February 7 - 11, 2005 Legislative Week # 5

This Week on the Floor:

Friday, Feb.11

 House was not in session

Thursday, Feb.10

SB 3 Torts; evidentiary matters; civil practice; revisions of provisions; (w/ committee substitute)

- Passed to Debate Calendar with 4 amendments as a modified-structured rule

Amendments: AM 29 0305 - adopted

AM 29 0317 - defeated

AM 29 0312 - adopted

AM 14 0724 – defeated

Wednesday, Feb. 9

HB 263 Income tax; deduction; cost of certain classroom supplies and materials by educators

- Yeas: 163 Nays: 0

HR 14 Hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles; urge Congress allow use in high occupancy vehicle lanes

- Yeas: 151 Nays: 2

HR 63 Social Security; retirement accounts; urge Congressional delegation work to pass

- Yeas: 95 Nays: 70

HB 10 Female genital mutilation; define offense; penalties; exceptions

- Yeas: 159 Nays: 0

HB 218 Public records; economic development; exemption and disclosure of certain records

Floor Amendment

- Yeas: 109 Nays: 58

Shall this Bill Pass

- Yeas: 118 Nays: 52

Tuesday, Feb. 8

H.B. 191 – Income tax; corporations; allocation and apportionment formulas; revise

- Yeas: 169 Nays: 2

H.B. 84 – Supplemental appropriations; FY 2004-2005

- Yeas: 165 Nays: 5: By Committee Substitute

Monday, Feb. 7

H.B 67 – Unmarried persons; certain benefits; neutrality of state and local laws; relating to state government in general, so as to provide for neutrality of state law with respect to freedom of decision to provide or not provide certain benefits to unmarried persons; to provide that state and local government entities shall comply with such policy of neutrality

- Yeas: 124 Nays: 39

* The House was not in session on Friday, February 11, but will be back in session on Monday afternoon, February 14 at 1:00pm for its 17 th Legislative Day.

Next Week in the Rules Committee:

The House Rules Committee did NOT MEET on Friday, February 11, 2005. The following is a schedule of Rules Committee meetings for the upcoming week.

Monday, Feb. 7 11:00 a.m. (This date only. Normal time is 10:00 a.m.)

Tuesday, Feb 8 9:00 a.m.

Wednesday, Feb. 9 9:00 a.m.

Thursday, Feb. 10 9:00 a.m.

Friday, Feb. 11 House not in Session

* Bills and Resolutions that are passed by the Rules Committee will not be added to the House Rules/Debate Calendar until the next legislative day.

This Week’s Committee Meetings’ Actions

- Committee Reports prepared by House Research & Policy Office

Agriculture & Consumer Affairs

No Action Taken

Appropriations

H.B. 84 – Supplemental appropriations; FY 2004-2005; passed on to Rules, and from there was placed on Tuesday, Feb. 8’s Debate Calendar for the full House.

Banks & Banking

No Action Taken

Children & Youth

HB 180 Allows DHR to receive criminal history information, including arrest and conviction data, which is relevant to any adult person who resides in a home where children in custody of DHR have been or may be placed.

HB 212 Requires certain training for guardians ad litem appointed for children in deprivation cases.

Defense & Veterans Affairs

No Action Taken

Economic Development & Tourism

No Action Taken

Education

H.R. 50 Resolution creating the Joint Agricultural Education Study Committee to develop agricultural education instructional standards and develop cross-curricula instruction to all grade levels

Ethics

No Action Taken

Game, Fish, & Parks

No Action Taken

Governmental Affairs

No Action Taken

Health & Human Services

No Action Taken

Higher Education

H.R. 84 Resolution would provide for a name change for Valdosta State University’s Peach State Summer Theatre as Georgia’s Official Musical Theatre. This program used to be in partnership with the Jekyll Island Musical Theatre and has been dissolved. The program has been moved to the VSU campus and the name changed to Peach State Summer Theatre

HB 272 This bill creates a program of grants for postsecondary tuition and other costs for Georgia’s foster and adopted children . The grant is available to pay tuition, student fees and a cost-of-living expense for any undergraduate program at any of Georgia’s pubic postsecondary institutions.

HB 298 This is a “housekeeping” bill for the Georgia Student Finance Authority. It would increase their debt capacity, give them the ability to indemnify other parties and have collection tools to go after students who have defaulted on loans.

HB 299 (LC 28 2192S) This bill relates to the HOPE scholarship in hopes to ensure its long term existence . The original intent of the scholarship was to allow Georgia students to obtain a bachelor’s degree. The bill sets the number of credit hours at 127 semester hours. It will not effect current students. There are no current time limitations on how long it takes to complete the 127 hours. The bill simply puts a cap on the number of semester hours HOPE will cover.

HB 340 This bill would allow public colleges and universities to exempt their private donors from the open records act.

Human Relations & Aging

HB 206 Assisted living facilities; Levels I and II; provisions - There is a gap in residential long term care for seniors. This legislation’s focus is on quality of life in nursing homes or assisted living homes. This bill will enable seniors with freedom of choice and options for long term care. Legislation is directed exclusively at seniors at facilities that require private payments. It has no effect on Medicaid, etc.

HB 50 Criminal history background checks; authorize national exchange - This bill will allow authorized non-law enforcement agencies (i.e. – nursing homes) to access the federal criminal record database.

Industrial Relations

No Action Taken

Information & Audits

No Action Taken

Insurance

No Action Taken

Interstate Cooperation

No Action Taken

Intragovernmental Coordination

No Action Taken

Judiciary – Civil

Meeting Canceled

Judiciary – Non-Civil

Juvenile/General Subcommittee: passed to full committee

H. B. 188 Registered sexual offender; publish photo in legal organ (Burmeister ); this bill passed the subcommittee and has been sent to the full committee

HB 57 State ordered executions; protect physicians & medical professional licenesure; This bill protects the medical physicians from losing their license if a malpractice suit is filed against them. Their protected because they are ordered by the state to do the “cut down” procedure when necessary prior to inserting IV for lethal injection.

Legislative & Congressional Reapportionment

No Action Taken

MARTOC

No Action Taken

Motor Vehicles

No Action Taken

Natural Resources & Environment

HB 54 Septic tank waste; regulation and permitting; certain land disposal sites - This bill is meant to clarify a grandfathering provision intended in the original legislation passed in 2002, by explicitly stating that, “…no such approval [of a governing authority in the county in which a site is located] shall be required if such site was in operation as of July 1, 2002…”

Public Safety

HB 294 Speed monitoring devices; photographic systems; provisions; this bill is enabling legislation to authorize local governments to use photographic speed-measuring systems to detect speeders in violation of the provisions of code sections 40-6-181 (maximum speed limits) and 40-6-183 (speed limits imposed by local jurisdictions), but only when those laws are violated in school zones one hour before, during and one hour after the school is in session.

HB 240 Law enforcement officer or firefighter; temporary disability; filing claim; This bill extends the time within which law enforcement officers or firefighters must file an application for compensation with respect to a claim for temporary disability. The filing period is extended from thirty days to sixty days.

• Bill amended to reflect retroactive date of July 1, 2001

HR 6 Law enforcement; urge suspension of electroshock devices; this is a resolution urging law enforcement officers and agencies to suspend the use of electroshock devices such as stun guns, stun shields, and Tasers.

HB 29 Law enforcement agencies; electroshock devices; prohibit use ; This bill adds a new code section 35-1-15 to prevent law enforcement from using electroshock devices such as stun guns, stun shields, and Tasers. Agencies not complying with the restriction will be subject to the withholding of State or State-administered federal funding.

- As drafted, this bill does not prohibit citizens from using electroshock devices.

HB 289 Pardons and paroles, Board of; allow certain employees assist law enforcement; This bill would extend the provisions which provided that a majority of the members of the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles - upon issuance of an executive order by the Governor - could confer upon its employees all the powers of law enforcement officer of this State to aid Federal, State and Local authorities in the preservation of order and peace.

Public Utilities & Telecommunications

No Action Taken

Regulated Industries

HB 196 Common sense Consumption Act; housekeeping bill; update to ALEC model

HB 207 Plumbing; licensure requirements; this legislation simply allows licensed septic tank installer to run the line making a connection between any on-site waste-water system to the existing structure (home/building).

HB 246 Prescription drug orders; electronic transmission; amend provisions; housekeeping bill addressing legislation passed last year dealing with electronic orders of prescription drugs.

HB 266 Chiropractors; board of examiners; additional authority; to correct language in last year’s legislation regarding disciplinary action taken regarding any licensee advertising violations not defined in the rules of the board.

Retirement

HB 319 Bill would allow large retirement systems to invest, only in the same types of investments currently allowed by statute, but with more flexibility through the use of exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Science & Technology

Special Rules

HB 312 Relating to State Government; substantial revision, transfer of powers - This bill stems from the Governor’s “New Georgia Commission” and addresses improvements in procurement, and asset management functions, including fleet management.

State Institutions & Property

HR 48 Martha K. Glaze Regional Youth Detention Center; designate - Property bill designating the Clayton Regional Youth Detention Center as the Martha K. Glaze Regional Youth Detention Center.

HB 155 Managerial control over acquisition of professional services; amend provisions - This legislation relates to managerial control over acquisition of professional services to provide control by the state for qualified professionals to be considered for contract.

HB 58 Working Against Recidivism Act; enact - “Working Against Recidivism Act”. This bill allows Georgia to apply for federal certification and state operation of the Prison Industry Enhancement Certification Program (PIE). HB 58 would authorize work programs employing inmates as voluntary, paid labor for privately owned profit-making employers under certain rules and regulations.

State Planning & Community Affairs

No Action Taken

Transportation

HB 160 Bill regarding road signage marking work zones on highway

HB 273 Flex Auto Lanes; authorize DOT to implement - Authorizes implementation of Flex Lanes (using shoulder of an interstate highway) in Georgia.

Adopted Rules for Road Naming Resolutions

Ways & Means

HB 1 Bona fide Conservation use property

* These committee action reports are for bills that have passed either the committee or the subcommittee

Committee Meetings for Next Week

Contact: Brent Cranfield

House Communications

(404) 656- 0305

bcranfield@legis.state.ga.us