Change is Inevitable
With Crossover Day and Candidate Qualifying Week for the 2026 elections behind us, tensions are rising at the Georgia Capitol as the big election nears. The slightly slower pace this week allowed a bit of time for reflection.
Where We’ve Been
Monday evening, City Councilwoman Madeleine Simmons hosted a Legislative Town Hall at the new Brookhaven City Hall facility next to the MARTA Station. There I joined Reps. Shea Roberts, Karen Lupton and Long Tran. As is typical for Town Halls, we were each given a few minutes to address the audience individually. There’s an art to knowing how long to speak, and usually these three Representatives are energetic and talkative, so I watched the clock to know how much time I should use when my turn came. Rep. Robert’s voice was hoarse, so I figured that’s why she only spoke for five minutes. But then Rep. Lupton only spoke for five minutes, and she usually has so much to say! Rep. Tran only spoke for two minutes. Something was clearly off.
The Property Tax Debate: Perhaps they were still tired from being at the Capitol until 1am the previous Friday for Crossover Day. The Speaker was not happy because he was unable to get the votes he needed to pass his signature legislation, HR 1114, which proposed to lower property taxes to 10% of the assessed value by 2032 (it’s 40% now). This proposal seriously jeopardized funding for public schools and essential county services. With a final vote of 99 to 73, the bill fell far short of the needed 120 votes to be put on the ballot. Rep. Lupton talked about how her sexual assault bill, which she had worked on for two years, was never called up for a vote on Crossover Day. And she wasn’t alone. Even Republican bills were not called up, and five bills failed on the floor, which is unusual and is a sign of disorder.
In the Senate, from the beginning of session through Crossover Day, we’ve voted on 130 bills. Only six Democratic bills made it through committee, and only three of those were called up for a vote on Crossover Day. As Sen. Nabila Parkes stated this week in her resignation letter to Governor Kemp, “The Georgia General Assembly is where good ideas go to die.” I can’t disagree.
Property Tax Backup Plan: Since the Speaker’s bill did not garner the support it needed to pass, HB 1116 was put forward to cap property taxes at 3%. This bill passed 98 to 68, but there are outstanding questions about whether the legislature has the power to make this change without amending the constitution.
Where We Are Now
This week the Trump administration made itself known with visits from three cabinet members to the Senate chamber. With bombs dropping in Iran at the cost of one billion dollars per day, all three Cabinet members painted very rosy pictures of life in America.
Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the Small Business Administration, told us that Trump’s Economic policies are working — from fair trade to tariffs to tax cuts. Brook Leslie Rollins, Secretary of Agriculture, took every opportunity to denounce the Biden administration, giving an example that under Biden, H-2A workers were costing farmers $30/hour, and that Trump has reduced that by 40%. I have visited farms in south Georgia that use H-2A workers — their working and living conditions were deplorable before and I can’t imagine making them 40% worse. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins gave the impression that in the short time he’s been Secretary, he’s reversed all of the dysfunction at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
I can feel the tension in the air in the Senate chamber. This year, four Senators have resigned triggering a series of special elections. Sen. Nabila Parkes of Gwinnett County resigned at the end of this week after she surprised everyone by jumping from running for Insurance Commissioner to running for Lt. Governor. (I have endorsed Sen. Josh McLaurin, who has been running for Lt. Governor for the past year.) Seven other Senators are running for higher office but chose not to resign, and two Democratic Senators have decided to retire at the end of their terms. That’s 14 Senators out of 56, culminating in a 25% turnover rate. The senate will be changed next year.
We’re all anxious to finish the session so we can get to work on the upcoming Very-High-Stakes election — a midterm election that is Trump’s to lose — not just for himself but also for Republicans in close districts. Many Senators have already started their campaigns for their primary elections, which can be quite nasty. One Senator went to the well and praised wars for saving lives, stating that we shouldn’t complain that we’re having to pay more at the pump (good luck with that). And I stood by as two Senators came close to getting in a brawl over a policy argument — each had to leave the room to cool down. Tension is high.
Where We’re Going
We’re ALL ready for change and even though we’d like Election Day to be tomorrow, we’ve got work to do to get ready.
Before the session started, I wrote to you about a Buddhist tradition of holding hope lightly. Had I been solely focused on passing my bills, I would have been devastated by the outcome of this session. Buddhists believe that craving is at the root of suffering. When you focus on trying to fix things the way you want them (craving) it can lead to fixation and frustration, which leads to suffering. Therefore, to stay sane, we must approach the next few months with openness, without dwelling on the fear associated with which side is going to win.
There’s an old story in which someone asked the Buddha, “How did you, Lord Buddha, cross the flood?” And the Buddha replied, “Without lingering, friend, and without hurrying.” And then the question came, “But how did you, without lingering, without hurrying, cross the flood?” The Buddha replied, “Friend, when I lingered, then I sank; when I hurried, I was swept away. So not lingering, not hurrying, I crossed the flood.”
If we accept and succumb, we drown. If we struggle with the waves we exhaust ourselves and drown. We must, therefore, let go of the fear that comes with the expectation that we must win. And instead, we must use the momentum of each wave to help us move along. And there are good signs that we have some waves coming.
What’s Coming
Three more weeks to go! Sine Die is April 2nd. This week we are back in the chamber at 10am Monday. Tuesday is a Committee Day and Friday will be Legislative Day 36. The House passed the fiscal year 2027 budget last week and the Senate has started the budget committee process. Since the only thing the legislature is constitutionally required to do is pass a balanced budget, we are on target for doing that by Sine Die. I expect other good bills will not get called up for votes, and a few bad bills might not pass. Then, the only thing that is certain, is that elections will bring change. Bring on the waves!
Video of the week – Watch on YouTube
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