Gold Dome Week Nine

Legislative Update, March 13, 2016, Down To The Wire

We kicked off the ninth week of the 2016 session on Monday, March 7 with legislative day 32. With Crossover Day behind us, the House has shifted much of its focus to considering Senate Bills and monitoring any changes made in the Senate to House Bills and vice versa. This week, we saw the first of many bills receive final passage in the General Assembly. These bills, having passed both the House and Senate chambers, will go to Governor Deal for his consideration. While the end of session is in sight, there is still much more work to be done to ensure that we are sending quality legislation to the governor for review.

One such bill that received final passage this week by a unanimous vote in the House was Senate Bill 137. SB 137 would expand current Georgia property insurance laws to allow corporations specifically described as one or two family residential buildings to collect insurance coverage against fire damage when a building is completely destroyed by fire. SB 137 would update the value policy law in Georgia to include corporations and other legal entities owned by multiple individuals. Currently in Georgia, comprehensive fire insurance is only available to individuals renting property, but SB 137 would extend these same protections to our growing business population, further illustrating Georgia’s business friendly climate and the value placed on Georgia businesses.

Senate Bill 279 also received final passage this week by a unanimous vote from the House. SB 279 would expand the current voting membership of the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training (P.O.S.T.) Council to 22 members to add the commissioner of juvenile justice or their designee and the commissioner of natural resources or their designee. P.O.S.T. provides Georgians with qualified, professionally trained, ethical and competent peace officers and criminal justice professionals. State officers such as the Georgia State Patrol, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the Georgia Department of Corrections, deputy sheriffs, county police, municipal police, and campus police are a few of the many examples of peace officers in our state. The Georgia P.O.S.T. Council is responsible for administering the regulatory process, setting the standards for training and certification, and providing essential technical assistance to the law enforcement community. The addition of these two positions to the P.O.S.T. Council will increase their involvement with the revolutionary criminal justice reform taking place in Georgia. By receiving their crucial input on important law enforcement issues, we can continue to lead the nation in innovative solutions to criminal justice reform and ensure heightened public safety standards in Georgia.   

In addition to giving final approval to many bills this week, the Senate passed the FY2017 budget, or House Bill 751. Even though HB 751 received passage in the House, the Senate version of the 2017 budget varied slightly from the original version that was passed by our body, prompting the creation of a conference committee this week. As a bill makes its way through the legislative process, bills are likely to be changed or amended in committees or as bills pass between the House and Senate chambers. When a different version of the same bill passes in the House and the Senate, the Speaker of the House and the Lieutenant Governor will both appoint a conference committee to work out the differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. Once the conference committee reaches an agreement, their final version is then presented to both the House and Senate for a floor vote. If the conference committee legislation is approved by both chambers, it is then sent to the governor’s desk for consideration. I look forward to hearing the final recommendations of the conference committee appointed this week for HB 751 and seeing a final budget proposal for FY2017.

Other legislation that was considered on the House floor this week:

SB 305, by Sen. Renee Unterman (R-Buford), requires that the Department of Public Health notify the chairpersons of the House and Senate Health and Human Services Committees at least 60 days prior to implementing any changes to the Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) form. This bill passed by a vote of 162-0.  I voted YES.

SB 309, by Sen. Burt Jones (R-Jackson), requires that high schools which receive state funding cannot participate in an athletic association that prohibits religious expression on athletic uniforms. It was clarified that athletic associations may still enforce their rules that prohibit athletes from wearing adornments or headbands, even if they include religious text. The bill also prevents such associations from prohibiting school participation in scrimmage games with other non-member schools. This bill was passed by a vote of 123-34.  I voted YES.

Senate Bill 277, Sen. John Albers (56th), is titled the 'Protecting Georgia Small Business Act'. It provides that neither a franchisee nor a franchisee's employee is an employee of the franchisor for any purpose. This legislation was introduced in response to a recent National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruling that changed the definition of the employer-employee relationship that has existed since the 1980s. Now, a company that hires a contractor to staff its facilities may be considered a so-called joint employer of the workers at that facility, even if it does not actively supervise them. As such, a workers union would be legally entitled to bargain with the parent company not just the contractor.  I voted YES.

SB 308 Sen. Renee Unterman (45th) creates the Positive Alternatives for Pregnancy and Parenting Grant Program within the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH). The purpose of this new government program is to promote healthy pregnancies and childbirth by awarding grants to non-profit organizations that provide pregnancy support services. DPH will oversee the new government program and execute a legal contract with a contract management agency to administer the program. The agency will be responsible for creating a grant application process, monitoring compliance, and coordinating correspondence between DPH and direct client service providers.  All medical information collected under the grant program must remain confidential by DPH, the agency, and providers in accordance with federal and state laws on privacy and medical records (including HIPAA). Annual audits of each provider must be conducted by an independent certified public accountant within 120 days of completing a fiscal year, which could prove costly for non-profits who apply for the program.  I voted NO on this legislation because giving taxpayer payer money to non-profits to subsidize any charitable organizations mission eventually undermines their purpose and their own ability to raise private funds. I fully support pregnancy crisis centers with my own personal money to prevent abortions; however, government involvement into these types of ministries could result in a change in their primary mission when subjected to compliance cost, and eventually they will be saddled with heavy regulation that will cause them to close their doors.

Friday marked the 35th legislative day of the 2016 legislative session. With only two weeks and five legislative days remaining, we will be working around the clock in committee meetings and on the House floor to pass thoughtful legislation for the citizens of Georgia. If you have questions or concerns about any of the legislation that the House or Senate will be discussing, please contact your representatives. 

Jason Spencer GA State Representative

28 Yachtsmen Court, Woodbine Georgia  31569

(404) 656-0177, jason.spencer@house.ga.gov.

Comments

I like to include emails like this one on this blog to show how far government has strayed from just providing basic infrastructure. When our government decided to ignore their “enumerated powers”, they passed laws on everything. Pushing government back in its Constitutional Box is the issue this coming Presidential election will decide.  

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader