The Sausage Factory – Sine Die Style

Laws and sausages, you should never watch either one being made.
— Otto von Bismarck

The Republican Sausage Factory Kicks Into Overdrive

Driving to the Capitol this week, I felt like I was headed to a Republican bill-making factory. Fortunately most of the bills were harmless, but occasionally the Senate Democratic Caucus had to put up a good fight to send some rancid bills to the garbage.

On Thursday we blew through the midnight deadline and worked until almost 1 am when the Majority Leader finally moved to adjourn Sine Die. It was a very, very long day.

A Crazy Way to Make Dinner

You THOUGHT you knew how a bill becomes a law? I bet you never learned in school about “Frankenstein” bills (several bills stuffed into one) or “Christmas Tree” bills (parts of bills amended on to another).

We often see these at the end of session, but this year Republicans took bill slicing and dicing to a whole new level. Senators offered amendments left and right from the floor on bills that were already patched together. It was hard keeping up with what we were voting on. Bill numbers and captions stayed the same even when the content changed.

Sausages That Made it Through the Factory

The State Budget: Passing a balanced budget is the only Constitutionally-mandated requirement of the General Assembly. This year, we fulfilled that duty at 10:45pm on the last day of the session when we agreed to the Conference Committee report for HB 916, reconciling the House and Senate versions of the FY 24/25 budget.

The $36.1 billion budget, down slightly from this year’s spending, includes raises for state employees, teachers, university employees, and law enforcement. It also includes measures championed by Democrats including money for childcare, domestic violence and sexual assault response, and school lunches.

My budget success this year includes $79 million for caretaker raises, a direct result of passing my rate study bill (SB 610, 2022). I also obtained $250,000 for Clubhouse Atlanta, a non-profit in Dunwoody that provides space, support and structure for people in recovery or who have chronic mental health challenges.

What’s not in the budget? Money to arm teachers in schools. Credit goes to those of you who sprang into action over the weekend with phone calls and emails after reading a note in the AJC about an increase in school safety funds to cover Lt. Governor Burt Jones’ plan to arm and train teachers. Both the House and Senate Appropriations Chairs confirmed that school safety money was NOT for arming teachers, and the Budget Conference Committee removed the extra money. You were LOUD and you were heard!

Election Frankenbill: Just after midnight on Sine Die, Republicans pushed through a Frankenstein bill that cobbled together several bad election bills. Here’s some of what SB 189 does:

1. Allows third-party candidates on the statewide ballot if at least 20 other states do the same. This opens the door for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to challenge President Biden here.
2. Places additional undue administrative burdens on county elections offices by requiring them to report absentee ballot counts within one hour of polls closing,
3. Defines “probable cause” for mass voter challenges. Republicans claim this will help clarify these challenges, but Democrats want to do away with them altogether because they perpetuate the myth of widespread voter fraud and overwhelm our local elections staff, and
4. Eliminates QR codes on election ballots after July 2026. (If only they had listened to me in 2019 when I warned them that voters would be suspicious of codes they can’t read.)

Property Tax Cap: Recognizing that rising property taxes are a pain point for many Georgians, we passed a Constitutional amendment to limit property value assessments to the current rate of inflation. A Constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers, and this one passed easily with bipartisan support. You’ll have a chance to vote on this measure in November.

The Official State Crustacean: When I asked you in my last Snapshot to guess the Official State Crustacean, one of you got it right! The White Shrimp got the honor with the passage of HB 1341.

A Pause to Celebrate Colleagues

The final days of the biennium are often bittersweet, especially when we have to say goodbye to long- time colleagues who won’t be returning to the Gold Dome. We celebrated the retirement of three long-serving trailblazing Senators — Sen. Valencia Seay, Sen. Horencia Tate, and Minority Leader Gloria Butler.

David Cook, our longtime Secretary of the Senate, also announced his retirement. We all count on David and his team to make sure everything in the Senate runs smoothly from orchestrating our floor sessions to taking care of all of our administrative needs. It’s hard to imagine the Senate without his steady hand.

Making My Own Sausage

When my bill for an Innovation Commission for Adults with Developmental Disabilities, SB 198, was hijacked and completely stripped in the House Public Health Committee I hatched a plan to attach the original bill language to the new SB 198 when it came back to the Senate. I enlisted the support of the Lt. Governor’s office and one of my Republican colleagues, I worked with Legislative Counsel to prepare a floor amendment, and I kept a close eye on SB 198 all week.

Late afternoon on Thursday, I was informed by the Lt. Governor’s office that the new language was a priority for House Speaker Burns and our plan was no longer viable. We tried to come up with another plan, but time ran out. With my bill being left on the cutting room floor, the Commissioner of the Dept. of Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities has asked me to participate in a workgroup on this issue during the interim.

My Study Committee resolutions to review ways to protect kids from social media and expand higher education in prisons also never made it out of the Senate Rules Committee, but I have received commitments from the Lt. Governor and a couple of Committee Chairs to work on these efforts during the interim through regular Standing Committee meetings.

Sausages Left on the Factory Floor

Thankfully the House declined to take up several culture war bills sent over by Senate Republicans.

More Transgender Discrimination: HB 1104 was originally a great bill to help student athletes with mental health challenges. Then it was stuffed with a ban on transgender students in sports, a ban on transgender students using bathrooms of their gender identity, and another bill to prohibit sex education in schools before sixth grade. Meanwhile HB 1170 was hijacked to ban puberty blockers for transgender kids. The House adjourned Sine Die without passing either.

American Library Association Bill: SB 390 was a bill to cut ties with the American Library Association (ALA) after its President referred to herself as a “Marxist lesbian.” The ALA sets standards and provides training for librarians and provides grant funding for our libraries, so this bill would have been detrimental to our libraries.

Religious Liberty: SB 180 was another failed attempt at instituting “religious liberty” which is typically a thinly veiled license to discriminate against LGBTQ+ and non-Christians.

The Official Bread of Georgia: Cornbread lost its bid to become the Official Bread of Georgia when the Senate declined to take up HB 1048.

What’s Next: Help Me Make More Sausages

As the session comes to a close, it’s now time to gear up my re-election campaign. I’m facing primary and general election opponents, and I need your help. If you appreciate my work and enjoy these Snapshots, I hope you’ll support my campaign by donating, placing a yard sign in your yard, or volunteering your time. Look for another email very soon to find out how you can help.

It’s been an honor and pleasure representing you and I have so much unfinished business I still want to accomplish. I hope you’ll vote in both elections to send me back to the Senate.

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around every once in a while, you could miss it.” — Ferris Bueller

Follow the Leader

Medicaid Expansion and Hospital “CON” Reform

Instead of using hospital regulatory reform (Certificate of Need, aka CON) as a bargaining chip for Medicaid Expansion as North Carolina did, Georgia Republicans are following the lead of the Governor by refusing once again to expand Medicaid.

This week, the Senate passed HB 1339, the CON reform bill. Among other things, the Senate version exempts ambulatory surgery centers from CON regulations. These centers don’t have to accept Medicaid patients and cherry pick off the more profitable procedures, leaving local hospitals to fund the non-profitable procedures.

I knew there was some GOP support for Medicaid expansion in the House, but this week I overheard some Republican Senators saying we should have expanded Medicaid before reforming CON. They’re worried about hospitals in their districts. What a missed opportunity to help people and communities across Georgia with the resources needed to support life.

Follow the Votes: Transgender Medical Treatment

This week the Senate Health and Human Services Committee amended HB 1170, a good bill that makes opioid overdose antidotes readily available in public buildings, to include a ban on puberty blockers for transgender kids. Last year, when a slew of bills banning transgender care were introduced in state legislatures across the country, Georgia was one of the only states that kept puberty blockers available. What changed? Powerful Republican leaders are now facing far-right primary opponents and feeling the pressure. Look for SB 1170 to be on the Senate floor soon.

What won’t be on the Senate floor — SR 785, a resolution I filed on behalf of Community Estr(El/la), an immigrant transgender advocacy organization recognizing March 26th as Trans Liberation Day to honor the struggles and achievements of transgender people. Instead of being placed on a unanimous consent calendar for Privileged Resolutions, SR 785 was assigned to the very same Committee that banned puberty blockers. Think it’ll get a hearing? Probably not…

Follow the Middle Course: Suicide and Firearms

Democrats are constantly searching for ways to reduce gun violence that our Republican colleagues will support. This year, Senator Elena Parent and I may have found one in “Donna’s Law,” aka SB 522, a personal liberty bill that allows people with suicidal tendencies to put themselves on the “Do Not Sell” Firearms list to protect themselves from making a hasty, irreversible decision. Suicides, not homicides, account for the majority of gun deaths in Georgia.

It’s rare for a gun safety bill to get a hearing, but the Chair of the Senate Public Safety Committee allowed one for SB 522 this week. A variety of mental health experts and suicide prevention advocates testified in favor of the bill, including Donna’s daughter, Katrina Brees, who surprised us by flying in from Louisiana. Katrina believes that if “Donna’s Law” existed, her mother would still be alive today. We held a press conference later that afternoon. https://youtu.be/Zar0UlYDkNY?si=CVHyhGn6z0Wfjsor

Follow the Money: Data Centers and School Vouchers

Thursday, the Senate passed HB 1192, a bill that suspends a sales tax break for high-tech data centers for two years. Legislators have been scrutinizing the long list of tax incentives used to attract business to Georgia. It makes sense to study the cost benefit of these incentives, but a pause pulls the rug from under businesses that chose to locate here based on the tax incentive and causes uncertainty for projects in the pipeline. Environmental advocates informed us about the huge amount of natural resources data centers use, so I intend to watch the data storage industry for its impact on global warming.

Across the hall, the House passed SB 233, the school voucher bill that allows $6,500 per student to be used for private school or homeschooling, by just one vote. This year, to make it more palatable for Republicans who voted against it last year, House leadership loaded it with incentives like writing teacher pay raises into the school funding formula and allowing students to enroll in public schools outside of their districts. I’m sure primary pressure plays a role in the bill’s passage too. The amended bill will have to pass the Senate before it heads to the Governor’s desk.

Follow the Logic: Higher Ed in Prisons Study Committee

This week, I filed SR 770, a Study Committee Resolution to examine how we can offer higher education in Georgia prisons to reduce recidivism. Intern and constituent Lillian Hanson has been working on this issue all session, making connections with experts and advocates for our office so we can build on them in the years to come. When I asked the Chair of the Senate Higher Education Committee to sign the bill, his seatmate signed it too, saying, “It only makes sense!”

I also filed two other common sense bills this week — one that requires regular school building inspections like we do for restaurants, and a bill allowing colleges to opt out of Campus Carry and requiring gun storage and firearm safety training for those that allow guns on campus. While they won’t move this session, filing them now allows me to refile and move them more quickly next session.

Follow My Values

With only five legislative days remaining (expanded to two calendar weeks), now is the time when it’s easy to lose track of values. I campaigned hard on sticking to my values, and I believe they are why I have been re-elected three times.

In May, I am facing a primary election opponent due to my vote on HB30. While this bill was called the antisemitism bill, I think it will do little to reduce hateful acts toward Jewish people. However it will regulate how some of us speak about the Israeli government. America was founded on the courageous acts of standing against powerful government, and we may find ourselves in that position again, depending on the outcome of our 2024 election. My abstention on HB30 was a vote to protect the free speech of every American. While my opponent desires to make this race about war in the Middle East, I intend to stand for the justice and freedom that leads to peace.

Here’s my “inclusiveness” value that I followed: “We extend our world beyond our own family, community, and ethnic group to include a wide range of others — have-nots, minorities, the homeless, people with disabilities, people from other nations and even the earth itself.”

I still carry my “yellow value card” with me to the Capitol. It’s the card I made during the early 2000s when I served in the House and watched Republicans take over the legislature. I’ll keep it close at hand the next couple of weeks and follow it with every vote, even when it means someone might get mad at me.

We Need Your Urgent Follow Up!

SB 198, my bill to create an Innovation Commission for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), hit a major roadblock when the Chair of the House Public Health Committee declined to schedule a hearing for the bill. I spoke with the House Speaker’s office this week to ask for their help, and if you care about this issue, you should too. Call 404.656.5020 or email Jon.Burns@house.ga.gov to let him know that Georgia’s system to support adults with IDD is outdated and broken and that we need the Speaker’s help moving SB 198 forward to fix it.

I’ll be back at work at 9am Monday morning for the 36th legislative day.