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AJC.com > Legislature > Georgia Beat > Archives > 2005 > February > 09
Wednesday, February 9, 2005
House passes bill masking economic development negotiations
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The House today approved a controversial proposal dealing with open records and economic development by a vote of 118 to 52.
Supporters said the bill would help Georgia in its efforts to attract new industries. Critics said it would unnecessarily restrict public access to records on how public money is used in attracting industry.
The bill, House Bill 218, now goes to the state Senate for consideration.
House roll call
Voting yes were 29 Democrats, 88 Republicans and 1 Independent. Voting no were 45 Democrats and 7 Republicans. Not voting were 4 Democrats and 2 Republicans. Excused from the vote were 2 Democrats and 1 Republican. The presiding officer, Rep. Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram) votes only to make or break a tie.
DEMOCRATS VOTING YES: Barnes, Hampton; Bryant, Garden City; Buckner, Gail, Jonesboro; Channell, Greensboro; Cheokas, Americus; Coleman, Terry, Eastman; Cummings, Rockmart; Floyd, Johnny, Cordele; Floyd, Hugh, Norcross; Greene, Cuthbert; Hanner, Parrott; Heard, Keith, Athens; Heckstall, East Point; Howard, Augusta; James, Montezuma; Jamieson, Toccoa; Kidd, Athens; Lord, Sandersville; Marin, Duluth; Morris, Vidalia; Murphy, Quincy, Augusta; Parham, Milledgeville; Parrish, Swainsboro; Royal, Camilla; Smith, Paul, Rome; Smyre, Columbus; Von Epps, LaGrange; Warren, Augusta; Williams, Al, Midway.
DEMOCRATS VOTING NO: Abdul-Salaam, Riverdale; Anderson, Waynesbor; Ashe, Atlanta; Beasley-Teague, Atlanta; Benfield, Decatur; Black, Valdosta; Bordeaux, Savannah; Brooks, Atlanta; Bruce, Atlanta; Buckner, Debbie, Junction City; Dean, Atlanta; Drenner, Avondale; Dukes, Albany; Fludd, Fayetteville; Gardner, Atlanta; Henson, Stone Mountain; Holmes, Atlanta; Hugley, Columbus; Jackson, Savannah; Jacobs, Atlanta; Johnson, Marietta; Jones, Sheila, Atlanta; Jordan, Riverdale; Mangham, Decatur; Mitchell, Stone Mountain; Morgan, Austell; Mosby, Atlanta; Oliver, Decatur; Orrock, Atlanta; Porter, Dublin; Powell, Hartwell; Randall, Macon; Ray, Fort Valley; Reece, Barbara, Menlo; Sailor, Decatur; Sims, Freddie, Albany; Sinkfield, Atlanta; Stanley-Turner, Atlanta; Stephenson, Lithonia; Teilhet, Atlanta; Thomas, Mable, Atlanta; Thomas, Brian, Lilburn; Watson, Decatur; Williams, Ernest, Stone Mountain; Wix, Mableton.
DEMOCRATS NOT VOTING: Borders, Valdosta; Hudson, Sparta; Jenkins, Blairsville; Lucas, Macon.
DEMOCRATS EXCUSED: McClinton, Atlanta; Shaw, Lakeland.
REPUBLICANS VOTING YES: Amerson, Dahlonega; Barnard, Glennville; Benton, Jefferson; Bridges, Cleveland; Brown, LaGrange; Burkhalter, Duluth; Burmeister, Augusta; Burns, Newington; Butler, Carrollton; Byrd, Woodstock; Carter, Pooler; Casas, Lilburn; Chambers, Atlanta; Coan, Lawrenceville; Cole, Forsyth; Coleman, Brooks, Duluth; Cox, Lilburn; Davis, McDonough; Day, Tybee Island; Dickson, Cohutta; Dollar, Marietta; Ehrhart, Powder Springs; England, Auburn; Fleming, Harlem; Forster, Ringgold; Franklin, Marietta; Freeman, Macon; Geisinger, Roswell; Golick, Smyrna; Graves, Tom, Fairmount; Graves, David, Macon; Harbin, Evans; Heard, John, Lawrenceville; Hembree, Douglasville; Hill, Cecily, Saint Marys; Hill, Calvin, Woodstock; Holt, Social Circle; Horne, Newnan; Houston, Nashville; Jones, Jan, Alpharetta; Keen, St. Simons Island; Keown, Coolidge; Knight, Griffin; Knox, Cumming; Lakly, Peachtree City; Lane, Bob, Statesboro; Lane, Roger, Darien; Lewis, White; Lindsey, Atlanta; Loudermilk, Cassville; Lunsford, McDonough; Maddox, Cairo; Manning, Marietta; Martin, Alpharetta; Maxwell, Dallas; May, Monroe; McCall, Elberton; Meadows, Calhoun; Millar, Dunwoody; Miller, Lawrenceville; Mills, Gainesville; Mumford, Conyers; Murphy, Jack, Cumming; Neal, LaFayette; Parsons, Marietta; Ralston, Blue Ridge; Reece, Stacey, Gainesville; Reese, Sugar Hill; Rice, Norcross; Roberts, Ocilla; Rogers, Gainesville; Scott, Martin, Rossville; Scott, Austin, Tifton; Setzler, Kennesaw; Sheldon, Dacula; Sims, Chuck, Douglas; Smith, Bob, Watkinsville; Smith, Lynn, Newnan; Smith, Richard, Columbus; Smith, Tommy, Nicholls; Smith, Vance, Pine Mountain; Stephens, Savannah; Talton, Warner Robins; Walker, Loganville; Wilkinson, Sandy Springs; Willard, Atlanta; Williams, Roger, Dalton; Yates, Griffin.
REPUBLICANS VOTING NO: Bearden, Villa Rica; Cooper, Marietta; Crawford, Concord; Hatfield, Waycross; Mosley, Jesup; Rynders, Albany; Tumlin, Marietta.
REPUBLICANS NOT VOTING: O’Neal, Warner Robins; Scheid, Woodstock.
REPUBLICANS EXCUSED: Jennings, Atlanta.
INDEPENDENT VOTING YES: Dodson, Lake City.
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House approves small tax break for teachers buying supplies
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Georgia House today unanimously approved the governor’s plan to give teachers a modest tax break for spending their personal money on classroom supplies.
The bill, which passed 163-0, would allow teachers to deduct $250 worth of school supplies from their state income taxes — saving them about $15 a year.
Teachers can already claim that deduction on their federal income tax return.
State Rep. Jay Roberts (R-Ocilla), who is carrying the bill for Gov. Sonny Perdue, acknowledged that it’s not much money. “But anything we can do for our teachers — no matter how large or how small — I think we should do,” Roberts said. “We need to send a message back to our teachers that we appreciate what they do.”
State Rep. Lynmore James (D-Montezuma) said a $1,000 tax credit would be more appropriate. “This [$250 tax deduction] is a long way from justice for these teachers,” James said.
The tax break for Georgia’s 100,000 teachers is expected to cost the state about $1.8 million, Roberts said.
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Groups assail cap on jury awards
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As a bill to cap some jury awards in medical malpractice suits makes its way through the state Legislature, several organizations are ramping up their efforts to derail the measure.
Georgia Watch, a consumer protection advocacy group, along with a coalition of other statewide organizations, held a mini-rally in the state Capitol this morning to speak out against Senate Bill 3.
“We oppose tort reform because we believe it will not save doctors and hospitals money,” said Allison Wall, executive director of Georgia Watch. “It discriminates against older Georgians, stay at home parents and children.”
During this morning’s rally, the House Rules Committee voted to debate Senate Bill 3 on Thursday with four amendments. The most significant, suggested by House Speaker Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram), would raise the cap for jury awards for a malpractice victim’s pain and suffering.
The Special House Committee on Civil Justice Reform on Friday approved a bill that would cap such damages at $250,000 or up to $750,000 if multiple defendants are held liable.
Richardson’s amendment would increase that cap to $350,000 or up to $1.05 million in multiple-defendant cases. Another amendment, pushed by Rep. Wendell Willard (R-Atlanta), approved for debate would cap pain and suffering jury awards at $750,000.
Opponents of the tort reform bill say the measure won’t reduce skyrocketing insurance costs for doctors. They also say the bill would hurt Georgia citizens who are victims of a doctor or hospital’s negligence. Critics of the measure contend the value of a victim’s pain and suffering should not be capped with an arbitrary dollar amount and say certain groups of citizens - especially those who do not work outside the home - would be must vulnerable if the bill passes.
“This bill will make it hard for our older Georgians and their loved ones in nursing homes to seek redress when they are injured, neglected or abused,” said Cas Robinson, president of AARP Georgia. The Georgia Council on Aging and the Women’s Policy Group also opposed the bill.
Opponents of Senate Bill 3 may have a tough battle ahead of them. The measure was tagged as a top priority of the Republican leadership in both the House and Senate. The bill easily passed the Senate, despite outcry from many Democrats.
Another influential group opposing the bill is the Georgia chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. MADD Georgia Public Policy Liaison Donzella James, a former state senator, said the bill would do away with joint and several liability — a legal term meaning that more than one person is responsible for a payment or debt. James lost a son to a drunk driver in 1993.
“This lets drunk drivers and those who irresponsibly serve them alcohol off the hook,” James said. “There’s no reason to protect wrongdoers at the expense of Georgia citizens.”
Representatives from the Georgia Network to End Sexual Assault also expressed concern about the possible negative impact of the tort reform measure on victims of rape and sexual assault.
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Senate bill would remove helmet requirement for motorcyclists
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Several Senate bills were introduced and assigned to committee this morning.
Sen. Gloria Butler (D-Clarkston) introduced a bill to ban racial profiling of motorists. State. Rep. Tyrone Brooks (D-Atlanta) introduced a similar measure last year, which passed the House 116-34, but died in the Senate.
Sen. Jeff Mullis (R-Chickamauga) introduced a measure that would give motorcyclists over the age of 21 a choice about whether to wear helmets.
Sen. Dan Weber (R-Dunwoody) introduced a bill that would tighten up some exceptions to the state law requiring automobile passengers to wear seat belts.
With no bills up for debate today, the Senate quickly adjourned for a joint session with the House on the state of the judiciary.
The Senate Rules committee meets at 2:30 p.m. today to decide what bills will be up for a vote Thursday.
The Senate returns to session at 10 a.m. Thursday.
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