Section 49-2-2.1. Department of Human Services becomes successor-in-interest to all rights, duties, and obligations of former Department of Human Resources

   (a) The Department of Human Services shall succeed to all rules, regulations, policies, procedures, and administrative orders of the Department of Human Resources that are in effect on June 30, 2009, or scheduled to go into effect on or after July 1, 2009, and which relate to the functions transferred to the Department of Human Services pursuant to Code Section 49-2-1 and shall further succeed to any rights, privileges, entitlements, obligations, and duties of the Department of Human Resources that are in effect on June 30, 2009, which relate to the functions transferred to the Department of Human Services pursuant to Code Section 49-2-1. Such rules, regulations, policies, procedures, and administrative orders shall remain in effect until amended, repealed, superseded, or nullified by the Department of Human Services by proper authority or as otherwise provided by law.

(b) The rights, privileges, entitlements, and duties of parties to contracts, leases, agreements, and other transactions entered into before July 1, 2009, by the Department of Human Resources which relate to the functions transferred to the Department of Human Services pursuant to Code Section 49-2-1 shall continue to exist; and none of these rights, privileges, entitlements, and duties are impaired or diminished by reason of the transfer of the functions to the Department of Human Services. In all such instances, the Department of Human Services shall be substituted for the Department of Human Resources, and the Department of Human Services shall succeed to the rights and duties under such contracts, leases, agreements, and other transactions.

(c) All persons employed by the Department of Human Resources in capacities which relate to the functions transferred to the Department of Human Services pursuant to Code Section 49-2-1 on June 30, 2009, shall, on July 1, 2009, become employees of the Department of Human Services in similar capacities, as determined by the commissioner of human services. Such employees shall be subject to the employment practices and policies of the Department of Human Services on and after July 1, 2009, but the compensation and benefits of such transferred employees shall not be reduced as a result of such transfer. Transferred employees who were subject to the state system of personnel administration provided for by Chapter 20 of Title 45 will lose no rights granted under such system as a result of such transfer. Retirement rights of such transferred employees existing under the Employees' Retirement System of Georgia or other public retirement systems on June 30, 2009, shall not be impaired or interrupted by the transfer of such employees and membership in any such retirement system shall continue in the same status possessed by the transferred employees on June 30, 2009. Accrued annual and sick leave possessed by said employees on June 30, 2009, shall be retained by said employees as employees of the Department of Human Services.

(d) On July 1, 2009, the Department of Human Services shall receive custody of the state owned real property in the custody of the Department of Human Resources on June 30, 2009, and which pertains to the functions transferred to the Department of Human Services pursuant to Code Section 49-2-1.

Code 1981, § 49-2-2.1, enacted by Ga. L. 2009, p. 453, § 2-1/HB 228; Ga. L. 2012, p. 446, § 2-94/HB 642.