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 speech at “Eggs & Issues.” But he only referenced the need to collect data.

If the Speaker needs data, we have plenty of it!

Still recovering from COVID Monday morning, I joined my Senate Democratic colleagues via Zoom for a presentation by the non-profit “Georgians for a Healthy Future” on prospects for expanding Medicaid in Georgia. North Carolina passed Medicaid expansion last year, partly by compromising on Certificate of Need policies, a system dating back to the 1970s that regulates supply and demand in healthcare. There has been much debate recently in Georgia about our Certificate of Need (CON) policies. Surprisingly, we were told Monday morning that Medicaid expansion does more to protect rural hospitals than CON regulations, where the data is mixed.

So if there’s room for compromise, we need to start looking at what kind of Medicaid model could pass in Georgia. The Governor’s “Pathways to Coverage” program, which is a small Medicaid expansion, has only enrolled a tiny fraction of Georgia’s low-income uninsured (2,350 out of 434,000). Because this small program does not draw down Federal dollars at the rate of full Medicaid expansion, Pathways costs Georgia, per person, five times what full Medicaid expansion would cost.

“The best plan is the plan that can get passed by this legislature,” said Laura Colbert, Executive Director of Georgians for a Healthy Future. She then went on to present the Arkansas private option model, where Medicaid premiums are used to pay for private market plans. There are some advantages to this plan in Georgia, the main one being that it gets around Georgia’s abysmally low Medicaid reimbursement rates, which could improve access to care.

While I think there is hope on the horizon for Medicaid expansion in Georgia, I don’t think we’ll get it this year, because, “it’s an election year.”

The Senate Gives Our Election System Third Degree Burns 

I hear a lot of talk in the hallways about it being an election year. What this means in our Republican controlled legislature is that bills coming to the floor serve as a prelude to the battles that will be fought in Republican primaries. And sadly, these primaries have moved from battles of the far-right, to battles of bizarre conspiracy. By the end of the week, we saw this in full force in the bills that came to the floor.

Using their majority vote, Republicans appointed an election denier to the State Elections Board (SR 443), voted to remove the Secretary of State from the State Election Board (SB 358) and voted to ban ranked choice voting statewide, at all levels of government, except for overseas voting (SB 355).

Republicans also voted to create a special investigations committee to investigate Fani Willis (SR 465), which stated that verifying the truths of allegations about her romantic relationship with the special district attorney will “cast doubt as to the validity of the charges her office has brought in regard to the 2020 Presidential election.” But the low point came when our Lt. Governor prematurely cut off debate, silencing Democrats who had speeches planned. Debate is an essential part of any deliberative body, which is critical to a democracy.

Gun Safety, Mental Health & Reproductive Freedom – Putting Out Fires

On a more positive note, civic engagement is really up at the Capitol! I had the pleasure of attending three press conferences this week. The first was on Reproductive Freedom, where I explained to the press how the abortion ban law is impacting Georgia’s ability to train new ob-gyns. Because doctors-in-training can’t practice life saving procedures that involve abortion, I explained how when doctors choose not to train here due to our laws, they don’t end up practicing here either. Access to ob-gyns across the state will worsen. This caught the attention of WABE, where my explanation was aired. It’s a bit of an out-of-body feeling when I’m driving along the road listening to the news, and I hear my own voice. It’s like, “Oh, yeah, she has a point!”

I also joined a very well attended press conference on Mental Health, as well as one on Gun Safety organized by Georgia Majority for Gun Safety. The ability of these groups to organize citizens, unite voices and create a narrative in the press is impressive!

A Very Difficult Vote: HB 30

The week I faced the most difficult vote of all of my time in the legislature. HB 30 is the bill that attaches the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) examples of antisemitism to Georgia’s discrimination and hate crime laws.

On the surface, it seems like it should be a simple vote. I stand against antisemitism, so I should vote yes. Yet it was not simple.

The war in Gaza brought out additional voices from people I represent. They told me that codifying the IHRA examples makes them feel fearful about speaking out against the war. Some of them have family and friends in Gaza and the level of death and destruction they have experienced is unimaginable.

On the other hand, antisemitic threats have increased and my Jewish constituents want more protection. Many of them also have family in Israel and are feeling grief and pain at losses incurred in the October 7th attack.

Inclusivity is one of my core values, and I have a responsibility to listen. This pushed me to carefully study the IHRA examples myself and I found some of the examples troubling, particularly the one about critiquing the behavior of the Israeli government. So I consulted an attorney, and was told that using the IHRA examples to determine intent depends on prosecutors and law enforcement acting in reasonable ways. This gave me pause, because in this day and age we don’t always get reasonableness where we should.

Codifying specific examples of hate into Georgia law has not been done before and I’m uncertain how it will play out. I don’t know if HB 30 will help or if it will cause further harm. It brings up questions of whether other groups should also codify examples, which groups those might be, or whether or not examples should even be codified. There are those that want to outlaw criticism and protest of our own government. Does this law provide a blueprint for them?

So with HB 30, I found myself in a situation with more questions than answers, and whether I voted up or down, I knew I would be hurting people I care about and want to protect. Abstaining was the only way I could recognize all the voices of my diverse district.

I remain committed to standing against damaging and hateful behavior. And I will always look deeply to find the voices of vulnerable people.

HB30 https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/63524

IHRA https://holocaustremembrance.com/resources/working-definition-antisemitism

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 normally get us waved through. I wondered how this new protocol would be received, since I have long suspected some legislators bypass the “no guns in the Capitol” rule. But alas, this new Trooper had misunderstood his instructions — no metal detectors for the electeds.

Mid-week, Capitol Security briefed us on what to do in case of a bomb threat. We’ve been briefed about shootings before, but never bombs.

Several Senators made speeches during our opening session to acknowledge that things have gone too far. I felt a glimmer of hope that we might turn down the divisiveness — at least for the sake of our own safety. I am making my own efforts to approach my colleagues, even those with whom I disagree strongly, in a way that honors our common humanness.

The legislature is one the few places where people of different views come together to debate what divides us. It is up to us to set the example of how to do that with civility.

Armed with Love and Support

Thanks to everyone who gave so generously to my re-election campaign.  Each and every donation uplifted my spirits, giving me the courage to face these uncertain times with confidence and hope. If you didn’t get a chance to make a donation, you can do so after the session is over. The end of session, Sine Die, is scheduled for March 28th.

A Glimpse of the Battles Ahead

The first week of session is full of collegiality and anticipation. The President pro tempore of the Senate, who happens to be named John F. Kennedy (he’s a Republican) invited us to lunch at the Capital City Club, where he treated us to an elegant lunch as well as stories from former President pro-tems.

Eggs & Issues: Mid-week I got up super early and headed down to the Georgia Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Eggs and Issues Breakfast, held for the first time at the Mercedes Benz Stadium. 2,600 attendees sat around tables that literally filled the field. Next year I need to remember to wear flat shoes. Heals and artificial turf don’t go well together.

This event is particularly exciting because it gives the first sneak peak at the priorities of the Governor, the Lt. Governor and the Speaker of the House. Sometimes if you read between the lines, you can pick up on what tensions might arise during session, and who might run for what political office.

State of the State: On Thursday Senate members formally processed to the House Chamber to hear the Governor’s State of the State address. I found it to be a mixed bag. On the one hand, it was full of government bashing, anti-union rhetoric and support for for-profit schools and healthcare. But on the other hand, I heard him commit to pay raises for state employees, teachers and retirees, and historic levels of funding for mental health and caretakers.

Immediately following the Governor’s State of the State speech he released his proposed budget, which I am just beginning to study. Next week will focus exclusively on budget hearings, when Commissioners and Department heads make their pitches to the Appropriations Committees prior to the legislature taking up the budget.

A Word about the Surplus: I don’t really like this word because it makes it sound like we collected more money than we need. Nothing could be further from the truth. Since Georgia is required to have a balanced budget each year, the Governor is tasked with estimating how much revenue will come in. Governor Kemp has been lowballing the revenue estimate which means when the revenue comes in higher, he calls that a surplus.

Fighting Fires Already

The second year of a two-year session gets right to business. Bills that didn’t pass last year stay alive and can be acted on this year, but if they don’t pass this year they die.

Two bills found their way to the Senate floor this week.

Gwinnett County Cityhood: On Wednesday, the Gwinnett delegation was handed a bill creating the City of Mulberry. On Friday, the bill came to the floor for a vote, but with the signature of only one Republican Senator. The Gwinnett delegation, which has a Democratic majority, had been bypassed. Following a quick study of the rules, we appealed to the Secretary of the Senate, who agreed that the bill had been improperly moved out of Committee. By Friday, the Republican Senator who signed the bill was appointed Chair of the Committee by the Lt. Governor. Something doesn’t smell quite right.

Sports Betting: The other bill that came to the Senate floor this week was Sports Betting. Talk about priorities! In all fairness, the author of the bill said he brought it forward quickly so that we could get it over with. It didn’t work — we didn’t take a vote this week.

Re-Charging in the District

Spending time in the district helps recharge my batteries. On Thursday, I attended Brookhaven’s historic swearing-in ceremony of its first Asian American mayor, John Park, and its first Latino Councilmember, Michael Diaz, creating the most diverse city council in North DeKalb. This was the result of a deliberate effort by the city and specifically Councilman John Funny, who worked to engage more citizens of color in city government.

Friday night, I attended Temple Emanuel’s Georgia Legislature and Judiciary Welcome Shabbat and then the Georgia Legislative Update breakfast at St. Luke’s Presbyterian Church in Dunwoody on Saturday morning. The spiritual nurturing was much appreciated!

Meet the Team

I couldn’t do what I do without a strong team beside me. This year we have some new team members who will help me serve you.

• Amy Swygert, who has been with me since I began in the Senate in 2019, is back again. I’ve changed her title once again to “Chief of Staff” since we’ve staffed up since the pandemic! Amy helps keep track of my legislative agenda, works with legislative counsel to research and draft legislation, manages my communications, and more.

• I was thrilled to hire Gwinnett county resident Kathlene Dorking this fall as my new administrative assistant. Kathlene also works for Senator Sheik Rahman. Kathlene will be helping with constituent services, scheduling, and keeping up with phone calls and emails.

• Lillian Hanson, a public policy major at Georgia Tech from my district (the younger sister of one of my former Girl Scouts), will be working with us as a part-time intern. Lillian’s interested in criminal justice reform and I have a growing interest in providing better access to educational opportunities for incarcerated people, so she will be tracking relevant legislation and helping me build out a network of experts and advocates in that arena.

If you would like to follow along with “Budget Week” next week, you can tune in to all the budget hearings via the state’s livestream. It’s a great way to learn about how our state government works and all the challenges our state leaders face.

Redistricting Redux 2023

Traveling Theater: Next week legislators from all over Georgia will pack their bags and head to Atlanta for a Special Session of the Georgia General Assembly. It won’t last long, as there is a hard-stop curtain call of December 8th, the deadline set by a Federal District Court to produce new State House, State Senate and Congressional maps that don’t dilute Black voters.

The Backdrop: It should have been done right the first time, but the Republican controlled legislature thought that despite Georgia’s 13 percent growth in minority populations, they could get away with maintaining, and even growing, their current advantages. That’s called gerrymandering, and even though partisan gerrymandering is legal, racial gerrymandering is not.

The backdrop is a series of court cases starting with the 2013 Shelby County v. Holder decision, when the U.S. Supreme Court ended the federal voting oversight of southern states, making 2021 the first year Georgia did not have to submit redistricting maps for federal pre-clearance. This led to this year’s June ruling in Allen v. Milligan when Alabama was told by the U.S. Supreme Court to redraw their maps because they had “packed”  Black voters into the same districts, while “cracking” smaller Black communities into white districts, resulting in fewer Black districts than population numbers support. Alabama squawked and clinched their fists at the court, but the Supreme Court stood firm, and now Georgia is in a similar place with a U.S. District Court. How much Georgia will push the limits is still to be seen. At the writing of this email, maps have still not been released.

The Plot Thickens: The players in this saga aren’t just Alabama and Georgia — the action could impact the balance of power in Congress, with similar court challenges in Florida, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.

The Director’s Chair: In late October, 2023, United States District Court Judge Steve Jones issued a 516-page Order stating that Georgia’s 2021 maps  violate Section 2 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, directing the legislature to produce new maps that “unpack” and “uncrack” Black communities, increasing voices for Black voters through one additional Congressional district, five additional State House Districts, and two additional State Senate districts with Black majorities. The Order is very specific about which districts violate the Voting Rights Act, in addition to where and how the new districts are to be drawn. Expect Congressional and State House districts to change in the north Atlanta suburbs, State Senate districts to change in the south of Atlanta suburbs, and some changes to the State House map in the Macon area. Of course, once you open maps, anything can happen.

The Final Season: I will keep you posted as the week progresses, but understand that the maps produced next week might not be the final episode. Although Georgia decided not to “stay” the Federal Court decision, Republicans still plan to take the case to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. It’s actually possible that we could run on redrawn maps in 2024, reverting back to the original maps for 2026, should the appeal be successful. Nothing like a good cliff-hanger!

Action Needed! To continue receiving your Snapshot in your in-box, please make sure you are reading it with images turned on. If you don’t see the photo below of me standing with several of my colleagues at a fundraiser, then Substack doesn’t know you are reading it, and they might drop you from my list!

Thanks to Former State Senator Jen Jordan for hosting a Senate Democratic Fundraiser at her lovely Summerville Firm, LLC, to help raise funds to cover legal costs for the upcoming Special Session. Familiar faces include Congresswomen Nikema Williams and Lucy McBath, State Senators Elena Parent and myself, and Leader Gloria Butler. Can anyone guess who the big guy is in the middle?

Political Hijinks

“It’s that time at the Capitol when bills are flying so fast that
sometimes lawmakers don’t even know what’s in them.”

— Axios Atlanta

End of Session Escapades

Last year just before midnight on Sine Die, Republicans waived their own rules, forcing Senators to vote on a bill no one had laid eyes on — a situation deserving nothing but a “no” vote. The GOP majority voted “yes.”

Before Crossover Day, each chamber has 28 days to pass their own bills. Following Crossover Day, we only have 12 days to take up the other chamber’s bills, agree and disagree on changes made, form Conference Committees to work out the differences, and finally, vote on the final compromises.

I am grateful to my Senate Democratic Caucus teammates, who are smart, hardworking, and willing to speak out.

Avoiding Session Antics

I’ve been very cautious about filing bills this year because of the new Republican leadership. Every bill can potentially be used as a “vehicle,” carrying other bills as amendments — potentially turning the bill into something the author does not support — yikes!

That said, this week I decided it was worth filing two bills I’ve been working on. Note: bills filed this year carry over to next year.

Voter Eligibility Challenges: SB 321 increases the burden of proof for challenging the eligibility of voters. SB 202 (the big 2020 election bill) removed the cap on the number of challenges an individual can file. Since then, shenanigans have ensued, and the DeKalb County Elections office has been overwhelmed with unsubstantiated challenges. Dekalb officials estimate they’ve received more than 1,700 alone. SB 321 requires challengers to submit adequate evidence.

Non-Discrimination Protections: Senator Kim Jackson and I filed SB 319, adding sexual orientation and gender identity to Georgia’s list of protected classes. It also expands protections to housing, employment, and “public accommodations” which includes any service available to the public (think restaurants, retailers, hotels, public transportation, etc.). Georgia is one of only three states that do not have comprehensive non-discrimination laws. After fighting against bills targeting transgender youth, Sen. Jackson and I wanted to put our energy into something positive.  

Transactional Tomfoolery

Early in the session, I was told that the new Republican leadership would be more “transactional.” While I wasn’t exactly sure what that meant at the time, it became painfully obvious this week. My attempt to pass a Task Force on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) as a rider to HB 520, a major mental health bill, got caught up in a battle with the Lt. Governor’s pet bill, SB 99.

SB 99 weakens the “Certificate of Need” (CON) process that requires hospitals to justify “need” before expanding services. CON stops for-profit companies from cherry-picking more profitable services, while leaving others to meet the need for less profitable services. Lt. Governor Jones claims SB 99 will help rural Georgia, but the truth is it will help fast-track a hospital project in his native Butts County, on land owned by a company his father owns. 

Because House leaders and major health systems oppose SB 99, it’s being stopped by the House Health and Human Services (HHS) Committee. In retaliation, Jones is stopping HB 520, a much-needed next step in mental healthcare reform, in the Senate HHS Committee. My sources tell me this standoff won’t end before Sine Die, so Georgians likely won’t get mental healthcare reform or an IDD Task Force this year.

Funding Follies

The plot thickens (you really can’t make this stuff up). SB 99 and the Butts County hospital project have put the Lt. Governor at odds with Wellstar Health Systems. Wellstar opposes the proposed Butts County hospital because it threatens two of their hospitals in the area. Wellstar also happens to be involved in a partnership with the Augusta University Health System to upgrade electronic health records at the Medical College of Georgia. House leaders worry that SB 99 could jeopardize the Augusta project. 

But in their quest to pass SB 99, Senate leadership slashed $105 million in University System funding in next year’s budget — the same amount that we approved in the mid-year budget for the Medical College of Georgia project. And they’ve stripped another bill of tax credits that would have benefitted Wellstar. 

It’s been sad to watch this all play out. I miss the steady leadership of Speaker Ralston and former Lt. Governor Geoff Duncan. Duncan took a more hands-off approach, letting Senators lead instead of forcing his own personal agenda. There are good reasons I decided to be cautious with my bill filing this year!

It’s all Fun and Games until a Bill Gets Hijacked

Soap Box Derby becomes Sports Betting: Crunch time is when we see lots of bill hijacking. One freshman Republican House member learned this the hard way as her simple two-page bill to recognize her hometown Soap Box Derby was changed to a 45-page sports betting bill. 

Anti-Semitism: After being tabled by the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate leadership brought the anti-Semitism bill (previously HB 30) back to life by completely stripping the contents of HB 144 (a bill about guardianship) and substituting the language from HB 30. At issue is putting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism into Georgia code. The definition includes specific examples of anti-Semitism which proponents say will help law enforcement and other authorities better identify and hold people accountable for anti-Semitic acts. Opponents worry that the definition will squash anti-Israel speech, especially on college campuses. However, the IHRA definition explicitly says “criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country cannot be regarded as anti-Semitic.”

 My Budget Priorities Get a Boost

We ended the week by passing the Senate’s version of the “Big Budget” for FY 2024. It includes good things such as pay raises for teachers and law enforcement, cost of living adjustments for state retirees, and funds to help end the “hoteling” of foster kids.

I was relieved to see all of my budget priorities — $4 million for a technical school in Doraville (hopefully the Governor won’t veto this again), Medicaid coverage for Occupational Therapy Assistants,  and 500 additional Medicaid Community Based Support waivers for people living with disabilities — included in the budget. I was especially proud when Appropriations Chairman Tillery gave me a special shout out as he presented the budget:

“And the line item that we were requested to add by the most Senate members in this budget was (funding for) 500 NOW/COMP waivers. And the credit for this again goes to the Senator from the 40th and the Senator from the 56th who have championed this cause in a bipartisan fashion and had numerous, numerous, members of this body sign on in support of their letters and I appreciate their approach and their support.”

Expect More Monkey Business

There are only two days left before Sine Die on Wednesday, which is still plenty of time for anything to happen. The budget is now in a Conference Committee where the House and Senate will work out their differences. Things can and do happen at the last minute, so keep your eyes peeled. 

https://youtu.be/ZRd-rUQ3NQQ 

When bills are hard to pass due to excessive political hijinks, you can work the  budget process to do good things. This year we continued the tradition we started last year of giving 500 more Georgia families access to Home & Community Based Services for their adult children living with intellectual & developmental disabilities.