Gordy Powell and Doug Cunningham owners of Georgia Clean, proudly stood with the Georgia Governor on August 4th as he signed House Bill 417 — a new bill regulating trauma cleanup companies throughout Georgia. After years of pushing for this needed regulation through three bill designations, the bill dying in a committee, and a veto just last year, Gordy and Doug were thrilled to finally see the bill signed into law. Georgia Clean is proud to have played a part in keeping the people of Georgia that much safer and setting an example in crime scene cleanup regulation for the rest of the country.
Up to this point, no state in the United States has regulated crime scene cleanup companies themselves. While the transportation and disposal of biohazard waste has been strictly regulated in certain states, the cleanup itself has not been overseen. This lack of oversight has resulted in several tragedies when victims of a crime have been revictimized by the very companies hired to help them. These have included:
- Stealing valuables
- Improper cleanup
- Disrespecting families
- Overcharging for services
Under this new legislation, only those companies who are properly bonded, insured, have obtained the proper disposal and licensing permits, and have undergone a criminal background check can register with the state of Georgia to legally perform trauma cleanup. The state will then maintain a database of these reputable companies for easy reference so people looking for biohazard cleanup in Georgia know the companies they hire have been through a vetting process and are being held to account for the work they do.
After years of ill-managed and unqualified people putting Georgia families and communities at risk by operating outside the standards of proper cleanup and care, we are proud to say we have achieved our mission of only allowing qualified professionals to clean up after crime and other traumas. This law will then lay the groundwork to oversee the companies performing biohazard cleanup and the state of Georgia will be able to remove a company’s registration if they don’t provide quality work at fair prices, thereby protecting those we serve. Only companies with proper registrations will be able to conduct crime scene and trauma cleanup throughout the state of Georgia.
As the first state to institute legal registration, we have now set the bar for the rest of the country to join this movement to protect their own citizens in this way. The new law will take effect on January 1, 2021 and the government will start taking applications for registration sometime this fall.
