April 30, 2010
The longest Georgia legislative session in at least 120 years reached final adjournment late Thursday night. One of the final actions of the session, which began Jan. 11, was approval of a $17.9 billion state budget for fiscal year 2011.
Senate and House of Representatives budget conferees came to agreement on a spending plan that is reduced by more than $3 billion from just two years ago. The cuts include another $527 million reduction in Quality Basic Education funding that the state provides to local school systems. But the budget does restore funding to the Georgia Council for the Arts, which had been eliminated in the House budget, and cuts to the University System of Georgia were not as severe as feared earlier in the session.
I am particularly pleased that we were able to secure bond funding allocations of $6.4 million for infrastructure expansion at Kennesaw State University, $2 million to fund 20 percent of the cost to rebuild Clarkdale Elementary School in Cobb County as a result of flood damage and $1 million to equip the Engineering Technology Center at Southern Polytechnic State University.
The budget legislation, HB 948, now goes to the governor for his consideration. He has the authority to sign or veto the budget, as well as veto specific line-item appropriations. Fiscal year 2011 begins July 1, 2010.
Trauma Care Funding: Lawmakers approved legislation that will provide a reliable funding mechanism for the state's trauma care network. SR 277 is a constitutional amendment that would implement a $10 fee on auto license tags, raising about $80 million each year for a trauma care trust fund. This funding will enable the state to expand that network. SR 277 still must be approved by a majority of Georgia voters in a referendum this November.
Property Tax Assessments: Comprehensive property tax reform legislation received final passage Thursday. SB 346 is aimed at protecting taxpayers from unfair assessments and guaranteeing the right to appeal. The bill requires that every property owner receive an annual Notice of Assessment that includes the estimated property tax and expands the appeal time from 30 to 45 days. All relevant sales, including distress sales, must be included when determining Fair Market Value.
Zero-Tolerance Reform: Legislation to address problems with so-called "zero tolerance" school disciplinary laws received final approval from the Senate and House of Representatives. SB 299, which goes to the governor for his signature, would prevent the immediate jailing of a student without a hearing and give judges more discretion as to how they handle cases. The zero tolerance laws were intended to crack down on serious charges of having weapons in school but have instead often resulted in students being criminalized for minor and insignificant infractions.
In other action on legislation during the session's final two days, the Senate:
· Gave final approval to SB 308, which expands the number of public areas where persons with firearms licenses can legally carry guns. The bill awaits the governor's signature.
· Approved SB 360, which bans motorists in Georgia from texting while driving, and HB 23, which bans teenagers from talking on cell phones while driving. A violation of either law, if signed by the governor, would result in a fine of up to $150 and one point on the driver's license of the offender.
· Approved an amended version of HB 323, retaining the proportionality review for death-penalty cases after the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee said its removal would make Georgia's capital punishment law vulnerable to a legal challenge.
· Approved HB 936, which would allow local school systems to use state funds to refurbish existing buses. The bill goes to the governor for his signature.
· Approved an amended version of HB 1005 to allow Georgians to purchase "In God We Trust" labels to affix to their automobile license tags. The House agreed to Senate amendments, and the bill goes to the governor for his signature.
· Approved an amended version of HB 1272, which would allow Georgians to make contributions to the fight against lupus and kidney disease on their state income tax returns. As amended, the bill would also allow taxpayers to write in an additional amount to the state for general services. The House agreed to the Senate amendments, and the bill goes to the governor for his signature.
Transportation sales tax bill falls short of meeting needs
April 23, 2010
After three years of trying to reach agreement on a solution to the state's transportation funding problems, a majority of the House of Representatives and the Senate gave final approval April 21 to HB 277, which is better than nothing, but not much. The Republican majority finalized the legislation in a strictly partisan manner, including no Democrats on the conference committee.
Under the legislation, Georgia will be divided into 12 regions, each of which will hold a referendum in 2012 for a special 1 percent sales tax to be used for transportation improvements within that region.
Individual counties cannot opt out of the funding plan, but a "roundtable" of local elected officials can decide not to hold a tax referendum in their regions, whose boundaries mirror those of Georgia's regional commissions, including the 10-county Atlanta Regional Commission.
I voted against the legislation because it fails to meet the state's immediate needs for transportation funding. Putting these votes off until 2012 means it will be at least 2013 before any revenue comes in from the special sales tax to fund the transportation improvements needed in our area. Holding the referendums during the 2010 election cycle would have been preferable.
I also feel the legislation does not do enough to assist MARTA with its budget problems. To deal with future growth, supporting mass transit is as important, if not more important, than building more roads.
HB 277 now goes to the governor for his signature.
Senate approves $17.8 billion state budget plan
April 22, 2010
The Senate voted April 21 to approve a $17.8 billion annual state budget for fiscal year 2011, which begins July 1.
The plan is now in the hands of a conference committee, which will reconcile differences between the Senate budget and the version approved by the House of Representatives. The budget is typically one of the last pieces of legislation to be finalized on the 40th day of the legislative session.
The Senate's version of HB 948 restores $25 million in bonds for water and sewer projects across the state and nearly $900,000 in funding for the Georgia Arts Council, which had been cut by the House. The plan also includes $790 million in new budget cuts identified by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Because of the economy and declining state revenues, the state budget has been reduced by approximately $3.4 billion over the past two years. To help balance the 2011 budget, lawmakers are relying on an additional $250 million in revenues from a 1.45 percent hospital tax and increases in more than 80 state licensing, registration and user fees.
On April 20, the Senate gave final approval to the supplemental budget for the remainder of the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. HB 947, the amended version of the FY 2010 budget, reduces overall spending by $1.5 billion from the budget's original form passed last year. The House put its final stamp on the supplemental budget April 21, sending it to the governor for his signature.
Ethics Legislation: The Senate and House also sent new ethics legislation to the governor's desk for his signature on April 21. SB 17 doubles the fines for late reporting and other violations of campaign disclosure rules, demands more timely reporting of expenditures by lobbyists, makes sexual harassment by legislators a punishable offense and bans lobbyists from communicating with legislators by Blackberry or other electronic devices while the legislature is in session. An amendment also brings the members of the State Transportation Board under ethics law provisions regarding personal financial disclosure and lobbyist spending. A downside to SB 17 is that it would require a citizen filing a complaint to pay the official's attorney fees if the Ethics Commission determines the complaint is frivolous. That could cost Georgia residents tens of thousands of dollars in legal fees and deter citizens from filing complaints.
Other Senate Action: The Senate approved a number of other legislative measures last week, including the following:
SB 374, which would establish a legislative oversight committee to monitor the state's economic development activities. The Senate approved of House amendments to the measure, sending it to the governor.
HB 571, which would correct certain provisions of the state's sex offender law that have been found to be unconstitutional and clarify the law to prohibit all sex between students and teachers, even if the student is of age and consents.
HB 788, which would prohibit the use of gas chambers to euthanize cats and dogs, requiring lethal injections instead.
HB 1016, which would change the definition of identity fraud to apply to businesses as well as individuals.
HB 1198, which would eliminate a $26- to-$52 tax credit for low-income Georgians. I voted against this legislation. While the state continues to award tax breaks in the hundreds of millions of dollars to corporate interests, I cannot support taking away a modest tax break from those who need the help the most.
HB 1405, which would create a "tax reform council" to review and recommend changes to the state's tax code. The recommendations would go straight to the Senate and House for an up-or-down vote, without being reviewed by legislative committees. I voted against this legislation because these are issues that should be debated thoroughly by the elected representatives of the citizens, rather than a hand-picked council.
Senate combines bed tax, fee increases with tax cuts
April 16, 2010
A majority of Senators voted this week to approve compromise legislation that in one bill adjusts more than 80 user fees, imposes a 1.45 percent hospital bed tax and phases out both the state income tax on retirement income for seniors and the state's share of property taxes.
HB 1055 was originally a proposal to increase registration, licensing and user fees on more than services provided by the state, bringing in approximately $96 million. The increased costs to citizens affect a broad range of fees, including civil court filings, business registrations, specialty car tags and numerous annual license fees charged by the Department of Agriculture.
Some of these fees had not been changed for more than 30 years and even after this increase will still be among the lowest in the Southeast. I understand the need to bring in more revenue to balance the budget and voted for the legislation in its original form.
But as passed Wednesday, HB 1055 also includes a 1.45 percent tax increase on hospitals and their patients, which will generate approximately $169 million. The infamous "sick tax" was actually approved earlier in the session, but differences between the House and Senate versions led to a compromise under which it would be rolled into HB 1055. I still contend a $1 per pack tax increase on tobacco products would be a more appropriate means of generating revenue to make up the state's Medicaid deficit.
Senate and House of Representatives leaders attempted to make the measure more politically palatable with the addition of two minor tax cuts. One would phase out the state's 0.25-mill property tax over time, an almost insignificant gesture considering how much of the tax burden the state has shifted to local property owners over the past eight years. This tax cut will save the average homeowner only $31, compared to the $260 average tax increase they absorbed when the governor and the legislative majority eliminated the Homeowner Tax Relief Grant a year ago.
The other tax cut would gradually eliminate the income tax on retirement income for Georgians 65 and older between now and 2016. Because retirement income of up to $35,000 for individuals and $70,000 for couples is already exempt, this action would actually help only a few people.
The tax cuts in HB 1055, if signed into law by the governor, will hardly offset the hospital tax increase and the fee increases. There is an additional concern over whether the legislation is even legal because it combines tax code changes with fee increases.
Sadly, those in power have chosen once again to balance the state budget on those already suffering: sick hospital patients, underfunded public schools and overburdened property tax payers.
GEFA Loan Sell-Off: Also this week, a slim majority of Senators voted to approve the governor's proposal to sell a portion of the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) loans on Wall Street in order to raise some $290 million to help balance the budget. I voted against HB 244 because the loans are valued at $676 million. It makes no sense to sell off these assets at less than 50 cents on the dollar for a one- time budget fix. GEFA loans are made by the state to local governments at low interest rates to finance infrastructure projects across the state. Selling off this revolving revenue source will likely destroy the program, ruin Georgia's AAA bond rating and force more expensive borrowing by local governments.
In other action this week, the Senate approved the following legislation:
HB 361, which would authorize hospital pharmacists to collaborate with members of the medical staff on drug therapy management.
HB 665, which would create a pilot program for the electronic transmission of absentee ballots by military personnel and other citizens who are overseas.
HB 1015, which addresses gang-related crime and would create new offenses for those who recruit gang members or retaliate against witnesses. The bill also encourages the creation of the Georgia Criminal Street Gang Database.
HB 1179, which would require hospitals to provide annual flu shots to employees who come in contact with patients, although it would not be mandatory for the employees to take the shots.
HB 1322, which would prohibit the public release of graphic crime scene photos that depict a dead person in a state of nudity, dismemberment or decapitation.
Economic Update: Gov. Perdue announced last week that for the first time since November 2008, the monthly collection of state revenues reflected an increase in March. Net revenue collections grew by $10.5 million last month, to $998.2 million from $987.9 million in March 2009. While representing only a 1 percent increase, it was the first positive piece of economic news in well over a year for Georgia lawmakers and is hopefully the sign the downturn in state revenues is beginning to level off. Less encouraging was the unemployment report for March, which showed Georgia's jobless rate increased slightly to a record 10.6 percent.
District 6
P.O. Box 1781
Smyrna, GA 30081
Phone: 770.436.0699
Fax: 770.436.0699
Email: doug.stoner@senate.ga.gov
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