Rep. Alan Powell: 2022 Legislative Newsletter – Week Five 

By State Representative Alan Powell, HD 32 

The week was full with debate in the House Chamber and in our committees.

We passed House Bill 910 to amend the FY 2022 budget ending June 30, 2022. The AFY 2022 budget is set at $29.8 billion, allowing the state $2.6 billion in new funds to utilize prior to fiscal year-end.

The bill focuses on education, health, public safety, workforce, and infrastructure.

 

Georgia’s K-12 education system is the largest budget expenditure totaling $11.16 billion or 43.3% of the budget.

• Restores $383 million, fully funding our K-12 education system using the Quality Basic Education (QBE) formula, and includes:  $93 million in additional QBE funding for enrollment growth of 11,926 new public school students; $188 million to purchase 1,747 public school buses; $5 million to help schools purchase alternative-fuel vehicles

To help promote better health for Georgians, both physically and mentally, the bill contains:

• $263 million to meet the projected need from increased enrollment in the state’s Medicaid program
• $1.7 million to Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce to fully fund residents in graduate medical education programs
• $500,000 to the Morehouse School of Medicine’s new nursing program
• $416,875 for Georgia Options and the Matthew Reardon Center for Autism
• $10 million to fund loans for mental health practitioners to expand the workforce to meet increasing demands for services
• $310,000 for the Georgia Crisis and Access Line to implement the National Suicide Lifeline in Georgia

To prioritize keeping Georgians safe and supporting our law enforcement agencies and corrections system, the amended budget contains:

• $1.3 million to support our judicial system’s critical operations
• $23.6 million to replace approx. 600 vehicles for the Georgia Department of Corrections, Department of Community Supervision, Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), and Department of Public Safety
• $432 million to the Georgia Building Authority for a state prison facility transformation and various technology projects
• $4.6 million to the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council for the Georgia Crime Victims Emergency Fund to help offset lower than normal probation fee collections
• $1.8 million in unallocated training funds, totaling $6.5 million
• $112 million to the Georgia Department of Community Affairs to support local development authorities around the electric vehicle company, Rivian’s, new site that will employ around 7,500 people
• Funding for improvements to several state facilities, including the Georgia World Congress Center,  Georgia National Fairgrounds, and Jekyll Island State Park
• Designates approximately $483,000 to allow the GBI to hire four election complaint investigators
• $900 million to the state’s infrastructure needs: replacing agency vehicles, upgrading state technology, and maintenance, repairs, infrastructure, and design for state facilities
• More than $900 million for salary increases for state employees, educators, and other school employees:

o Before July 1, full-time, benefit-eligible state employees would receive                            a $5,000 salary adjustment
o Teachers would receive a $2,000 supplement
o Other school employees would receive a $1,000 supplement

Some of the other legislation passed on the House floor:

House Bill 412:  Creates the Georgia Behavior Analyst Licensing Board, sets the operating standards for the board, and includes licensing requirements for applicants for a behavior analyst license.

House Bill 430:  Revises the definition of “advanced nursing practice” to include clinical nurse specialists and contains the educational or certification requirements amends the definition of “advanced practice registered nurse” (APRN) to include several nursing specialties, provides eligibility requirements for licensing of APRNs and renewal requirements.

House Bill 780: Transfers all full-time state-wide business court judges from the Judicial Retirement System to the Employees’ Retirement System starting July 1, 2022.

House Bill 899:   Phases out the use of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) formula as the predominant interest rate average and would allow a recommended benchmark formula replacement for any contract, security, or instrument
that uses LIBOR

House Bill 1011: Removes the permit requirement for low-speed vehicles to use an amber strobe light and clarifies that permits for emergency vehicles to operate flashing or revolving emergency lights would be valid for five years from the date of issuance.

House Bill 1045: Revises the year from 2022 to 2026 at which the required contribution rate for new or newly covered employers to make into unemployment insurance increases from 2.64 percent of wages to 2.7 percent of wages, as well as changes the dissolution date of the Subsequent Injury Trust Fund.

House Bill 1049: Adds two members to the State Board of Long-Term Care Facility Administrators and increases the number of board members who are nursing home, personal care home, or assisted living community administrators, bringing the total number of board members to 11 after June 30, 2022.

House Bill 1055: Increases the defined weight limit for an “all-terrain vehicle” from 2,500 pounds to 3,500 pounds.

While this session is getting busier by the day, I encourage you to reach out if you have any questions or concerns regarding legislation we have discussed or passed thus far.

You can reach my Capitol office at 404-463-3793 or email me directly at [email protected].  As always, thank you for allowing me to serve as your state representative and legislative voice at the Capitol.