furnish the judges of the probate courts or chairmen of the boards of county commissioners of the respective counties with a copy of the survey and plat made and returned by him to the Secretary of State, at the same time the survey and plat are made and returned to the Secretary of State.

36-3-23
The survey with plat, made and returned to the Secretary of State, shall be filed in his office, and entry of filing shall be made thereon; but the survey and plat shall not be recorded within the space of 30 days from the date of its reception in such office, for the purpose of allowing the authorities of either county dissatisfied therewith to file a protest or exceptions thereto within that time.

36-3-24
If a protest or exceptions to the survey and plat are filed in the Secretary of State's office within the 30 days, it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to give, through the mail, ten days' written notice of the time when he will hear the protest or exceptions at his office to the county governing authorities of the respective counties. Upon the hearing, the Secretary of State shall determine from the law and evidence the true boundary line in dispute between the respective counties.

36-3-25
Upon the making of a decision by the Secretary of State pursuant to Code Section 36-3-24 or in case no protest or exceptions are filed within the 30 days, the Secretary of State shall cause the survey and plat to be recorded in a book to be kept for that purpose, whereupon the same shall be final and conclusive as to the boundary line in dispute. When the boundary line in dispute has been established as final and conclusive as provided in this Code section, the same boundary line shall not again be subject to the procedures set forth in this article, and such boundary line may subsequently be changed only in accordance with Article 1 of this chapter, provided that nothing contained in this sentence shall affect any boundary line dispute in question on July 1, 1980, until the dispute is settled.

36-3-26
(a) The land surveyor shall receive a fee to be fixed by the Secretary of State or his designated deputy or assistant. Such fee shall be based upon reasonable compensation for the work to be performed and the rates normally charged by land surveyors in the same geographical area as the disputed line. The fee shall be negotiated prior to the commencement of the survey. Prior to the commencement of the survey, it shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to notify the governing authorities of the counties affected of the fee which has been negotiated.

(b) For the purpose of assisting the Secretary of State in connection with his responsibilities and duties to fix and negotiate an appropriate fee for the services of the land surveyor in surveying, marking out, and defining the boundary line in dispute, the Secretary of State may appoint an advisory committee to be composed of three registered land surveyors. One of the members of the advisory committee shall be a county surveyor who shall be selected by the Secretary of State from a list of at least three county surveyors submitted to the Secretary of State by the Association County Commissioners of Georgia. The members of the advisory committee shall serve at the pleasure of the Secretary of State or for such terms as the Secretary of State shall provide. The members of the advisory committee shall receive no compensation for their services as such.

(c) The advisory committee shall review the proposals of the land surveyor appointed by the Governor and shall counsel and advise the Secretary of State as to the committee's recommendation concerning an appropriate fee for such services. The recommendations of the advisory committee to the Secretary of State in relation to such fee shall not be binding upon the Secretary of State but shall be used by the Secretary of State in assisting him in determining and fixing an appropriate fee.

36-3-27
It shall be the duty of the governing authorities of each of the counties affected by such survey to pay that proportion of the fee established under Code Section 36-3-26 that such county bears to the total number of counties directly affected by the survey. The payment of such fees is declared to be a public purpose. The governing authority of each county affected is authorized and directed to pay such fees and to levy such taxes as may be necessary for the payment of such fees.