State Lawmakers Complete First Two Weeks of 2015 Session

By Rep. Alan Powell

The 2015 legislative session of the Georgia General Assembly convened Jan. 12, a special day for me as it marked the beginning of my 25th year of serving the people of Northeast Georgia as a member of the House of Representatives.

My 3-year-old great-niece, Sara Johnson, held the Bible as I took the oath of office for another two-year term.

The first week of the session was largely devoted to organizational matters, committee assignments, the first wave of legislation being introduced and the State of the State address by Gov. Nathan Deal on Jan. 14 to a joint session of the House and Senate.

The Governor began by detailing the exceptional progress Georgia has made in recent years. The creation of 319,000 jobs, a 643 percent increase in the state’s rainy day fund and the announcements by Mercedes-Benz USA and Porsche North America to relocate their businesses to Georgia are only a few examples.

“Now, our economy is seeing positive growth with thousands of new jobs added every month,” Gov. Deal said. “We’re seeing the tell-tale signs of cranes and bulldozers humming on newly cleared land. We’re seeing home values recover and Georgia families rebuild their savings. And Georgia has been named the No. 1 place in the nation in which to do business by several major rating agencies and has repeated that designation by one of them already. In short, I’m here to report to you today that the state of our state is strong, and getting stronger every day.”

The Governor spoke in favor of an additional financial investment to improve the state’s transportation infrastructure, as recommended by a special study committee. The committee’s official report concluded that Georgia needs a minimum of $1 billion to $1.5 billion in additional annual revenue to maintain the state’s existing roads, bridges, air and transit system infrastructure, as well as $5.4 billion more annually for necessary transit expansion and new road construction.

“We must maintain and improve our roads and bridges; we must provide congestion relief; and we must prepare for more freight and more businesses,” the Governor said. “We can debate how much it will cost to do something; but let us not forget how much it will cost to do nothing.”

Education: On education, Gov. Deal has appointed an Education Reform Commission to continue to improve our state’s education system. This commission will be composed of legislators, educators and other key stakeholders and will study a number of questions regarding our education system, such as increasing access to Georgia’s early learning programs, recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers and expanding school options for Georgia’s families. A subset of the commission will examine the most appropriate ways to modernize the antiquated Quality Basic Education funding formula, which was created in the 1980s.

The Governor continued his call for criminal justice reforms and proposed combining the supervision functions of three state agencies – the Board of Pardons and Paroles, the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Department of Corrections – into a new Department of Community Supervision.

Gov. Deal expressed support for decriminalizing and controlling the use of cannabis oil for the medical treatment of certain conditions, including childhood seizures. He said he does not support the legalization of marijuana for recreational use and opposes allowing marijuana to be grown or sold in the state.

House Committee Assignments: House members received our committee assignments for the 2015-2016 legislative term last week. I will continue to serve as Chairman of the House Public Safety & Homeland Security Committee, which handles legislation pertaining to law enforcement and safety issues facing Georgia.

I will also be serving as a member of the House Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for the annual state budget, and the Rules Committee, which controls the flow of legislation through the House, as well as the Government Affairs Committee, Motor Vehicles Committee, Regulated Industries Committee and Small Business Development Committee.

Budget Hearings: Last week,  I joinied my fellow members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees for hearings and initial work on the proposed budget for the remainder of fiscal year 2015 and the annual budget for fiscal year 2016. Through the first half of the current fiscal year, state revenues are showing a 5.7 percent increase over last year.

As a result, Gov. Deal has proposed a $21.78 billion budget for FY 2016, which includes more than $500 million in new funding for Georgia’s education system, $280 million of which will specifically help local schools increase instructional days, eliminate furlough days and enhance teachers’ salaries. The Governor’s plan also includes $34 million in increased funding for the Division of Family & Children Services to hire 278 additional child welfare caseworkers.

Look for more details on the proposed budget in next week’s report. Please feel free to contact me throughout the session with your thoughts on pending issues, or whenever I can be of service. My legislative office is located in 613 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, GA 30334; phone 404-463-3793 or email [email protected]. For more information, visit www.alanpowell.net.