Brock Clay Weekly Capitol Report, Week 11

Friday, February 27, 2009

Report From the Capitol, Week 7

This week, a proposal to guarantee Georgians rights to a secret ballot passed a Senate Committee by a vote of 7 – 2. Senator Eric Johnson (R – Savannah), sponsor of Senate Resolution 108, is attempting to preempt a potential federal law that will allow unions to organize without going through an election’s process if a majority signs cards that would authorize a union, simply referred to as “card check.” Said Johnson, “This is an attempt to keep Georgia from becoming a unionized state, which would then reduce jobs.” The Senate also passed Senate Resolution 49 , sponsored by Senator Preston Smith (R – Rome) on Thursday, urging the United States Congress to reject the secret ballot initiative that has been dubbed the “Employee Free Choice Act.”

On Thursday, the State Senate voted 42 – 5 to ban property assessment increases for the next two years. This would keep property taxes down for at least that period of time. Senate Majority Leader Chip Rogers said that Senate Bill 233 would keep assessments from rising, but also would keep them from falling in that time period.

Senate Bill 16, dubbed the Sunday Sales Bill, is sponsored by Senator Seth Harp (R - Midland) and currently sits in the Senate Regulated Industries Committee after several hearings. Rep. Roger Williams has a companion bill in the House, House Bill 352 . Last week, Senator Harp’s legislation was merged with legislation proposed by Senator Dan Moody (R – Alpharetta) that would crack down on underage drinking. It should be noted here that Senator Moody is the Republican Caucus chairman. The bill was set to be voted on by the Senate Regulated Industries Committee this week, but only two members showed up for the meeting, far short of a voting quorum. Senator David Shafer pledged that the Committee would consider the legislation against next week.

Senate Bill 31 has been one of the most hotly debated and controversial bills considered by the General Assembly thus far this session. The legislation would allow Georgia Power to charge their customers early for the construction of additional nuclear reactors. According to the company, the system proposed by this legislation would set the reactor fee on a $100 monthly bill would start at $1.30 in 2011, then gradually increase it to about $9.10 by 2017. If the company charged under the traditional method, customers would pay nothing until 2016.Then they would see $5.85 jumps in 2016 and 2017, resulting in an additional $11.70 on a $100 bill. Opponents argued that the bill would create financial benefits for the company early, and also questioned why the Legislature was making decisions the PSC should be making. The bill passed the House 107 – 66.

Former Senate President Pro – Tempore Eric Johnson (R – Savannah) has introduced Senate Bill 90, an innovative package that would make Georgia the first state in the country to offer vouchers in all public schools. Johnson stepped down from his post as President Pro – Tem to concentrate on his campaign for Lt. Governor, and currently serves as Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee. In the past, he has been a champion of educational reform issues, including the successful passage of legislation providing vouchers to students with disabilities. Senate Bill 90 would provide roughly $5,000 in taxpayer dollars that a family could use to help pay for private school tuition. The student would have to qualify for admission at the new school before receiving the funds, and the parent would have to provide transportation. Opponents of the bill have criticized the proposal as an attempt to weaken the public school system while proponents of the bill argue that this is a creative solution to stimulate higher performance within our education system. This legislation passed out of the Senate Education Committee by a vote of 6 – 4.

The effort to reform transportation the governance of transportation planning and the funding of transportation projects in Georgia continues to pick up speed. This week, MARTA found itself making progress on one of it’s most important legislative proposals. If you’ll remember, earlier this session, Senator Jeff Mullis sponsored and passed Senate Bill 39 and Senate Resolution 44. Senate Resolution 44 establishes a constitutional referendum to establish a TSPLOST and Senate Bill 39 is the accompanying legislation. This week, a completely different looking Senate Bill 39 passed out of the House Transportation Committee. In concert with representatives from MARTA, Rep. Pat Gardner (D – Atlanta) offered an amendment to the bill which essentially replaced the original TSPLOST language with the language from Senator Doug Stoner’s Senate Bill 120. MARTA has been working for several years to eliminate a requirement that the expenditures of their revenue be split evenly, with 50% of the funds spend on operating costs and 50% of the funds spent on capital expansion. Senate Bill 120 eliminates that requirement, and as it stands now, Senate Bill 39 has changed from a regional TSPLOST bill to a MARTA bill. More on Senate Bill 39 ’s progress in a moment.

In the meantime, Chairman Vance Smith (R - Pine Mountain) has continued to gather support for House Bill 277 and House Resolution 206 . This legislation, called The Georgia 20/20 Transportation Act, establishes a statewide local option fundraising mechanism that would raise approximately $27 billion over the next ten years. The legislation places the funds under the authority of the State Road and Tollway Authority and also places into statute a list of transportation projects on which the money may be spent. Last week, the legislation passed unanimously out of Rep. Carl Roger’s Special Funding Subcommittee. The House Transportation Committee met twice at the end of the week, and made several modifications to the legislation. Many of the amendments centered around governance and transparency. The legislation then passed the House Transportation Committee unanimously.

The House Rules Committee has met and set the debate calendar for Tuesday, March 3, Legislative Day 24. The House will be voting on House Bill 277, House Resolution 206, and also on the newly modified Senate Bill 39, all but assuring transportation stakeholders that a conference committee will consider the transportation funding issue at some point before the end of this session.

In the meantime, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Transportation Gena Evans was unceremoniously and decisively removed from her position at the head of the embattled agency, effective immediately. In the vote, one Board member abstained, and only two, Chairman Bill Kuhlke and Vice Chairman Larry Walker (the former Democratic Majority Leader in the Georgia House of Representatives), voted to keep Evans in her position. A committee was immediately appointed to conduct a national search to fill her position. Gerald Ross, the first African American chief engineer of the State DOT, was appointed the interim Commissioner. Three weeks ago, Raybun Anderson, one of Evans’ key supporters, resigned due to personal reasons. Rep. Bobby Parham (R – Milledgeville), was elected by the General Assembly to take his place, but will not be seated until after the end of the 2009 Legislative Session.

Governor Sonny Perdue and Lt. Governor Casey Cagle both vocally chastised the Board of the Department of Transportation accusing the Board of making decisions based on personal vendettas and self - interests. They both renewed calls for the General Assembly to pass Senate Bill 200, a comprehensive reform of the manner in which Georgia handles transportation funding and administration. Senate Bill 200 , sponsored by Senate President Pro – Tempore Tommie Williams (R – Vidalia), essentially relegates the Georgia DOT to projects involving road repair and maintenance, and creates the State Transportation Authority. The STA would take over all planning and funding functions currently operated by the DOT, and would be overseen by an 11 member board. Many legislators have expressed concern because, unlike the current DOT Board (elected by the General Assembly), the STA board would be appointed by the Governor, Lt. Governor, and Speaker of the House.

On Wednesday, Senate Bill 200 sped through the Senate Transportation Committee over the objections voiced by the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia, the Georgia Municipal Association, the Sierra Club, and numerous Democrats on the Committee, who warned that the issue was being considered in the wrong manner. Senator Doug Stoner (D – Smyrna), a popular member of the Senate and a recognized leader on transportation issues, warned that the Senate would “rue the day we passed this bill.” The bill passed with an 8 – 3 party line vote.

Finally we turn to the struggle being waged by Georgia’s EMS community and her 15 designated trauma centers to find financial backing for the vital services they provide. This week, the Senate voted 49 – 0 to approve the committee substitute for Senate Bill 156 , sponsored by Senator Cecil Staton (R – Macon). This legislation, which would alter portions of the Georgia Code governing the Trauma Care Network Commission, proposes changes including adding burn centers to the trauma code, expanding the ability to cover cost of readiness, and clarifying the relationship of the GTCNC with the State Office of EMS and Trauma. The first draft of the legislation would have offered trauma funding to designated stroke centers, placed the Georgia Trauma Care Network Commission under the Administrative Procedures Act (allowing them to be sued), and left ambiguity in some definitions which might have allowed for non – designated trauma centers to make an argument for receiving some of the trauma money. However, a collaborative effort by the Lt. Governor and Governor’s office addressed those issues, and the legislation passed the Senate Health and Human Services Committee unanimously.

Speaker Glenn Richardson (R – Hiram) has indicated an interest in entering the trauma funding discussion by instigating the amending of House Bill 480 , which reforms Georgia’s laws governing the car tag tax. The system the Speaker proposes would propose a flat fee on car purchases, capped at a certain amount, and then part of that revenue would be allocated to fund trauma. While more exact details continue to be forthcoming, it’s clear that the Speaker intends to try to become more aggressive in passing some sort of trauma funding: and at least at this point, he’s looking at more creative ways of doing that. It would also appear that, as long as the House leadership is pursuing this particular method of funding, the funding bills introduced earlier on diverting the State’s quarter mil and adding fees on cell phones and car tags, have been put on the proverbial back burner. House Bill 480 has been heard once in the Ways and Means subcommittee, but nothing has been done as of yet to incorporate funding for trauma care. Over the past several years, many stakeholders have expressed a concern over Lt. Governor Casey Cagle’s engagement on the trauma issue. Today, Lt. Governor Cagle issued an aggressive statement on trauma, indicating an increased level of attention towards the issue.

...and in other news...

Nineteen members of the Georgia General Assembly are behind on state and federal income taxes, some of them as old as 2002, according to a Georgia Department of Revenue report…

This week, Governor Sonny Perdue’s office filed an amicus brief supporting a utility district in Texas that is suing for changes in the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Among other things, if successful, this suit might change the fact that Georgia has to ask for the approval of the United States Justice Department before making changes to voting laws and political jurisdictions.

Eight days after a chimpanzee critically injured a Connecticut woman, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Captive Primate Safety Act, H.R. 80, introduced by U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., and Mark Kirk, R-Ill., to stop interstate commerce in primates as pets. The bill passed by a vote of 323 to 95.

The economic crisis is affecting domestic relations around the world. Last week, an international businessman with five mistresses decided he could only afford to keep one, and held a competition to decide which one he would keep. One of the spurned lovers died when, in a fit of anger, she enticed the man and the other mistresses into her car, then drove the car off a cliff. The woman died, and the other occupants were only injured.

…this day in history...

On February 27, 1922, the United States Supreme Court unanimously upheld the 19th Amendment, forever guaranteeing the right of women to vote…