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Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #9

Screeching to a Halt The State Budget Slows Down the Senate The Senate Majority Leader set the pace for the week Monday morning when he announced that the House was late in sending the FY25 budget to the Senate. He also said that since the Senate was ahead of the House in passing their bills, […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #8

Crossover Week Georgia’s Crossover Hurricane Downgraded to a Tropical Depression At the Georgia Capitol, there are two words that elicit both the excitement of parties and food alongside the dread of long working hours and mischief — Crossover and Sine Die. Crossover Day: A “crossover” deadline is the last day for a bill to pass […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #7

Bills Are Flying Well, some bills are flying. Number of Republican Bills on Senate Floor: 69 Number of Democratic Bills on Senate Floor:  0 Crossover Day is this Thursday, the deadline by which bills have to pass one chamber to get to the other. Under pressure to make this do or die deadline, legislators were seen running […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #6

Working Smart I’ve never read “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” but I think I’ve been doing some of it anyway! Habit 6: Synergy The Good Faith Grant: A couple of years ago a group of high school counselors reached out to legislators to discuss the need for a comprehensive scholarship program for students who […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #5

Using a Megaphone Being political means taking a risk and using your voice to communicate a shared vision based on values. For me, using the Senate to amplify my voice has been a journey of growth! New Video Launch: I’ll be honest, I’d much rather write a newsletter than record a video. But young people take […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #4

The Georgia Senate Goes to the Salon A Bad Hair Day A touch of humor erupted this week on the Senate floor Monday morning that lightened my load. Cosmetology Licensing: Last summer a Senate Study Committee conducted a critical review of all Georgia’s licensing laws. Out of that work came SB 354, which proposes to eliminate […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #3

Politics Under the Gold Dome are Heating Up Republicans and Medicaid Expansion – Is There a Spark of Interest? There’s been some talk recently about a handful of Republicans in the Georgia House who’ve voiced support for expanding Medicaid. And indeed, the Speaker of the House, Jon Burns, actually brought up the subject in his […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #2

A Health Update: Sally and the State of Georgia COVID Knocks Me Off My Feet Remember all those crowds I told you about last week? No surprise that COVID was lurking around, and sadly, it found me for the first time. I tested positive Monday morning and spent most of the week in bed. Friends […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024 #1

Not for the Faint of Heart High Alert Security was on the minds of those who entered the Georgia Capitol Monday morning for the 2024 legislative session. Greeted at the door by a State Trooper, Sen. Josh McLaurin and I were asked to walk through the metal detectors, despite flashing our “Senator” badges which would […]

Sally’s Senate Snapshot 2024

Bomb Threat at the State Capitol Yesterday six State Capitol buildings, including Georgia, received bomb threats. Although building searches determined the email messages were hoaxes, the threat is real. Since Christmas, several of my colleagues in the Senate have been “swatted,” which means someone called the police reporting a horrible crime, giving an elected official’s […]