2006 session report [2006]

Georgia House of Representatives
2006 SESSION REPORT

Inside...
Sex Offenders Budget Update Immigration Voter ID
Eminent Domain Gas Prices Education in
Georgia Medicaid Speaker Tom Murphy Virtual House

To my fellow Georgians,
From tougher sex offender laws to lower taxes, the Georgia House of Representatives was busy this past session working to make Georgia a better safer place to live, work and raise a family. Working together, legislators brought their communities' concerns to the table and everyone went home with a positive message for their constituents.
When the legislature convened in January, House members went straight to work. Committee meetings resumed and for the first time ever were broadcast over the internet bringing more openness to our work at the Capitol. Our members displayed a high level of professionalism and I personally found the internet broadcast useful when I could not attend a meeting of interest.
With members back in their districts now, the 2006 campaign season is in full swing. I am sure that Georgians will be hearing more about the good work we completed during the 2005 and 2006 legislative sessions.
It has been an honor to serve as Speaker for this distinguished body and I look forward to continuing our work moving Georgia forward.
Speaker, Georgia House of Representatives

PROTECTING PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS
Following the Supreme Court's decision in the Kelo case last summer, legislators arrived in Atlanta for the 2006 session promising to protect the private
property rights of Georgians. See page 4 to learn more about how they accomplished that goal.

TOUGH NEW LAWS PROTECT CHILDREN FROM SEX OFFENDERS

House Bill 1059, sponsored by Majority Leader Jerry Keen, rewrote the laws on sex crimes in this state. The bill, which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, requires mandatory jail time for all sex crime convictions with increased penalties and required probation after prison.
The bill, which was signed into law by Governor Sonny Perdue on April 26, 2006, mandates that offenders who commit the worst crimes those most serious violent felonies of aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, and aggravated sexual battery, will go to jail for at least 25 years and will be on probation for the rest of their lives. Offenders who commit other sex crimes, such as sodomy, statutory rape, or incest, will be sentenced to the mandatory minimum sentence and serve at least one year on probation after their release.
House Bill 1059 eliminates any kind of first offender treatment for sexual offenders and increases the role of the Sexual Offender Registration Review Board. The Review

Board, which has been sorely underused handling only 57 cases in nine years of existence will now review every convicted sexual offender to ascertain his or her likelihood to recommit a sex crime before he leaves prison. If the Review Board designates a sexual offender as a sexual predator, that individual will be required to wear a GPS monitor for the rest of his life.
The bill also includes a comprehensive re-write of the state's sexual offender registration law, requiring every sexual offender to register with the sheriff of the county where he intends to live before he leaves prison and mandating re-registration for every sexual offender every year on his birthday. Sexual predators are now required to re-register every six months. The registration law has also been reorganized to put the duties of

the Department of Corrections, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, county sheriffs' offices and other state agencies into separate sections to avoid any confusion regarding an agency's responsibilities.
Finally, House Bill 1059 expands residency restrictions to include workplace and loitering restrictions for sex offenders. No registered sexual offender will be allowed to loiter
within 1000 feet of an area where minors congregate or be employed by any child care facility, school or church or by any business located within 1000 feet of any child care facility, school or church. Additionally, no sexual predator will be employed by any business located within 1000 feet of an area where minors congregate, which includes swimming pools and designated public school bus stops.
The first priority of Georgia's legislators was to protect our children. The tough new penalties we enacted are a giant step forward in ensuring their safety and the protection of their innocence.

2007 BUDGET REFLECTS LEGISLATURE'S COMMITMENT TO GEORGIA

For the first time in many years, legislators were able to begin work on Georgia's 2007 state budget knowing that state revenues are up and financial obligations could be met. Thanks to years of fiscal discipline and tangible payoffs from economic development, Georgia's economic future is finally looking sunny.
Legislators' commitment to improving the state is no more evident than the priorities funded in the 2007 Budget. More than 70 percent of new state revenues will go to education. Public school teachers, state employees and law enforcement professionals will all get much deserved pay raises. Funds were also increased for rural roads and economic development projects including downtown revitalization efforts.
Before the 2006 session kicked off in January, Governor Perdue sent a clear message to legislators that his number one priority was education. Members of both the House and the Senate responded in kind making funding education their priority as well. Highlights include:
Over 70% of all new state revenue appropriated into education initiatives;
$10 million to provide every school teacher in Georgia public and private school teachers with a $100 gift card to purchase classroom supplies during Georgia's Tax Free Holiday;
$7.6 million to restore austerity cuts to media materials made during the recession;
$163 million to fund the Governor's class size reductions;
$442 million in bonds for classroom construction, new equipment and new school buses;
$2.2 million to attract high performing principals; $15 million for High School Completion Counselors; 2,000 new slots for Virtual High School students; 4% pay raises for public school teachers across the
state; $202 million in additional QBE funds; $53 million to fund enrollment growth at Georgia public
universities; $2 million in grants to public libraries for materials; and $5 million for new equipment at Georgia's technical
schools and $7 million for their repair and maintenance.

A personal care allowance for nursing home residents for items including toiletries;
For the first time since 1996, an increase for office visits to Pediatricians performing well health checks for Medicaid children;
Speech pathologists serving Medicaid clients will also receive an increase;
$1 million for Trauma Center networking; $1.6 million to expand newborn screening; $500,000 for breast cancer research; Dental care for low-income, pregnant women and
children in PeachCare; and MRDD slots recommended by the Governor
were doubled and funded for 9 months; CCSP slots recommended by the Governor were doubled and funded for a full year.
To ensure Georgia continues to experience growth and increased revenues, the 2007 budget also funds a number of key economic develop initiatives across the state.
$55.2 million to LARP projects; $75 million in bonds for economic development projects; $5 million for a new state park in Coweta County; and $1.5 million in matching loan funds for downtown
revitalization programs through the Georgia Cities Foundation.
Georgia's legislators proved to be careful stewards of taxpayer money providing funding for key state initiatives. Working through the state budget is always a long and tiring process, but the dedication of elected members of the House and Senate working with the Governor resulted in a plan that meets the needs of our citizens and helps to continue to move Georgia forward.

Recognizing the sacrifice and dedication of Georgia's law enforcement and correctional officers, legislators appropriated over $6.4 million to give 11,276 state officers an additional 3% pay increase over the Governor's proposed 2-4% bump.

Across Georgia and the country, healthcare costs are hitting not only state budgets but also citizens' budgets. Acknowledging the need to provide quality healthcare to everyone, the following was included in the 2007 budget:

NEW GEORGIA LAW SEEKS TO BALANCE PROMISE OF AMERICA AND FINANCIAL BURDEN OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
In 2006 Georgia became the first state to tackle the problem of illegal immigration with the passage of Senate Bill 529. The Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act, sponsored by Senator Chip Rogers, provides for the comprehensive regulation of persons who want to live and work in Georgia, but who are not lawfully present in the United States.
Mandatory participation in a federal work authorization will now be part of doing business in Georgia. Any contractor or subcontractor who enters into a contract with a public employer must participate in a federal work authorization program to verify the immigrant status of all employees. Further, every public employer must participate in the federal work authorization program.
SB 529 requires that the immigration status of every person arrested on a DUI or felony charge be verified and that law enforcement notify the United States Department of Homeland Security of any arrested illegal aliens.
The law makes it the responsibility of businesses in this state to ensure that their employees are legally allowed to work in this country. Earned wage deductions taken on employees paid over $600.00 per year will no longer be allowed unless employees can provide valid taxpayer identification. If an employee cannot verify that he is legally in this country, then his employer will be required to withhold state income tax on that employee.
Senate Bill 529 creates a change in our laws for the good of individuals who come to this country seeking a better life. It does not take away access to emergency care for anyone though it will require any adult receiving non-emergency health care or other state services to prove that he is in the US legally. It does not deny a secondary education to any child in this state. Two humanitarian provisions of the bill make it a crime to lure illegal immigrants into this country and force them to work for little or nothing by threatening to expose their illegal status, and also regulates the practice of immigration assistance services to prohibit improper immigration practices.

FREE VOTER ID CARDS AVAILABLE IN EVERY GEORGIA
COUNTY

Following Federal District Court Judge Harold Murphy's decision to temporarily halt the 2005 voter identification bill, supporters of the measure to require a photo identification moved quickly to address public concerns: Senate Bill 84 makes voter identification cards free and available in every county in Georgia.

" The "Georgia Voter
Identification Bill"

By making these

provides for a free id cards free and photo identification

card to be issued to available in every

registered voters not

possessing another county, we have

form of approved ID. Further, it requires eliminated the

each of the 159 county Board of

concern of a few

Registrars to provide and ensured that

at least one location

in their county to

every Georgian who

receive applications and produce

wishes to vote will

the new voter id

have the proper

cards. In the 2006

-2007 budget, the identification to do

General Assembly provided the

" so.

funding necessary

to implement the

House Speaker

program.

Glenn Richardson

In addition to a picture of the voter, the voter identification card will contain the person's full legal name, address, date of birth, sex, height, weight, eye color, county and date of issue, and any other information the State Election Board may require. This card will clearly state that it may be used for voting purposes only.

Upon passage of SB 84, Speaker of the House Glenn Richardson said, "By making these id cards free and available in every county, we have eliminated the concern of a few and ensured that every Georgian who wishes to vote will have the proper identification to do so."

PROPERTY OWNERS' RIGHTS PROTECTED

On Tuesday, April 4, Governor Sonny Perdue signed into law House Bill 1313 and House Resolution 1306, the "Landowner's Bill of Rights and Private Property Protection Act." Private landowners now have increased protection against the potential abuse of the use of eminent domain by local governments.
HR 1306 is a Constitutional Amendment requiring that the condemnation of property be for a public use (as the term is defined by law) and be approved by a vote of the elected governing authority of the county or city in which the property is located. The Constitutional Amendment will go into effect if ratified by Georgia voters in November.
The bill, a priority of Governor Perdue and sponsored by House Representative Rich Golick, requires that any exercise of eminent domain by non-elected housing and development authorities be first approved by the county or city government and be for a designated public use. The use of eminent domain for economic development purposes is not allowed under this legislation.

Public use is now defined in the law and allows the use of eminent domain to clear blight. In the past, governments have been able to designate areas comprising several homes or lots as blighted. Under the new law, blight will be determined on a property by property basis.
The definition of blight now ensures that governments may only condemn land that is unsafe or uninhabitable, a source of imminent harm due to a natural disaster or emergency situation, an environmental hazard, or maintained below code over a long period of time.
The provisions of House Bill 1313 ensure that property owners who have their property condemned will receive notice of the condemnation in a timely manner and the right to a jury trial if they dispute that the taking is for a public use. Further, the law charges the Department of Community Affairs with developing a Landowner's Bill of Rights. This will help landowners know and understand their rights with regard to government takings of private property.

LEGISLATURE DELIVERS RELIEF FROM HIGH GAS PRICES
Consumers Feel Relief at the Pump and at Home
In a post-Katrina world, high gas prices seem to have become a part of our everyday lives. As Georgians continue to deal with rising gas prices, some welcome relief has come from an unexpected place the Georgia General Assembly and Governor Sonny Perdue.
In September of 2005, Governor Perdue took bold action in the days following Hurricane Katrina as gas prices soared higher daily. A temporary suspension of the Georgia gas tax brought lawmakers back to Atlanta to ratify that action. Consumers felt immediate relief at the pump and in total saved over $77 million.
As winter approached, concern rose about the escalating price of natural gas and its impact especially on the elderly and low income Georgians. Responding to this need, Governor Perdue again called for a temporary reduction of state taxes collected on natural gas. The Governor's order cut the state tax on natural gas and liquid propane in half during the peak winter months. The legislature moved quickly during the opening days of the 2006 legislative session to ratify this tax cut as well. The tax cut applies to residential heating bills and saved Georgians over $16 million.

GOVERNOR'S INITIATIVE PUTS CLASSROOM LEARNING FIRST

SB 390, the Classrooms First for Georgia Act, is a significant piece of the Governor's education agenda. This legislation requires local school systems to spend at least 65% of their total operational school system budget, which includes local, state and federal dollars, on classroom expenditures by 2008. If a system does not meet the 65% threshold, it must increase classroom spending by 2% each year until the threshold is met. Additionally, if a system is showing great student achievement on various standardized measures, such as the SAT and state graduation test, it may ask for an achievement waiver. The bill also contains a hardship exemption for schools who cannot meet the 65% threshold due to acts of God or escalating prices in gasoline.
Under the bill, classroom spending would include salaries for teachers and teacher's aides, the

cost of books, field trips, and tuition paid for specialneeds students to attend out-of-state schools or private institutions. In the 2002-2003 school year, 64 of the state's 180 school systems were already meeting or exceeding the 65% benchmark for
classroom spending.
The concept is based upon sound business principles and management techniques, and is believed to encourage school districts to be as efficient as possible by making classrooms, teachers and students their first funding priorities (www. firstclasseducation.org).
Governor Perdue agrees, "Making classroom spending a priority and providing our hardworking teachers with more classroom resources will give our students the best opportunity to reach their fullest potential."

SMALLER CLASS SIZES AID GEORGIA'S
TEACHERS
The "Truth in Class Size" bill, HB 1358, is a significant portion of the Governor's education agenda, and gives parents and teachers clarity and certainty with regard to their child's class size. Beginning in the 2006-2007 school year, Kindergarten classes with a paraprofessional will be set at a maximum of 20 students and those without a paraprofessional at 18 students. For grades 1-3, the maximum will be 21 students per class and grades 4-8, a maximum of 28. These maximums are for academic subjects only. In addition, system averages will no longer exist. For example, a system will no longer be able to have 23 second graders in one classroom and 19

in another to achieve an average

maximum number.

Maximums will be set for high

school students as well. In an effort

to increase test scores in Science,

these classes will be limited to

30 students, and other academic

courses including math, language

arts and social studies, will be set

at 32. Maximum system averages

are also set in the bill. Science

courses are capped at 28 students,

and other academic courses are

capped at 30 students.

The bill also allows the

State Board of Education to provide

waivers for systems who have one

or more classes exceeding the

maximums after the October Full

Time Equivalent count. Jeffery

Williams with the Georgia School

Superintendents

Association

would like to see waivers granted

for unforeseen growth during the

school year, "It is our hope that

the state board will be persuaded that it is not in the best interest of a child's education to have classes shuffled during the school year and to be assigned to a new, unfamiliar teacher midway through the year. If a system has made a good-faith effort to begin the school year with all classes in compliance with the maximum, GSSA will advocate that waivers be granted for unforeseen enrollment growth after the school year has started."
The intent of this bill is to increase the value of classroom teaching, and thus education, by decreasing the number of students in each classroom. Research has found a positive correlation between lower class sizes and higher achievement by students. Teachers will also benefit by being better equipped to deal with disciplinary concerns and will have more time to focus on individual students.

FORMER SPEAKER MURPHY TO BE HONORED AT STATE CAPITOL

Thomas B. Murphy, a Georgia Democrat,
was Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives for twenty-eight years making the him the longest serving Speaker of a State House in the country! Recognizing his contributions to the State of Georgia, House Speaker Glenn Richardson led a movement to honor his predecessor with a portrait to be hung in the State Capitol.

Speaker Murphy was born March 10, 1924, in Bremen, Georgia. After graduating from high school in Bremen, he attended North Georgia College and graduated in 1943. First elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1960, Murphy quickly moved up through the ranks of Democratic leadership. After the death of George L. Smith in 1973, Murphy was elected by his peers as Georgia's 68th Speaker of the House.

Murphy was known as a man with a quick wit and a sharp tongue during his forty-two year career in the House. With a quick nod and an ode to the political styles of long forgotten politicians, he could make or break legislation.

Defeated for re-election in 2002, his presence is still felt on the House floor and throughout the Gold Dome. Even though his cigar smoke was banned in the Capitol, no one could or can extinguish the fire that made him the longest serving Speaker of the Georgia House.

GEORGIA HEALTHCARE GETS A HELPING HAND

Every year hundreds of millions of dollars
worth of medications are destroyed due to patient waste or the death of the person for whom it was prescribed. Typically the medicines are literally flushed down the toilet, as no other alternate avenue existed for their redistribution. With the passage of House Bill 1178, Georgia will now be able to see that these drugs are used to help those that need them the most.
The "Utilization of Unused Prescription Drugs Act" sets up a method of recycling unused medications from nursing homes, hospices and other health care facilities for the purpose of aiding indigent and/or uninsured Georgians who would otherwise not have access to them. Narcotics and other controlled substances will not be eligible for reuse under this act. Pharmacists, physicians and other health care professionals will not be held liable for their participation in the program. The

Department of Community Health will cover any costs associated with restocking pharmacies for these purposes.
One additional provision provides immunity to pharmacists compromised by their own personal beliefs who do not wish to fill certain prescriptions. To avoid disciplinary action, the pharmacist in question must sign an affidavit stating their moral objection to filling a prescription designed to terminate a pregnancy, so long as the medication is not classified as a contraceptive.
The bill also authorizes the medical board to make loans to doctors practicing in underserved rural areas of Georgia. This provision will help increase access to specialists in areas around the state that are currently experiencing shortages, as well as provide financial assistance to physicians who agree to practice in these regions.

TECHNOLOGY OPENS GOVERNMENT TO ALL GEORGIANS

Prior to the 2006 legislative session, Speaker of the Georgia House Glenn Richardson made history by announcing that for the first time ever House Committee meetings and press conferences would be broadcast live over the World Wide Web allowing everyone in Georgia with a computer and an internet connection to watch their government in action.
C-SPAN has for years brought the inner workings of our federal government into our living rooms and onto our computers allowing anyone, anywhere to become a more active participant in government and more informed citizen. But the inner workings of the Georgia General Assembly have remained essentially unseen by the majority of Georgians until now.
While the public has always been allowed and welcomed to attend House Committee meetings, most are held in Atlanta during the normal legislative session that typically runs from January through March. Citizens had to drive to Atlanta in the middle of the week during the school year just to see government at work. But now thanks to technology and the vision of Richardson and his leadership team all that will be required to watch a committee meeting on an important bill or a press conference is

a computer and an internet connection.
Beginning in the fall of 2005, committee rooms in the Capitol and the Paul D. Coverdell Legislative Office Building were equipped with cameras streaming live video and audio to viewers
on the internet. Parents across Georgia were finally able to watch crucial debates on new legislation to strengthen Georgia's sexual predator laws
without ever having to leave their communities. Students in classrooms from Echols County to Dade County were able to watch debates on the state's budget or watch a press conference as it happened. Complimenting the committee cameras, a new web site for the Georgia House of Representatives was launched. Fully loaded with committee meeting calendars, agendas and notes, direct links
to members' websites, and educational information for all ages, the new site has been a huge success.
The doors of Georgia's government have been thrown wide open and everyone is invited to take a look. While every Georgia citizen should visit the Capitol in Atlanta if ever given the chance, a drive to Atlanta is no longer required for them to be a part of their government.

Glenn Richardson, Speaker Georgia House of Representatives 332 State Capitol Atlanta, Georgia 30334 404.656.5020

http://www.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2005_06/house/index.htm