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Apr 05
Legislative Update 2019 - Week #11 & Sine Die
Noteworthy Items:April 1-2, 2019 The General Assembly convened for Legislative Day 40 on April 2, which was the final day of the 2019 session. For those bills that were successfully passed by the legislature, Governor Kemp has 40 days to sign or veto them. Some highlights from Sine Die include: The House and Senate reached an agreement and passed SB 2 which would provide statutory clarity for the EMCs to provide broadband around the state.
Mar 25Legislative Update 2019 - Week #10
Noteworthy Items: The General Assembly was in session last week Monday, Thursday, and Friday for legislative days 33, 34, and 35. This week the General Assembly will be in Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday for Legislative Days 36, 37, 38, and 39. The final day of session will be Tuesday, April 2. Budget & Taxes The Senate Finance Committee added the content of SB 131, the “Georgia Major Airport Authority,” which would give the state the authority to control the
Mar 19Legislative Update 2019 - Week #9
Noteworthy Items:The General Assembly met last week on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday for Legislative Days 30-32. Since Crossover Day has passed, all of the bills that were passed on the floor of one chamber by Crossover Day are now being heard in committees in the other chamber. The General Assembly will be in session Monday, Thursday, and Friday this week while Tuesday and Wednesday will be committee work days.The Senate passed HB 316, the bill that calls for new election regulations and voting machines
Mar 04Legislative Update 2019 - Week #7
Noteworthy Items:The General Assembly met last week Monday – Friday for Legislative Days 21-25. With Crossover this week, there were many committee meetings last week to try to get as many bills as possible on the floor by Day 28. As a reminder if a bill does not pass at least one chamber and “cross over” to the next, by the end of Day 28, it is not eligible for consideration the remainder of the session.The FY 2020 Budget (HB 31) passed the House with a vote of 155 – 13 last Thursday. The $27.5 billion
Feb 25Legislative Update 2019 - Week #6
Noteworthy Items:The General Assembly met last week Tuesday – Friday for Legislative Days 17-20. Session is picking up as we get closer to Crossover Day.GEDA hosted its annual legislative dinner last Monday and had excellent participation from a bipartisan group of key legislators. The dinner provided a great opportunity to thank legislators for their support of our economic development efforts and continue to build relationships. We were pleased that Governor Kemp was able to stop by for a bit and visit
Feb 19Legislative Update 2019 - Week #5.
Noteworthy Items:The General Assembly met last week Monday – Friday for Legislative Days 12-16. Session was in full swing. Notably, HB23, one of the bills allowing EMCs to provide broadband services, passed the House by a unanimous vote on Monday. It has been read in the Senate and referred to Regulated Industries and Utilities, where hearings have begun. Healthcare continues to be a prominent topic this session: Last week, Governor Kemp revealed SB 106, “The Patients First Act.” This
Feb 11Legislative Update 2019 - Week #4
Noteworthy Items:The General Assembly met Tuesday through Friday last week for Legislative Days 8-11. The Super Bowl interrupted the flow but last week saw a number of bills starting to work through the committee process. HB 23, also known as the EMC Broadband bill, passed out of the House Rules Committee on Friday after having been sent back to the House Economic Development Committee for minor changes. HB 23 will be on the floor for a full vote in the House at the beginning of this week.Last week the
Feb 04Legislative Update 2019 - Week #3
Noteworthy Items:The General Assembly met this week Monday-Wednesday for Legislative Days 5-7. However, due to anticipate winter weather, Governor Kemp closed state government for Tuesday, January 29, and that legislative day was abbreviated. The closure also impacted GEDA’s annual day at the Capitol, which was, unfortunately, also cancelled.It was a relatively slow legislative week as committees had their first meetings and got organized. However, HB 22 and HB 23 did see movement as it was voted out of the
Jan 25Legislative Update 2019 - Week #2
Noteworthy Items: The General Assembly was not in session this week but the House & Senate Appropriations Committee held joint budget hearings to review the amended fiscal year 2019 (AFY19) and fiscal year 2020 (FY20) budget proposals. Some highlights are as follows:The total budget is $27.5 billion (not counting federal funds)In his FY20 budget request, Governor Kemp asked for $418 million to provide teachers a $3,000 permanent pay raise. He termed this a down payment on the $5,000 pay raise he promised
Jan 22Legislative Update 2019 - Week #1
GEDA (Georgia Economic Developers Association) & Prepared by: Cornerstone Government Affairs Noteworthy Items: The General Assembly gaveled in on January 14, 2019 at 10 am. Governor Kemp and all the constitutionally elected officers were sworn in at 2 pm the same afternoon in front of a record-breaking crowd at McCamish Pavilion on Georgia Tech’s campus. In Governor Kemp’s inaugural address, he spoke of Georgia as being known for its low tax environment, being a logistics hub, the
