FEBRARY 3, 2010 . DAY10 Upper Chamber Report TOP STORY Legislative Day 9: Senate Prepares for Full Week of Legislative Days in Chamber Raegan Weber, Press Director Kallarin Richards, Editor in Chief By Katie Wright Daily business continued Points of Personal Privilege, where senators CHAMBER (Feb. 1, 2010) - The Sen- have the opportunity to make an- ate is preparing for a full five days in nouncements and present legislation. Chamber this week, moving forward with the business of Geor- gia. Legislative Day Nine began with first readers and roll call as usual, followed by the Chaplain of the Day, Rev. Ledlie Conger. Sen. Bill Hamrick (R-Carrollton) hosted Rev. Con- ger and in his in- troduction, Hamrick talked about the Sen. Greg Goggans (R-Douglas) pro- respect he had for the reverend's intel- posed legislation that would establish ligence and spirituality. a constitutional amendment to elimi- nate the tax exemption currently in Sen. Donzella James (D-College Park) place on the sale of lottery tickets. hosted the Doctor of the Day, Dr. An- gela Shannon. Dr. Shannon completed Sen. Valencia Seay (D-Riverdale) reminded senators that National Wear Red Day, a Na- tional Heart Asso- ciation event, is this Friday. She encour- aged everyone to wear red and show support of the fight against heart dis- ease in women. Following Points of Personal Privilege, Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle much of her training in the Atlanta adjourned the Senate. area at Emory University and she specializes in pediatrics. * Follow the State Senate on Twitter at GASenatePress Senator Rogers Announces Major Overhaul of Georgia Property Tax System By Raegan Weber high. Rogers created and chaired takes place gradually and this is the Property Tax Assessment just the beginning," said Rogers. ATLANTA (Feb. 1, 2010) Sen- Committee to look into the is- ate Majority Leader Chip Rogers sue. Homeowners, business own- Changes to the assessment and (R-Woodstock) today announced ers, tax assessors, and property appeals system include year- a much-needed overhaul of Geor- lawyers testified to present the round assessment appeals, all gia's property tax system. After flaws, challenges and suggested comparable sales including fore- collecting information and input solutions to the system. As a re- closures and banks sales must be from property owners, assessors sult, Rogers worked with every- applied, and the "view factor" and local governments, Rogers one in the industry and achieved will be eliminated as a way to presented a property tax assess- bi-partisan support to overhaul determine value. The proposed ment and appeals reform bill with Georgia's property tax system. changes to assessments and ap- more than 40 changes to the tax peals relieve burdens from prop- system. "Ultimately, the property tax erty owners, but also achieve effi- must be eliminated. However, the ciency for the process and for "The collection of taxes should political will for a complete and county governments. be fair, transparent, and easy to drastic repeal is not possible at understand. Sadly, the property this time. That sort of change tax in Georgia accom- plishes none of these things. This legislation attempts to bring fairness Property Tax Assessment & Appeals Reform Highlights to an unfair system," said Rogers. "Georgians from Year-round property assessment appeals all over the state created this legislation. During my eight years I have Every property shall receive notice of assessment every year Statewide uniformity of assessment notice & appeal forms never witnessed an issue Sales price of "Arms-Length" transactions shall be maximum where everyone agreed assessed value for following tax period the current system is broken. We have had hundreds of suggestions for change. The more than 40 Tax assessor shall apply all comparable sales including foreclosures and bank sales Allow counties to accept payment plans for property taxes changes represented in Allow for Commercial Appraisers to substitute for Board of this bill represent the will Equalization on Commercial properties of the people and will bring needed relief to property owners." Establish time limits for assessor action in response to appeals Department of Revenue shall update assessor guidelines and training no less than once every five years and all info shall be Property values in Georgia have fallen drastically placed online View Factor shall not be used to determine value over the past few years. Assessed values have not kept pace, resulting in property taxes for many property owners Unanimous vote by Board of Equalization members required to increase assessed value Current Use and not "Highest and Best" value shall be used to determine current assessed value being artificially Page 2 UPPER CHAMBER REPORT Constitutionality of Health Care Reform Debated in Judiciary Committee By Kallarin Richards any one state over another. The attorney general is also encouraged to investigate the constitutionality of CLOB 307 (Feb. 1, 2010) The Senate Judiciary a federal mandate that requires all Americans to par- Committee passed several resolutions aimed at fed- ticipate in a national health insurance program. Sen. eral health care reform efforts. Sen. Seth Harp's (R- Hill presented the measure in the form of two resolu- Midland) Senate Resolution 795 would amend the Georgia Constitution to prohibit any law that restricts citizens from choosing private health insurance, inter- feres with a citizen's right to pay directly for lawful medical services or penalizes those who choose not to purchase health care coverage. Sen. Harp noted that the resolution comes in direct response to health care reform efforts in Washington, and aims to protect Georgia citizens against federally mandated health care programs and penalties. The committee then voted to pass a measure from Sen. Judson Hill (R-Marietta) that urges the Georgia attorney general to investigate the constitutionality of the U.S. Senate's health care bill. Two matters are tions, one on behalf of the Georgia State Senate (SR called into question, beginning with the methods in 829) and another on behalf of the entire Georgia Genwhich the Senate obtained the 60th vote needed to eral Assembly (SR 830). pass the bill. Senate leaders included an exemption called the Nebraska Compromise, which guarantees Sen. Ron Ramsey (D-Decatur) commented that while Nebraskans that they will not have to pay for ex- Georgia faces over a billion dollar deficit, he is conpanded access to Medicaid benefits under the bill, cerned with the attorney general spending state rethereby obtaining Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson's vote. sources investigating what is only proposed legislaSen. Hill's resolution states that such a compromise tion. Sen. Vincent Fort (D-Atlanta) echoed his sentiviolates the principle that federal legislation must ments, and both senators voted against the legislation. have a legitimate national interest and cannot benefit Senate Public Safety Committee votes in favor of increased Identity Protections Hill testified before the committee that many times citizens will report their license lost or stolen and By Raegan Weber they are reissued identification with the same ID number. Too many times the lost or stolen cards are CLOB 310 (Feb. 1, 2010) Members of the Georgia not properly noted in the state data base. This situa- Senate Public Safety Committee unanimously voted tion could result in identity theft. SB 287 now goes to further protect Georgians' identities after their to the Rules Committee before going to a vote on the diver's license is reported lost or stolen. State Sen. Senate Floor. Judson Hill (R-Marietta) sponsored and presented Senate Bill 287 (SB 287), which requires the Depart- The Public Safety Committee also took up Sen. ment of Driver's Services (DDS) to issue a replace- Johnny Grant's (R-Milledgeville) Senate Bill 324, ment driver's license or permit with a new number authorizing the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and for any person whose current license or permit was Training Council to impose administrative fees for lost or stolen. DDS must also either remove the pre- any authorized services that it provides. These fees vious license number from the data base of valid are not new or additional. The legislature is simply licenses or indicate in the data base that the license codifying fees that are already in place. SB 324 was associated with the number has been reported as sto- unanimously approved by the committee. len or forged and is no longer active or valid. Page 3 UPPER CHAMBER REPORT Natural Resources and the Environment Committee Discuss Permitting Non-Native, Injurious Snakes Ethics Committee Hears More Expert Testimony By Adam Sweat By Natalie Strong CAP 450 (Feb. 1, 2010) - The Natural Resources and the Environment Committee met on Monday to discuss Senate Bill 303, the Wild Animals Permits Bill focusing on pythons and anacondas. SB 303 was authored bill Sen. John Douglas (R- Social Circle) as a proactive response to a growing problem with nonnative injurious reptiles currently in Florida, which is expected to spread north to Georgia. The bill would require owners to purchase a permit for their pet as well as have their pet micro-chipped in order to better monitor the snake population in Georgia. Sen. Douglas noted how dangerous this problem could become citing a specific case in Florida where a three-yearold girl was killed by her family's pet python. CLOB 506 (Feb 1, 2010) In continuation from a previous meeting involving both the House and Senate Ethics committees, Doug Chalmers, a noted ethics attorney, testified before both legislative bodies in an effort to aid the General Assembly in ethics reform. Michael Jablonski, general counsel to the Democratic Party of Georgia, was also on hand to further assist state lawmakers as they gear up for debate over the vital issue. Chalmers appeared before the committee to testify about campaign finance disclosure, lobbying, and personal finance disclosure. He suggested that the law currently lacks a coherent definition of the term non-profit. His concern over this definition stems from the fact that excess funds from campaigns can be donated to non-profit organizations, which includes political action committees. Jason Clark, of the Southeast Reptile Rescue Center, showed his support for the bill, but asked members of the committee to change the $236 per year licensing fee to an every other year fee. Clark voiced concern over the chipping requirement, stating that this would be another added expense to the snake owner which might become a burden that lead to more snake owners releasing their snakes in to the wild. Christina Smith, a private citizen, spoke about her hobby, raising smaller snakes, and voiced her concern of the negative impact the legislation would have on the business owners. She felt that they will need to be heavily reviewed by those within the industry to determine the long-term effect on commerce. Dan Forrester, with the Department of Natural Resources, spoke in support of the bill. He was confident that even with the new licensing requirement, DNR would be able to facilitate the change without a burden of need for extra funding. He felt the bill would be a positive change, without negatively affecting commerce. Forrester noted that the licensing would require casual pet owners to reassess their responsibility as a pet owner and create more conscientious, better educated snake owners in Georgia. Finally the committee heard from Glen Allen of the Georgia Wildlife Federation. Allen commended the bill and noted that it would be no different than being permitted in falconry. He noted that the overall tone of the bill would connect ownership with responsibil- Both Chalmers and Jablonski agreed that there needs to be a better clarification over what to do with excess campaign funds that remain after an election. Currently, there is no regulation over what those monies can be used for, which allows for the funds to be spent at the discretion of the candidate. However, Jablonski believed that campaign transfers should be prohibited, while Chalmers feels that those who contributed to one candidate's campaign would not be offended if the money was transferred to a candidate with similar ideals. The definition of lobbying also was brought to the committee's attention, which is currently very unclear in its current form. Chalmers discussed the possibility of a gift ban while also talking about requiring them to report bundle donations, as well as requiring lobbyists to disclose the names of their clients. All these ideas were brought before the committee to help increase transparency of l donations to Georgia lawmakers. It is believed that these measures will help build a level of trust between those that govern and the general public which has waned in recent years. ity. Chairman Tolleson recommended that Sen. Douglas work further with members of the industry, snake owners, and DNR in order to reach a compromise on certain issues in order to strengthen the bill. The bill was held over in committee. Page 4 UPPER CHAMBER REPORT Legislative Process Dates Important Dates in the Legislative Process Introduction - Last day to file and/or 1st Read in Senate. 30 th day - last day to introduce General Senate bills and resolutions (even year). [Rule 3-1.2 (b)] 30 th day - last day to accept General House bills and resolutions. [Rule 3-1.2 (b)] 39th day - last day to introduce General Senate bills and resolutions (odd year). [Rule 3-1.2 (b)] *Note: Senate bills and resolutions must be filed with the Secretary before 4:00 p.m. to be 1st read on the next legislative day. Deadlines for passage in current year Committee Report Deadlines - Last day to read report. Report submitted to Secretary by convening. 28th day - General Senate bills and resolutions. 38th day - Local Senate bills and resolutions. 38th day - General House bills and resolutions. 40th day - Local House bills and resolutions. Calendar Management Calendar in numerical order after 2nd reading of legislation; days 1-5. [Rule 4-2.10 (a)] Rules Committee sets the calendar for days 6 - 40. [Rule 4-2.10 (b)] General Senate Bills and Resolutions 26th day - File with Secretary of the Senate. [Rule 3-1.2 (a)] 27th day - 1st Reading and referral to committee. [Rule 3-1.2 (b)] 28th day - Committee report read upon convening. (A recommitted bill already 2nd read - report day 29.) 29th day - 2nd Reading. [Rule 4-2.6] 30th day - Passage [Rule 4-2.10 (a)] and immediate transmittal to House. [Rule 4-2.14] Local Senate Bills and Resolutions 35th day - File with Secretary of the Senate. [3-1.2 (a)] 36th day - 1st Reading and referral to committee. (Cannot pass for 2 days.) [Rule 4-2.4 (c) ] 38th day - Favorable report by committee, passage and immediate transmittal to the House. [Rule 4-2.14] 39th day - 2nd Reading in House. 40th day - Favorable report and passage in House. General House Bills and Resolutions 30th day - Transmitted from House and received by Secretary. 31st day - 1st Reading and referral to committee. [Rule 3-1.2 (b)] 38th day - Favorable report upon convening and 2nd reading. (Applies to days 36 - 38) [Rule 4-2.6] 39th day - Passage. [Rule 4-2.10 (a)] 40th day - Passage of bills or resolutions tabled day 39; removed from the table on day 40. [Rule 4-2.10 (a)] Local House Bills and Resolutions 39th day - 1st Reading and referral to committee. 40th day - Favorable report by committee and passage. * Note: On the 30th day and on the last three days of session, bills and resolutions needing action from the House are automatically immediately transmitted. [Rule 4-2.14] 40th day - Passage of bills or resolutions tabled day 39; removed from the table on day 40. [Rule 4-2.10 (a)] Page 5 UPPER CHAMBER REPORT To view this report online, please visit http://www.legis.ga.gov/legis/2009_10/senate/ucreport.htm