Legislative Update: General Assembly Completes 2014 Legislative Session
The 2014 session of the Georgia General Assembly came to an end late in the evening on March 20. During the session’s final week, the House of Representatives and Senate completed work on the state budget for fiscal year 2015 and took action on a number of key issues but were unable to agree on some major legislation.
In the coming weeks, I will provide a comprehensive wrap-up of actions taken during this year’s session. This week’s report includes the major legislation passed during the final two days of the session:
FY 2015 Budget: Final agreement was reached on a $20.8 billion state budget for the new fiscal year beginning July 1. HB 744 represents a 5 percent total increase over the current year’s budget and includes $314 million in additional Quality Basic Education formula funds for public schools. School system equalization grants received a $5 million increase, and an additional $414,585 went to school nurse funding.
Several new programs for Georgia’s technical colleges are in the budget, including $7.3 million for full tuition reimbursements for Zell Miller HOPE Grant recipients; $5 million in tuition assistance for high-demand job training; $2.15 million for dual-enrolled students’ tuition and expenses; and a $10 million low-interest loan program from lottery funds.
Also included are merit-based pay increases for state employees, $8 million for improvements to airports around the state, to be supplemented by $20 million in federal matching funds; new Public Health funding for Hepatitis C screenings, an Alzheimer’s Registry and training for early autism diagnosis and intervention providers; and funding for new Behavioral Health waiver slots and Child Support agent retention.
On the local level, the budget includes approximately $1.5 million for the state troopers who will man the new Georgia State Patrol Post in the Gateway Industrial Park at I-85, which will enhance public safety in a multi-county area within our district.
HB 744 now goes to Gov. Nathan Deal, who can sign the budget in its entirety or veto selected line items.
2nd Amendment Rights: The House and Senate agreed on an amended version of HB 60, a product of two years of work on legislation in various forms to protect Georgians’ 2nd Amendment rights. As passed, the bill allows licensed, law-abiding citizens ages 21 and older to carry weapons in more public areas than presently authorized. The Safe Carry Protection Act, which awaits the governor’s signature, continues to respect the rights of private property owners to decide whether to allow weapons to be carried on their property. There has been a lot of misinformation publicized about this bill, which actually contains 14 provisions, many of which are administrative in nature, to guarantee people’s 2nd Amendment rights. In a future article, I will provide a more detailed analysis on this issue.
Zell Miller HOPE Grant: HB 697 received final approval to create the Zell Miller HOPE Grant program to cover full tuition costs for HOPE-eligible technical college students who maintain at least a 3.5 grade point average. This legislation is intended to attract top students back to Georgia’s technical college after a reduction in tuition assistance had caused a nearly 20 percent drop-off in enrollment.
Public Assistance Requirements: The House and Senate gave final approval to HB 772, which requires drug testing for food stamp applicants based on reasonable suspicion – including demeanor, missed appointments, arrests, employment issues, etc. Under the legislation, any person who fails a drug test will be ineligible to receive food stamps, but the bill provides for reapplication as well as children’s food stamps.
Healthcare Legislation: Also achieving final passage was HB 943, which requires health benefit plans to provide equal coverage of chemotherapy treatment for cancer patients, regardless of whether the drugs are administered orally or intravenously.
Additionally, the House and Senate passed HB 990, which prohibits any department, board or representative of the state from expanding the eligibility requirements for Medicaid without approval of the General Assembly. This prohibition does not include increases as a result of cost-of-living increases in the federal poverty level. The purpose of this legislation is to keep the state from having to spend potentially billions of dollars in matching funds it cannot afford, as required after three years if Medicaid is expanded under the new federal healthcare law.
Last week, Gov. Deal unveiled a plan to assist financially distressed rural hospitals in the state by allowing them to reduce the number of medical services they offer and authorizing them to stay in operation as free-standing emergency clinics. The governor also proposed hiring a point person at the Department of Community Health to monitor the financial problems of rural hospitals and appointing a stabilization committee to develop potential solutions.
Medicinal Marijuana for Medically Fragile Children: The House and Senate were unable to agree on the final language of HB 885, which would have allowed doctors to prescribe cannabis oil, a derivative of marijuana, for the treatment of seizure disorders in children. I am disappointed over the failure of this legislation to pass, after it was overwhelmingly approved by the House and then amended by the Senate with a non-germane insurance coverage mandate. Anything the good Lord put on this earth that grows naturally should be available to help these sick children. Gov. Deal expressed his disappointment in the bill’s failure to pass and is exploring executive authority options to address the issue.
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- State Rep. Alan Powell (R-Hartwell) represents the 32nd District (Franklin, Hart and Madison counties) in the Georgia House of Representatives. Contact him at 613 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, GA 30334; by phone at 404-463-3793; or by email at [email protected].