The Governor’s Challenge Awards will be held October 22, 2026, in Macon.
The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is celebrating the 27th anniversary of the Governor’s Challenge Awards in 2026. The Governor’s Challenge Awards is the state’s premiere law enforcement awards ceremony recognizing state, local, campus and military law enforcement units for the outstanding work they do in promoting highway safety through education and enforcement.
Application Deadline: May 22, 2026, at 11:59PM
Governor’s Challenge is designed to highlight outstanding achievements in highway safety enforcement and education. It recognizes agencies for the approach and effectiveness of their overall highway safety programs. Agencies are evaluated not just for enforcement initiatives, but for innovative problem-solving in their communities, using public information activities and creating departmental policies that support their traffic enforcement campaign efforts.
The Georgia Governor’s Challenge is aligned with the national traffic safety priorities of impaired driving, occupant protection, and speed. Agencies are also encouraged to include information about any local issue you are addressing, such as distracted driving, pedestrian crashes, young drivers, etc.
The GOHS Law Enforcement Services team is ready to assist any agency with any questions about their application and have a How-To-Guide to help agencies craft a winning application.
(Click Photo to Access How-To Guide)
Current Governor’s Challenge award categories are as follows:
CHALLENGE SCORING CATEGORIES
An agency may earn up to 205 points across seven (7) specific areas:
• Policy (25 points)
• Training (25 points)
• Incentives & Recognition (20 points)
• Public Information & Education (40 points)
• Enforcement (40 points)
• Effectiveness (40 points)
• Quality of Application (15 point)
2026 Governor’s Challenge Winners
| AWARD CATEGORY | PLACE |
| Director’s Cup: | Snellville Police Department (237 points) |
| Category 1: 1-10 Officers | |
| Demorest Police Department | 1st Place |
| Boston Police Department | 2nd Place |
| McCaysville Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 2: 11-25 Officers | |
| Twiggs County Sheriff’s Office | 1st Place |
| Forsyth Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Cairo Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 3: 26-45 Officers | |
| Calhoun Police Department | 1st Place |
| Morrow Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Fort Oglethorpe Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 4: 46-75 Officers | |
| Snellville Police Department | 1st Place |
| Dalton Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Tifton Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 5: 76-100 | |
| Liberty County Sheriff’s Office | 1st Place |
| Rome Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Valdosta Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 6: 101-200 | |
| Coweta County Sheriff’s Office | 1st Place |
| Gainesville Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Warner Robins Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 7: 201-500 | |
| Hall County Sheriff’s Office | 1st Place |
| Savannah Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Newton County Sheriff’s Office | 3rd Place |
| Category 8: 501+ | |
| Richmond County Sheriff’s Office | 1st Place |
| Dekalb County Police Department | 2nd Place |
| Cobb County Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Category 9 (Colleges & Universities) | |
| Georgia State University Police Department | 1st Place |
| University of Georgia Police Department | 2nd Place |
| University of West Georgia Police Department | 3rd Place |
| Traffic Enforcement Network of the Year |
|
| Coastal Area Traffic Enforcement Network | 1st Place |
| Middle Georgia Traffic Enforcement Network | 2nd Place |
| Mountain Area Traffic Enforcement Network | 3rd Place |
| Coordinator of the Year | Captain Lee Smith – Middle Georgia Traffic Enforcement Network |
| Asst Coordinator of Year | Deputy Steve Bennett – Appalachian Trail Traffic Enforcement Network |
| HEAT Team of the Year | |
| Snellville Police Department | 1st Place |
| Hall County Sheriff’s Office | 2nd Place |
| Liberty County Sheriff’s Office | 3rd Place |
| SPECIAL CATEGORY AWARDS | |
| Warner Robins Police Department | Impaired Driving |
| Tifton Police Department | Speed Awareness |
| Bryan County Sheriff’s Office | Occupant Protection |
| Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office | Distracted Driving |
| Tifton Police Department | Rookie of the Year |
| Dalton Police Department | Child Passenger Safety |
| Savannah Police Department | Bike/Pedestrian Safety |
| Twiggs County Sheriff’s Office | Teen/Young Driver Safety |
| Spalding County Sheriff’s Office | Motorcycle Safety |
RESOURCES
GOHS Law Enforcement Contact List
(For more information, contact Roger Hayes at 404-971-0379.)