Legislative Session Newsletter: February 23, 2022
What Happened Last Week
The House of Representatives returned for the sixth week of the 2022 legislative session on Monday, February 14, 2022. From economic development to protecting our natural environment, my colleagues and I mulled over dozens of bills that would address a wide range of policy issues both on the House floor and with our committees this week.
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On Monday, the Republican-drawn, gerrymandered Cobb County Board of Education [[link removed]] and Board of Commission [[link removed]] maps passed out of the House. As I have said repeatedly, the state GOP has made it clear that they do not care about the will of the voters in Cobb County. You can watch my speech from the floor of the House in opposition to the bills here [[link removed]] . These bills will be voted on in the Senate on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Governor signed HB 841 [[link removed]] into law. This will put a referendum on the May 24th primary ballot for voters in East Cobb to vote on incorporating as a city.
On Wednesday, I was honored to be presented with the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network Legislator of the Year Award:
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On Thursday, the House passed SB 369 [[link removed]] . This bill will make all Gwinnett Board of Elections races non-partisan. This is yet another attempt by Republicans to cling to power in a county where they feel their grip slipping away. Since voters often don’t research down-ballot races such as school board elections, Republicans will be more likely to pick up votes from voters who do not know about either candidate. Republicans have tried to argue that this will take partisan politics out of our classroom, but simply removing the D or R next to a candidate’s name will not change their ideology. This bill is now on the Governor’s desk waiting for signature.
Also on Thursday, the Senate passed HB 826 [[link removed]] calling for a referendum on incorporating the city of Lost Mountain. The House must first agree to the Senate substitute before the bill is sent to the Governor.
Other Local Redistricting News:

SB 437, Fulton County Commission maps - Passed the House on 2/17
This map was drawn by 1 single member of the local delegation and differed from the map proposed by the rest of the Fulton County delegation
By making this general legislation, the Republican led legislature passed a map for Fulton County after an overwhelming majority of the Fulton delegation AND 5 out 6 Commissioners voted on a different map
SB 457 & SB 458, Richmond County Commission and School Board maps - Passed in the House on 2/17
These maps are yet another example of Republicans drawing maps to grasp for power in a county where Democrats have gained control of the local delegation

 

Bipartisan Legislation That We Passed This Week:

House Bill 893, which extends the collection of hazardous waste fees, which are crucial to supporting the Hazardous Waste Trust Fund and its work to restore Georgia’s environment
House Bill 963, which would provide the annual update of provisions of the Controlled Substance Act for Schedule I and Schedule IV controlled substances
House Bill 969, which would update reporting requirements for insurance holding companies to include information on their financial profile and group capital calculation
House Bill 1021, which would decrease the minimum non-forfeiture interest rate for individual deferred annuities from one percent to 0.15 percent
House Bill 1044, which would allow three to five adjoining counties to create a regional development authority that would work to stimulate economic development and job growth within those counties
House Bill 1089, which would increase the penalty fee for each violation of specified motor vehicle registration requirements from $25 to $145
House Bill 1223, which would extend the sunset date on the sales and use tax exemption for computer equipment sold to high-technology companies from June 30, 2023, to December 31, 2023
House Bill 1275, which would revise provisions of Georgia’s code concerning the appointment and removal of municipal court judges
House Resolution 664, which would act as the annual conveyance resolution for state properties located in Chatham, DeKalb, Fulton, Glynn, Hall and Sumter counties
House Resolution 683, which would act as the annual easement resolution for state construction, operation and maintenance projects in Bartow, Douglas, Fulton, Gilmer, Gwinnett, Haralson, Paulding, Sumter and Thomas counties


Bills to watch this session:
HB888 [[link removed]] , HB1084, [[link removed]] SB377 [[link removed]] & SB375 [[link removed]] - Attacking Our School Curriculum
HB60 [[link removed]] - Private School Vouchers
SB226 [[link removed]] - Removing Books from Libraries
SB319 [[link removed]] - "Constitutional Carry Act"
SB345 [[link removed]] - Undermining the COVID-19 Vaccine
As your voice at the Capitol, I always appreciate hearing directly from my constituents back home, especially about issues or policies that could impact our counties. My Capitol office number is at 404-656-0109, and my direct email is [email protected].
Volunteer [[link removed]]
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