The following
are some highlights of
2014 legislation
HB 176 streamlines
the permitting process
for the siting of cell
towers. The snow and ice
storms this winter
illustrated the need for
cellular bandwidth. The
demands on cellular
continue to rise with
more smartphones and
ever increasing amount
of data downloaded and
uploaded. Cellular
bandwidth is critical
for public safety,
economic development and
the use of wireless data
for daily commerce and
everyday life. This
legislation was approved
by both chambers and is
on the Governor's desk
for his signature.
HB 348 provides
an income tax credit for the
purchase of certain
commercial vehicles that use
alternative sources of fuel.
Alternative fuels such as
compressed natural gas (cng)
are produced in the US, are
less expensive and produce
no to low pollutants. The
tax credit is capped at $5
million over two years. This
legislation was approved
by both chambers and
is on the Governor's desk
for his signature.
HB 744,
the
Fiscal Year 2015 budget. The
total state amount
appropriated is $20.8
billion, an increase of
$602.5 million more than the
amended Fiscal Year 2014
budget. This reflects
increasing state revenue due
to rebounding state
economy. 72% of this
new money went to education.
$314 million is appropriated to
K-12 schools as "no string
attached" new money. It can
be used to reduce teacher
furloughs, restore 180 days,
give raises, or whatever the
local Board of Education
deems the smartest use of
the funds. The budget was
approved
by both chambers and
is on the Governor's desk
for his signature.
HB 60 This
important legislation
clarifies where licensed
owners may carry firearms.
Among the highlights: Allows
K-12 schools who cannot
afford resource (police)
officers the option to train
and arm a staff member,
using similar firearms
training to law enforcement.
The bill makes a lesser
penalty for someone who
inadvertently brings a
weapon to security at the
airport but immediately
surrenders it. It will be
more difficult for mentally
ill people to get access to
weapons. Firearms will
remain prohibited from
churches unless the church
membership opts-in to allow
them. This bill was approved
by both chambers and
is on the Governor's desk
for his signature.
SB 167 This legislation,
known as the "common core" bill
passed the Senate but was not
approved by the House Education
Committee. Among other things,
the legislation would have prohibited
testing based on national Common
Core standards. It would have
also prohibited state education
agencies from entering into any
commitments relating to the
federal Race to the Top program,
required hearings and public
input prior to adoption of
state-wide competencies and
content standards.
HB 965 This legislation
provides immunity for
individuals who, in good faith,
seek medical assistance for
either themselves or another
person believed to be
experiencing a drug overdose.
When an individual overdoses on
illegal drugs, it is common for
those persons with him or her to
hesitate in contacting emergency
medical services for fear that
they will be arrested and
prosecuted for drug possession
and use. HB 965 provides the
protection necessary to ensure
that individuals engaging in
drug use are protected from
prosecution should they seek to
assist another who has
overdosed. This legislation can
give drug abusers a second
chance at life, while enabling
bystanders to do the right thing
without fear of punishment.
This legislation passed both
chambers and is on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
HB 998 Revises the powers of
the Georgia Board for Physician
Workforce (GBPW) as it relates
to scholarships to empower the
GBPW - with approval of both the
Commissioner of the Department
of Community Health and the
Commissioner of the Department
of Public Health - to place
primary care physicians in
regional areas of the state
composed of rural counties where
an unmet need for these
specialties exist. At its core,
this legislation is about the
health of our Georgia families.
This bill seeks to ensure that
no matter where Georgians live –
be it metro Atlanta or rural
Georgia – they have adequate
access to critical primary care
specialties. This legislation
was approved by both chambers
and is on the Governor's desk
for his signature.
HB 943
Georgia Healthcare Freedom Act
(originally HB 707)
This bill firmly establishes
that neither the State of
Georgia nor any of its
departments will use money or
human resources to advance the
voluntary expansion of the
state’s eligibility for medical
assistance in furtherance of the
Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).
The measure also
prohibits the State of Georgia
from creating an insurance
exchange in compliance with the
ACA. This legislation was
approved by both chanmbers and
is now on the Governor's desk
for his signature.
HB 990 – Medicaid Expansion
Limitations
This bill prohibits any
department, board, or
representative of the State from
expanding the eligibility
requirements for Medicaid
without legislative approval.
Without
this important protection in
place any future Governor could
unilaterally commit the state to
billions of dollars in Medicaid
expansion costs without going
through the legislature.
This is simply
unacceptable given our
commitment to responsible and
balanced budgets.
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
HB 128 – Georgia Downtown
Renaissance Fund Act This bill
establishes the Georgia Downtown
Renaissance Fund within the
Department of Community Affairs
to provide local governments,
downtown development
authorities, and other
organizations with financing to
encourage economic and small
business development, public
improvements, and historic
preservation projects.
This legislation
demonstrates Georgia’s
commitment to supporting not
only local economic development
initiatives but also small
businesses, many of which are
concentrated in downtown areas,
by offering low-interest loans
for downtown businesses.
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
HB 697 – Establishing the
Zell Miller Grant
This legislation expands the
Zell Miller Scholar designation
to the HOPE Grant program for
technical college students. The
Zell Miller Grant Scholar is
awarded the difference between
the HOPE grant amount and the
current academic year’s tuition.
Eligibility is determined on a
semester or quarterly basis.
Expanding the Zell Miller
Scholar program to our technical
schools is a clear statement the
cost of higher education should
not be a barrier to success both
for traditional and
non-traditional Georgia
students.
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
HB 863 - Animal Cruelty
Explanation Act
This bill clarifies offenses
involving animal cruelty by
expanding the meaning of what
constitutes “animal cruelty” and
adds new activity which
qualifies as “aggravated cruelty
to animals.”
The bill also elevates a
conviction of “aggravated
cruelty to animals” to a felony.
Finally, the bill
provides for circumstances that
justify injuring or killing an
animal.
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
SB 364 – Juvenile Justice
Reform Clarification
This bill
represents the third phase of
Criminal Justice Reform measures
recommended by the Georgia
Council on Criminal Justice
Reform involving Georgia’s adult
and juvenile correction systems.
This bill acts primarily
as a clean-up to previous
Juvenile Justice Reform
measures.
It clarifies exclusive
original jurisdiction, requires
a guardian ad litem in a
termination of parental rights
proceeding, and protects
biological fathers through
enhanced notification
procedures.
The bill clarifies the
timing of continued custody
hearings and when the court
shall inform the parties of the
hearing.
The bill also clarifies
when a bench warrant may be
issued requiring a child’s
presence and what facilities may
be included to give credit for
time served.
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
SB 320 – Establishing a
Veteran’s Court Division
This legislation establishes a
Veterans Court Division
specializing in the treatment of
defendants who are veterans in
order to ensure their successful
reentry into society.
Veterans
Courts would operate veterans’
treatment programs that include
judicial supervision and drug
and mental health testing to
rehabilitate veterans based on
their unique needs.
Veterans
who complete such programs would
be eligible to have their
sentence reduced.
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
SB 382 – Retail Refund Fraud
-
This bill
makes illegal the practice of
using a false name or address
for the purpose of obtaining or
attempting to obtain and return
goods in order to gain store
credit.
It also makes illegal the
practice of using a driver’s
license not issued to such
person, a driver’s license with
false information, an ID of
false information, or an altered
ID card, to attempt to obtain a
refund from a retail
establishment. This measure
helps retail stores better
police this activity known as
“refund fraud.”
This legislation was approved by
both chanmbers and is now on the
Governor's desk for his
signature.
885 Known as the "Medical
Cannabis" bill, this legislation
sought to provide a legal means
for parents of children who
suffer from seizures, many of
whom suffer from hundreds of
lengthy and heartbreaking
seizures a day, to obtain a form
of cannabis in pill or liquid
form that has been shown to
dramatically lessen the number
of those seizures. This bill was
approved by the House
overwhelmingly but failed due to
another bill being attached to
it in the Senate.
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